Tackling the Source of the Nile Trail Run
Picking myself out of the mud on the banks of the Nile for the third time, I realised there's a reason why trail running has a "trail" in it.
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Can a Web App Help Reduce Nigerian Food Waste?
Oscar Ekponimo has created a program that notifies retailers in real-time when their food items are approaching expiry and lets them initiate discounts on them. Oscar Ekponimo, the Nigerian inventor of a Web app improving food accessibility and affordability for poverty-stricken people, had his "epiphany" when he was strolling the aisles of a supermarket in 2014 and unearthed a can of tuna that was about to expire. "I pulled [the can] off the shelf and I said to the shopkeeper, 'Hey look, expi
In South Africa, ATM pharmacies help fill a massive shortfall
ALEXANDRA, South Africa — When Thapelo — name changed to protect his identity — went to government clinics to collect medicine for chronic blood pressure, the lines were so long that he was often forced to take the day off work. And at times, he’d even leave without his medication. “The line is very long and then they say, ‘you may come tomorrow,’” said the 58-year-old, “it affected my health.” South Africa needs about 12,000 pharmacists to fulfill the international standard of 50 pharmacists
Nigeria Turns to Technology to Reduce Food Waste and Fight Hunger
Oscar Ekponimo, the Nigerian inventor of a web app improving food accessibility and affordability for poverty-stricken people, had his “epiphany” when he was strolling the aisles of a supermarket in 2014 and unearthed a can of tuna that was about to expire. “I pulled [the can] off the shelf and I said to the shopkeeper, ‘Hey look, expiring in a matter of a week,’” the 31-year-old software engineer explained. They were “throwing away food that was still consumable because it had reached its expi
Can innovative design help improve low-cost housing in Cape Town?
This photo from February 2017 shows one of the first Empower Shack structures in the township of Khayelitsha, Cape Town. This year, the low-cost housing project was nominated for the prestigious 2018 RIBA International Prize. In the lounge room of her two-storey home made from corrugated iron, timber and hollow-core blocks, Magau Mhlupheki is washing clothes using a big plastic bucket. It’s a new experience, even though her water usage is limited by the restrictions put in place to prevent the
Come To Do Your Laundry, Stay for the Dim Sum
Some come to have their washing done. Some come for the dim sum. Some come for both. Sitting below Cape Town’s Table Mountain, I Love My Laundry (the “love” is a red heart), offers washing and drying services, food, and drinks. They claim to be South Africa’s “first destination laundry”.
South Africa pushes to combat HIV among girls #blessed by sugar daddies
More than 10 percent of young women in South Africa are HIV positive JOHANNESBURG, March 26 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before 20-year-old Lebogang Motsumi even had sex with her first "blesser" - or sugar daddy - a successful, married, company boss more than twice her age, he handed her a wad of cash. He was soon making regular deposits into her bank account, paying her rent and taking her out in exchange for sex, which the young single mother readily accepted as she had a three-month-old b
In Uganda, Unmarried Women Must Fight to Keep Their Homes
Kampala, UGANDA – After almost two decades living with a man nearly twice her age, who first got her pregnant when she was 15, Jane Zamukunda finally had one small comfort: a nice home that she felt was hers. Her partner and father of her three children had bought a piece of land in the Nansana suburb of Kampala, where they built a house together. It was comfortable by most standards, with furniture and a TV. But most important to Zamukunda, now 28, was the fact that she had a key to the house:
White South African farmers dig in against deadly persecution
Heading out onto his 325-hectare property in a lush part of South Africa where the serenity of the pine trees and rolling hills belies some of the trouble that has occurred, Robin (name changed) was doing what has become “an absolute necessity”.
Australia's offer to fast track visas for "persecuted" white farmers is slammed by South Africa
A potential offer by Australia to give white South African farmers “humanitarian” visas has sparked backlash from the South African government. Australia’s home affairs, immigration and border protection minister Peter Dutton said he had asked his department to “look at ways in which we can provide some assistance”, following claims in the country’s Rupert Murdoch-owned newspapers that “white South African farmers are murdered every week.” Fact-checking website Africa Check was quick to point o
In Uganda, Finding Out Just How ‘Miraculous’ Sweet Potatoes Can Be
LUWERO, Uganda – At Joweria Sekiyanja’s house in tiny Mayilikiti village in central Uganda, a group of about 15 women are marveling at an assortment of goodies the mother has made to sell at local markets. There are twisted treats Sekiyanja calls “mummies,” doughnuts, cakes, packaged porridge and soft-drink bottles containing a bright orange liquid. The common ingredient in all of them is orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP). The biofortified crop is enriched with beta-Carotene, which gives the p
The Aussie student who makes soccer jerseys for the world's toughest market
Kampala, Uganda: When Robert Wurube, a South Sudanese soccer player, represents millions of people from his war-torn country sporting his national jersey, there’s some Australian labour of love that’s gone into his uniform’s design. The green shirt donned by the midfielder boasts a bright, complex diagonal sash with cultural symbols traditionally worn by local chiefs to symbolise their power. It was created by the AMS Clothing company, founded by Melbourne university student Luke Westcott. AMS
Q&A: Uganda's RHU warns of impact of global gag rule on its programs
KAMPALA, Uganda — Reproductive Health Uganda is one of Uganda’s leading NGOs providing services related to sexual health and reproductive rights, but it now faces a number of challenges to its work, including a recent move by the United States to bring back the Mexico City policy, also known as the “global gag rule.” In 2016, RHU reached over 6.8 million people in the east African nation, with 3.3 million services offered to youth. They accessed nearly 1 million people across the country with f
Last Hope: The Doctor Who Fixes ‘Inoperable’ Fistulas in Nigeria
JOS, Nigeria – When Zainab Sani went into labor about 13 years ago, her husband refused to take her to hospital. They lived just 3...
Menstrual Cups and Reusable Pads Are a Hit in Uganda’s Refugee Camps
RHINO REFUGEE CAMP, Uganda – Mary* got her period a couple of years ago, while she was living in her home country of South Sudan....
Catching a tummy bug, and eating it! Insects as a delicacy in Africa.
TWICE a year they come to Uganda - and the children get very excited.
Superhero is mightier than the sword in Asia
A FEW YEARS ago, the school that Shakila goes to in Afghanistan was attacked while she was in class.
"The only hope is to die": Suicide soars among Ugandan migrants abused in the Gulf
"Suicide means you have been going through a very difficult time. Life has not been bearable, the only hope is to die." KAMPALA, Nov 30...
The Woman Entrepreneur Taking the Taboo out of HIV Testing in Nigeria
LAGOS, Nigeria – They arrive in small brightly colored packages, having been ferried through the notorious gridlock of Nigeria’s huge cities. What’s inside could be...
Twenty-Three Women Murdered in Uganda, And No One Knows Why
The body of the first woman was found at a banana plantation in Nansana. A boy collecting sugarcane made the gruesome discovery of a corpse...
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