Bulawayo, Zimbabwe — African countries are exploring ways to tax high-earning individuals as the continent seeks to expand its revenue collection amid what experts say is a growing gulf between rich and poor. The numbers are staggering. According to Oxfam, “the richest 5 percent in Africa now hold nearly USD 4 trillion in wealth, more…
Abuja — Turkey has commenced a sweeping increase in residence permit application fees, raising certain categories for Nigerians, and nationals of about 36 other African countries by as much as 930 per cent, the Directorate General of Migration Management announced at the weekend A total of about 140 other countries, across continents, including the United…
“There is no better mirror than a true friend,” says a popular African proverb This maxim is quite apt while assessing the long-existing China-Africa cooperation. This is because the partnership, which began more than seven decades ago, has been based on mutual respect and understanding. At the moment, China is having diplomatic relations with 53…
The ongoing insecurity in the Middle East, where a large proportion of the world’s oil and gas is extracted, is forcing many countries to focus on how they can ensure access to cheap and reliable energy supplies primarily through the use of renewable power sources. Why it matters: Some 20 per cent of the world’s…
The World Health Organization (WHO) wrapped up Exercise Polaris II, a 2-day high-level simulation exercise, based around an outbreak of a fictional new bacterium spreading across the world. Bringing together 26 countries and territories, 600 health emergency experts and over 25 partners, the exercise, which took place on 22 and 23 April, allowed countries to…
Kampala, Uganda — The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has revealed that 21 countries had, by Friday, declared measles outbreaks–an alarming development given that the disease is highly preventable through vaccination. Speaking to journalists during a press briefing, Prof. Yap Boum II, the Deputy Head of the Africa CDC Mpox Response,…
A growing share of global hunger is becoming entrenched in a small group of conflict-hit countries, with two-thirds of people facing acute food insecurity concentrated in just 10 nations, a major international report backed by UN agencies warns. The 2026 Global Report on Food Crises, released on Friday by an alliance of UN agencies, the…
Some African countries carry names that trace back not just to geography or culture, but to individuals who lived centuries ago. In these cases, national identity is tied to historical figures: rulers, explorers, saints, or colonial-era personalities: whose legacies endure long after their deaths. Here are five African countries named after people who are no…
Some developing country governments spend years making the reforms that international financial institutions want – only to find that their efforts are not rewarded. They may make budgets more transparent, publish their debt obligations, set up independent bodies to monitor government spending, and complete an International Monetary Fund programme, but still receive the same ratings…
As low and middle-income countries (LMICs) continue to shoulder a disproportionate burden of smoking-related disease, access to pragmatic, evidence-based harm reduction solutions is becoming an increasingly urgent public-health priority. Philip Morris International’s newly released 2025 Value Report offers an important snapshot of how tobacco harm reduction—through the accelerated adoption of smokefree products (SFPs)—is beginning to…
