This edition of African news hits a few interesting areas. We’ve got political details and women’s health news after the jump.
Politics and Society
Mali’s prime minister was arrested and forced to resign. This puts a hold on the resolution the UN Security Council had passed a few weeks back. What it breaks down to is that it slows down–even halts–any efforts that were being made to settle the unrest in the northern part of the country.
The U.S. has a “quiet diplomacy” standard for dealing with Rwanda’s influence in eastern DRC, which NGOs have claimed has been unhelpful in ending the conflict in the region. These same NGOs are calling for an embargo on all non-humanitarian aid to Rwanda. In response, the Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson has pointed out that there is evidence proving that the Rwandan government has been helping the M23 rebels but on the other hand he states that there is no proof that any aid has been misused or rechanneled into the conflict in the DRC.
Science and Agriculture
Nelson Mandela has been hospitalized for a recurrent lung infection. Those close to Mandela are keeping quiet and asking for privacy, hoping that his illness will not be used for political reasons.
With climate change, growing conditions for coffee are less than ideal. To offset the climate change, East African farmers are now growing banana trees amongst coffee bushes to help provide shade.
Miscellaneous
Lagos, Nigeria, has its own customized Monopoly board game. There are two African countries with their own versions–Morocco and South Africa–but Lagos is the first city to have its own version. The cheapest property on the board is named after a well-known slum, and the most expensive property is named after a manmade island inhabited by the wealthy.
This opinion piece, written by Chi-Chi Undie of Nairobi, Kenya, discusses why medical professionals don’t currently screen for intimate partner violence in sub-Saharan Africa and why she believes that they should be screening. There is a lot of cultural push back on screenings, but there is hope that they can change.
2 replies on “News in Africa: 12/13/2012”
Well thought, Eastern African farmers. I hope it pays off.
Agreed! :) Cocoa growers in West Africa are also facing difficulties with production because they’ve modified the way that they grow the plants and it isn’t as beneficial.