A global expert on soil health who began his research career in Nigeria has been named the recipient of the 2020 World Food Prize. Dr. Rattan Lal, who grew up as a refugee on a smallholder farm in India, received the US$250,000 prize for his work in protecting and improving…
Struggling French automaker Renault is set to cut 15,000 jobs around the world, according to labor leaders who met with company officials Thursday night to discuss the plans before a public announcement expected Friday. The cuts are part of a deal the company hopes will deliver €2 billion in savings…
Some of the greatest luminaries in the arts and sciences – from Nobel prize-winning astrophysicists, to singer Madonna to the economist Muhammad Yunus – have published a joint statement insisting that the world cannot go “back to normal” and must consider the COVID-19 crisis an urgent call for new pathways…
Conservationists from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa are among the recipients of this year’s prestigious Whitley Awards, announced Tuesday by the United Kingdom-based sponsor organization. Abdullahi Hussein Ali, above, is the founder of Kenya’s Hirola Conservation Programme, and works with pastoralists and local communities to protect the critically endangered antelope….
Another painting by Nigerian master Ben Enwonwu is headed for auction at Sotheby’s later this month, this time with an intriguing story believed to link the work to the Ebira people of central Kogi state. Painted in 1953, “Sefi” features a woman who until recently was known only as the…
Egypt is advancing its goals in space, following approval last week of a 10-year development plan for the Egyptian Space Agency (EgSA) established in August. The agency launched its first communications satellite in November, as part of a plan to ensure mobile and Internet services for all of Egypt as…
With its publication of the “Luanda Leaks,” the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) effectively dispelled decades’ worth of myth-building surrounding Isabel dos Santos, daughter of Angola’s longtime president José Eduardo dos Santos. The investigative series explains how the younger Dos Santos – the former head of Angola’s state oil…
Human rights campaigners say they welcome the decision by Canada’s Supreme Court to allow a lawsuit against the Nevsun mining firm, which is accused of human rights violations during operations in Eritrea. Human Rights Watch said a 2013 investigation first found that an Eritrean construction firm owned by the country’s…
The Basketball Africa League announced Wednesday that its inaugural season – set to begin next week in Dakar – has been postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak. League president Amadou Gallo Fall said he was making the decision after consulting with the Senegalese government, which is now dealing with four…
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is sending $10 million to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to help combat a devastating locust infestation in East Africa and Horn nations. “The locust invasion is the worst Kenya has seen in 70 years, and the worst in nearly a…
Three Africans have been named as special envoys on the coronavirus, as the World Health Organization (WHO) expressed growing concern Friday over the COVID-19 spread in Iran, South Korea and beyond the borders of China. The three envoys will serve to provide strategic advice and high-level political advocacy and engagement…
Tech giant Apple says its operations in China, where much of its iPhone manufacturing is concentrated, have been seriously disrupted by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. “Work is starting to resume around the country, but we are experiencing a slower return to normal conditions than we had anticipated,” said Apple in…
The African Development Bank delivered a forceful response on Thursday, after World Bank President David Malpass suggested the AfDB was among multinational development banks that are too quick to lend and therefore adding to the debt burden in African nations. Malpass specifically mentioned AfDB loans to Nigeria and South Africa…
Mobile World Congress (MWC), one of the world’s premier tech and telecom events, has been canceled because of the coronavirus outbreak, its GSMA organizers said Wednesday. “With due regard to the safe and healthy environment in Barcelona and the host country today, the GSMA has canceled MWC Barcelona 2020 because…
Madagascar has welcomed its new Hakanto Contemporary gallery in Antananarivo with an exhibit celebrating local artists in a space committed to contemporary art. The “Here We Reach All the Dreams of the World” exhibit opening showcased Malagasy dancers, musicians, writers, designers and chefs, in a dedication of the 300 square…