Africa Update Vol. 5
Welcome to this week's edition of Africa Update! We've got Rwandan business empires, inspirational Ugandan films, the Africa Fact-Checking Awards, STEM scholarships, and more.
From the archives: I love this colorful mural at the Nubuke Foundation, Accra
West Africa: Soldiers in Côte d'Ivoire have cut off access to the country's second largest city in protest over their salaries. Nigeria's industrial sector is struggling in the face of an oil-induced recession. ECOWAS has come up with the world's first plan to fight statelessness, which affects nearly one million people in the region. If only they could coordinate equally well to combat illegal fishing, which costs the region over US$2 billion per year.
Central Africa: The ruling party in Burundi is promoting sexual violence as a tool of political control. Veuillez regarder ce portrait de l'opposition burundais en exil. The DRC has a new government, but as the Congo Research Group points out, its purpose is to build political alliances rather than to govern. The Economist has a remarkable portrait of the RPF's business empire in Rwanda.
East Africa: Urbanization in Kenya is causing food prices to rise for an unusual reason: city residents tend to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables than their rural peers. Most primary schools in Nairobi have no access to water because of disputes over bill payments. A new film depicts daily life in Somalia for peacekeepers from Burundi.
Southern Africa: A Zambian radio show is working to destigmatize mental illness. If you're in Zambia, get your tickets for TEDxLusaka on 27 May. Ignore some of the "China in Africa" panic in this article, and it's an interesting portrait of Chinese uranium mines in Namibia. In South Africa, schoolkids who can't take exams in their native languages end up with significantly lower scores.
Politics and Economics: Don't miss the fourth annual Africa Fact-Checking Awards for journalists on the continent. Read Angelo Izama's interesting reflections on whether it's possible to support freedom of the press but question the utility of liberal democracy in Uganda. If you look at African economies in terms of the size of their urban markets rather than overall GDP, Nigeria appears to be doing significantly better than South Africa. African governments are spending millions of dollars annually hiring US-based lobbying firms.
Map via Shelby Grossman
Academics: This was an interesting piece on the process of doing historical demography research in northern Ghana. A new study finds that Ugandan schoolkids who watched the inspirational film "Queen of Katwe" did better on their exams. After being imprisoned for insulting the Ugandan president, academic Stella Nyanzi is now out on bail. Umaru Fofana has written a moving piece (with a stunning last sentence) about how he funded his university studies by digging for diamonds in Sierra Leone.
Scholarships: If you know any secondary school girls who are interested in STEM, encourage them to apply for WAAW's 2017 STEM camps in Abuja and Lagos. The Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World is offering PhD scholarships at a range of universities. Oxford has a new scholarship for students who are refugees.
Public Health: The Independent has an interesting supplement about advances in public health in Rwanda. In Guinea and Sierra Leone, ethnic groups with more representation in Parliament were less likely to be affected by Ebola. There has been another Ebola outbreak in the DRC, but Laura Seay points out that handling Ebola is one of the few things the Congolese public health system does well.
EpidAlert shares this timeline of previous Ebola outbreaks in the DRC
Culture: Boutique Nigerian publisher Cassava Republic is finally breaking into the US market. The age of the web series has arrived in Nigeria. Here's where to find the best African food in Paris. Watch these 9 must-see TED talks by Africans in tech. The Wall of Great Africans is your inspiring Facebook page of the day.
Twitter: Interesting people I followed this week include Wandia Njoya (Kenya), Wambui Waiganjo (Kenya), Elayne Okaya (Kenya), Chambi Chachage (Tanzania), Samira Sawlani (East Africa), and Morgane Le Cam (Burkina Faso).
Cheers,
Rachel