Africa

Photo: Collage of the drone releasing sterile male mosquitoes (left) and TDR global scientists team Credit: WHO

Insect Birth Control to Combat Mosquito-Borne Diseases

By Kwame Buist

GENEVA (IDN) – A form of insect birth control – Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) – that sterilises male mosquitoes using radiation will soon be tested as part of global health efforts to control diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika.

The technique involves the mass production, sex-separation and sterilisation of male mosquitoes by exposing them to low doses of radiation. Sterile males released into the wild mate with wild female mosquitoes of the same species, resulting in the production of unviable eggs that lead to a decline in wild mosquito populations.

: Phil Harris; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 18 November 2019

Photo: Rohingyas at the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh, October 2017. CC BY 4.0

Gambia Sues Myanmar at UN Court with Rohingya Genocide

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Few countries are standing up to Myanmar, formerly Burma, for its mistreatment of the Muslim community known as Rohingya. On November 11, Gambia – the smallest nation in mainland Africa – came to the defense of the persecuted minority, filing a lawsuit with the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, charging Myanmar with genocide.

: THE WORLD; Africa; 12 November 2019

Photo credit: Roscongress | Vyacheslav Viktorov

Russia and Africa Resolved on Concrete Actions in Trade and Investment

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – After the first Russia-Africa Summit in the Black Sea city Sochi on October 23-24, Russia and Africa have resolved to move from mere intentions to concrete actions in raising the current bilateral trade and investment to appreciably higher levels in the coming years.

As a first step, Russia plans to offer trade subsidies and investment guarantees as an emergency support for Russian companies to penetrate into African market, part of the strategy for strengthening economic ties between Russia and Africa, according to a report by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 07 November 2019

Photo: The campus of Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. © 2019 Oryem Nyeko for Human Rights Watch

Military Attack Striking Students at Famed Ugandan University

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) - As shocking images were viewed around the world of Ugandan police and soldiers beating and gassing students at the renowned Makerere University, President Yoweri Museveni was forced to acknowledge that his security forces were out of control.

“The military is not trained to quell demonstrations,” he began. “They are trained to kill. Those students are not enemies. They are young children, grandchildren who need to be guided to do the right thing.”

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 07 November 2019

Image: Global map of suspected NSO Pegasus infections. Source: Citizen Lab.

Growing Market in Africa for Spyware Targeting Journalists and Activists

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – If you’re worried about robocalls offering a dubious sale of bitcoins, a new technology aimed at political dissidents will chill you to the bone.

Pegasus, an all-seeing spyware, worms its way into phones and starts transmitting the owner’s location, encrypted chats, travel plans – and even the voices of people you meet – to servers around the world.

: THE WORLD; Africa; 06 November 2019

Photo: Filipe Nyusi, President, Republic of Mozambique at Chatham House on 17 April 2018. Credit: Suzanne Plunkett 2018

Frelimo, Renamo Tear Up Peace Pact After Elections ‘Tarnished by Fraud’

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Hopes for a lasting peace between longtime rivals Frelimo and Renamo are fading fast as a recent vote for president of the southern African nation of Mozambique has been muddied by claims of fraud, unjustified use of state resources, as well as sporadic violence including the murder of an election observer.

"An unlevel playing field was evident throughout the campaign," a member of the European Mission was reported to say.

: THE WORLD; Africa; 30 October 2019

Photo credit: Roscongress Foundation | Danila Vorobyov

A Glimpse of Russian Policy of Writing Off African Debts

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – President Vladimir Putin hosted the first Russia-Africa summit on October 23-24 in the greatest display of Moscow's efforts to restore its geopolitical foothold on the continent after the historical collapse of the Soviet era.

Russia had played rather a crucial role in the continent during the Soviet era, supporting independence movements and training government leaders in former Soviet client states such as Angola, Ethiopia and a few others. Moscow's relations with Africa deteriorated after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, with China taking over as the continent's key foreign business partner.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 28 October 2019

ACP-EU-IOM Join to Combat Refugee Crisis Across Africa

By Jeffrey Moyo

CHIPINGE, Zimbabwe (IDN) – When he fled from his country’s 1994 genocide, now 63-year old Iradukunda Nyaruyonga, a Rwandese national had four teenage children whose education he thought had been prematurely ended by the civil war in the home country. Now, despite having grown up in a refugee camp, Nyaruyonga’s children are counted amongst great achievers domiciled in Zimbabwe.

: Jeffrey Moyo; THE WORLD; Africa; 27 October 2019

Photo: Statements by Russian Putin and Egyptian President El-Sissi for media. Credit: Roscongress Foundation | Anatoliy Medved.

Putin and El-Sissy Greet the Outcome of Russia-Africa Summit

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – The first Russia-Africa Summit that brought together African leaders, corporate businesses, academics and other experts in the Black Sea city of Sochi on October 23-24 has agreed an action plan. At the initiative of African participants, a new dialogue mechanism – the Russia-Africa partnership forum – has been created.

Top-level meetings will take place within its framework once every three years, alternately in Russia and in an African state. And, the foreign ministers of Russia and three African countries – the current, future and previous chairpersons of the African Union – will meet for annual consultations.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 25 October 2019

Photo: Discussion on the role of media in Russian–African relations. Credit: Roscongress Foundation | Evgeniy Reutov.

Russia and Africa Move Towards Filling the Information Gap

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW, (IDN) – Russian and African communication experts have moved closer to forging collaboration in bridging the information gap between the two regions as well as fight against “anti-Russian propaganda” by western and European media in Africa.

Some of the popular questions the panelists tried answering during the two-hour long deliberations as part of the Russia-Africa Forum within the framework of the Summit on October 23-24 included: