One of a wonderful series of portraits fromGhana’s first female professional photographer- Every headline ought to be about the horrific scale of the food crises in South Sudan, Somalia and Nigeria. Here’s how to help. This portrait of daily life in South Sudan is deeply saddening.
- Violence continues to escalate in eastern DRC. The Congo Research Group has a good write-up of the five main factors driving the current conflict. Lisez ce portrait de la vie quotidienne à Beni — “mathématique macabre à l’est du Congo.” If you know any Congolese women who are interested in law, direct them to the American Bar Association’s new set of scholarships.
- Next door, exiled Burundian journalists are reporting in secret from Kigali. This is a remarkable portrait of the Rwandan ruling party’s business ventures. Perhaps some day they’ll invest in the first Rwandan-made car.
- Many of Nigeria’s Chibok girls have escaped Boko Haram, but now they’re finding themselves prisoners of fame. Also in Nigeria, a new app lets you compare official and black market exchange rates. Bookmark it before traveling for work on one of the country’s newly simplified business visas. But don’t forget a face mask if you’re going to Onitsha, which is said to have the world’s worst urban air quality.
- Kenyan doctors have ended a 100-day strike after signing a new pay deal. The country has also just banned plastic bags. Here’s an interesting observation on why most mobile credit loans in Kenya are taken out between 3 and 5 am. For more on life and culture in Nairobi, check out the newly launched Nairobi Side Hustle.
- There’s been some great reporting from Liberia lately. Check out this article on how a grassroots women’s movement elected the country’s first female president. This was an insightful piece on the faultlines around immigration and entrepreneurship in Monrovia’s ice cream wars.
- Essential reading for Women’s History Month: an excellent piece on how African feminism changed the world. Here’s why women’s rights advance more quickly after major conflicts. OkayAfrica’s list of 100 inspiring women is outstanding. Rwanda leads the continent in terms of female political representation, with 63% of MPs being female. But there’s still work to be done: a new survey in Kenya says that 42% of women agree that it’s sometimes acceptable for a husband to beat his wife.
- Women at Malawian Airlines are making history by flying the country’s first all-female flight. But African air travel is still expensive and relatively inaccessible to the public, thanks in part to independence-era regulations about national carriers. We have all missed our chance to fly to Kano and be greeted by a trumpeter seated on a camel.
- Some positive stories to start your week: in Niger, Muslim and Christian religious leaders are working together to promote tolerance. Tax Inspectors Without Borders is helping poor countries catch looting multinational firms. Clear your schedule for the next three months to read the upcoming 54-volume Cultural Encyclopedia of African art. Or, if that doesn’t work, take in some bite-size literature with the finalists of the African Poetry Prize.
