As the world’s education ministers gathered in New York at the Transforming Education Summit they took stock of progress towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4): equitable quality education for all. It’s understood that achieving this Goal will require intensified efforts, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. In sub-Saharan Africa, one-fifth of primary-aged children…
For many African nations, the economic challenges remain enormous. Zimbabwe, for example, saw its extreme poverty rate increase by 5 percent in 2019, leaving a third of the nation – some 5.7 million people, according to World Bank – to deal with sharp inflation and shortages, all from the most…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
By Dominic Rohner and Alessandro Saia According to the United Nations Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict, 2018 year was the worst on record in terms of children trapped in armed conflict regions, with nearly 250,000 students impacted by the closure of several hundred schools in Mali alone. These…
Eritrea’s forced conscription policies, which are a key driver for young people migrating from the Horn of Africa nation, are rooted in the country’s educational system – where students say they feel trapped rather than trained for the future, according to a report released Friday by Human Rights Watch (HRW)….
A South Korean solar energy company partnering with a Kenyan school has received a 2019 Innovation Award at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), for a project designed to keep children in developing nations in school rather than missing out on an education to work at home. The global technology showcase…
Music icon John Legend headlined this year’s Global Citizen Festival in New York City on Saturday, joining other celebrities and leaders in appealing for action on global poverty, climate change and other pressing issues. The concert, planned to coincide each year with the United Nations General Assembly, is the final…
Malawi launched its new five-year development plan on Tuesday during a ceremony at Kamuzu Palace, the State House in Lilongwe. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III emphasizes climate priorities, alongside agriculture and water resources, in a vision that runs through 2022 and builds on the previous version. It…
On International Women’s Day, Lucy Asuagbor – the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa based in The Gambia – called on Africans to “press for progress” in achieving gender equality. Asuagbor, speaking on behalf of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, praised the continent’s success…
Last September, during the Global Citizen Festival in New York City, President Emmanuel Macron of France promised to raise USD$1 billion to support education in the developing world as part of the $3.1 billion funding goal for the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Now Macron and partner President Macky Sall…
As the world noted the International Day of the Girl Child, a new report showed the 10 most difficult nations for girls when it comes to completing an education – and nine of them are in Africa. Some 130 million girls are out of school each day across the globe,…
Music icon Stevie Wonder headlined this year’s Global Citizen Festival in New York City on Saturday, joining other celebrities, companies and world leaders in appealing for action on global poverty, climate change and other pressing issues. The concert, planned to coincide each year with the United Nations General Assembly, is…
Nigeria welcomed a special guest on Monday as Malala Yousafzai continued her international tour to meet girls – and their political leaders – in a campaign promoting the right to an education. Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, leading the nation as President Muhammadu Buhari remains on medical leave in London, welcomed…
The future of Africa’s youth seems to be on everyone’s mind. Chad is playing host to the Pan African Youth Forum through Saturday, where 300 young people from 54 countries are engaged in a core discussion of how to take full advantage of the continent’s “demographic dividend.” Heads of state…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Lawyers in Cameroon occupied the court complex in Bamenda on Tuesday, demanding that their voices be heard in the ongoing battle over education and legal reforms. The protesting lawyers were met with a heavy security-force presence in and around the court building, the Cameroon Concord reports. Local media accounts also…
Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said soft infrastructure investment across Africa is a development and investment priority as the IMF encourages a more inclusive – and more vigorous – approach to global economic growth. “More can be done to raise growth now and make it more inclusive,”…