08 September 2021
“The crab says that after gallantly swimming the small rivers and great oceans, he was finally defeated by an old woman’s pot of soup”
BBC Africa Live 08 September 2021. Wise words of the day. An Igbo proverb from Nigeria sent by Nweze Oforkaja Valentine in Yaoundé, Cameroon
Somalia: The President and the Prime Minister are at it once again, vying for power. The Prime Minister sacked the intelligence chief and appointed a new one, the President reinstates him. Etc.
BBC Africa Live 08 September 2021. 10:12
07 September 2021
Central African Republic: The military approach to establishing state control will not work (as it has not worked in the past) – in the article’s author’s view, “only an emphasis on civilian aspects of rule – such as providing education, health and building infrastructure – can stop rebellions from successfully challenging the state’s rule in the future.” Much more than arms is needed to rule the country.
https://theconversation.com/what-it-will-take-to-end-civil-war-in-the-central-african-republic-166041
Teenage pregnancy/South Africa: “21 million girls aged 15-19 years in developing countries become pregnant and about 12 million of them give birth every year.” This not only presents health risks, it also means that the girl-mothers risk dropping out of school, “limiting their future economic opportunities and perpetuating a cycle of poverty”. South Africa has recently witnessed an increase in the adolescent pregnancy rate, due also to difficulties in accessing contraception during the pandemic. Already before the pandemic, 16% began childbearing before reaching the age of 19 (11% in urban and 19% in rural areas). Based on two separate studies, the article looks into the realities of and reasons for teenage pregnancies in South Africa.
https://theconversation.com/teenage-pregnancy-during-covid-19-in-south-africa-a-double-pandemic-166987
Egypt: Human Rights Watch (HRW) claims that authorities routinely carry out “unlawful executions, (…) then claiming that the deaths occurred during ‘shoot-outs’ with militants.” 755 such killings have been reported by authorities since 2016. HRW has examined 14 of these and says it knows the 14 were in custody before being killed.
BBC Africa Live 07 September 2021. 12:13
See also https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-58475287