By Kizito Makoye DAR ES SALAAM (IDN) – When Monica Makona failed to obtain the bank loan, she badly needed to grow her business two years ago, she did not lose hope. Armed with her android smartphone, Makona tapped into TALA – a popular lending app she had previously downloaded – and within minutes she […]
A Colonial-Era Law Banning Same-Sex Relations Is Defeated
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – If a democratic society is characterized by “tolerance, diversity and open-mindedness,” three countries in Africa have now reached that pinnacle. Botswana joined Angola and Mozambique in de-criminalizing same-sex relations in June 2019. High Court Justice Michael Lebruru, in his defining decision, added: “human dignity is […]
Nigeria Restores the Study of History in Public Schools
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – The government of Muhammadu Buhari is bringing back the teaching of history in all basic and secondary schools – ending a decade in which departments of history were dismantled or merged into other programs as having little earnings potential for the high school graduates. In […]
Palestinians Reject The 50 Billion Dollar ‘Deal of The Century’
Viewpoint by Somar Wijayadasa* NEW YORK (IDN) – A workshop entitled ‘Peace for Prosperity’ to introduce the United States President Donald Trump’s Peace Plan (also known as the ‘Deal of the Century’) for the Palestinians, was held in Bahrain on June 25-26 – hosted by Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner. According to Kushner, the […]
Too Many Taboos Hinder Progress of Young Pakistani Women
By Sehar Naz Janani KARACHI (IDN) – “Girls have the right to take important decisions of their lives, and only education can help them to stand on their feet and fight for themselves”, says Rabia, a Pakistani mother from rural Sindh. Pakistani mothers are so dedicated to educating their daughters to ensure that they would […]
Sri Lanka’s Strategic Location Incites US-China Rivalry
By Kalinga Seneviratne SINGAPORE (IDN) – U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cancelled a scheduled visit to Sri Lanka on June 27 as part of his ‘Indo-Pacific’ tour citing “unavoidable scheduling conflicts”, according to the United States Embassy in Colombo. But they might more precisely have said, the visit was dropped “due to unavoidable opposition to U.S. […]
Ethics Essential to Developing Global Smart Tech, Say Experts
By David Robie* This feature is moved in association with the Pacific Media Centre in New Zealand. BANGKOK (IDN) – Addressing the annual conference of Asian communication scholars, a leading cyber security expert has called on universities to play a more active role in implementing ethics and legal frameworks for communications smart technology to save […]
Tunisia Forces Bangladeshi Migrants to Return Home
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network New York (IDN) – A shipload of desperate Bangladeshi migrants was told to turn the boat around and go home by Tunisian officials or be deprived of food, water and medicines. The migrants, trapped on a merchant ship off Tunisia for three weeks, were sent back to their home […]
Ethiopian Old Guard Rejects Prime Minister’s Sweeping Reforms
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | ASMARA (IDN) – Since becoming prime minister of Ethiopia in April 2018, Abiy Ahmed has launched a wide-ranging programme of political and economic reforms, not all of which have met with favour by supporters of the federalism-based constitution and system of the land-locked country on the […]
Continuous Influx of Eritrean Refugees Challenges Ethiopia
Viewpoint by Kristina Melicherová BRUSSELS (IDN) – Refugee and host communities in Ethiopia came together on June 20 to commemorate World Refugee Day through various cultural activities, organized within refugee camps as well as urban settings. But the reality behind the festivities is that hundreds of Eritrean refugees continue to cross the border between Eritrea […]