NEWS - The African Mirror

Dec

16

2023

Nigeria Supreme Court blocks release of separatist leader Kanu

NEWS

NIGERIA'S Supreme Court overturned a judgment by a lower court that dropped terrorism charges against separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu, ruling that trial on the charges should continue. Kanu, a British citizen who leads the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), disappeared from Nigeria after skipping bail in 2017. He was arrested in Kenya in 2021 and charged with terrorism. Friday's ruling by Judge Lawal Garba reinstating Kanu's seven-count terrorism trial at a lower federal court has effectively extended his detention, which began two years ago after his arrest. "Even though illegalities were committed with the deployment of brutal force to…

Dec

16

2023

By KATE OKORIE, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Kenyans Scoop Top Awards at the UN Climate Change Conference

NEWS

SEBASTIAN Mwaura, the co-founder of YNA (Young Nation Agenda) Kenya, is one of the two UN Global Climate Action Award recipients. Naiyan Kiplagat, the co-founder and director of the Paran Women Group, went home with the Gender Just Climate Solutions Award in the non-technical solutions category for her work training women to become climate defenders. On the other hand, Whitney Mwangi, the former East Africa co-lead for the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) Youth Advisory Council, won the Rising Champion Award. Mwaura's organisation focuses on expediting the adoption of electric vehicles by establishing a robust charging network powered by renewable…

Dec

15

2023

By The African Mirror

From trash to power: how to harness energy from Africa’s garbage dumps – and save billions in future damage

NEWS

NEW research on garbage dumps in 44 sub-Saharan African countries shows that 95% are unregulated. The landfill sites still take in new garbage even when they are filled to capacity. As the waste decomposes, these sites release harmful greenhouse gases. However, using methane gas to generate energy instead could save the continent billions of dollars. We talked to the sustainability scientist and author of the research, Nkweauseh Reginald Longfor. NKWEAUSEH REGINALD LONGFO, PhD candidate, Sophia University What kind of economic and environmental damage results from uncontrolled garbage dumps? About 70% of municipal solid waste ends up in landfills or unregulated…

Dec

15

2023

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

COP28 landmark deal to transition from fossil fuels is a unique opportunity for Africa

NEWS

IN what is being hailed as an unprecedented agreement, delegates to COP28 in Dubai made the first official commitment to ditch fossil fuels, in a move set to spur green investment globally. Dubbed as the 'beginning of the end' of the fossil fuel era, the agreement aims for a rapid and equitable shift, marked by substantial emissions reductions and enhanced financial support. Negotiators from nearly 200 countries also agreed on the first-ever 'global stocktake' to boost climate action before the end of the decade, aiming to keep the global temperature increase below 1.5°C. Although the agreement doesn't completely 'phase out'…

Dec

15

2023

By The African Mirror

South Africa seeks bids for 7,615 MW of new power generation

NEWS

SOUTH Africa launched three bidding rounds for 7,615 megawatts (MW) of new power generation from renewable energy, natural gas and battery storage, part of efforts to overcome record power outages crippling economic output. The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy said in a statement it had issued three requests for proposals (RFPs) for independent power producers to generate 5,000 MW of renewable energy, 2,000 MW from gas and 615 MW from battery storage. South Africa started procuring power from private developers more than a decade ago to supplement struggling state utility Eskom's ailing coal-fired power station fleet. Before Thursday it…

Dec

16

2023

By The African Mirror

West Africa court orders reinstatement of ousted Niger leader Bazoum

NEWS

A West African court ruled that the ousted president of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum, and his family were arbitrarily detained and called for a return to democratic rule through his reinstatement. Bazoum was toppled during a military coup on July 26. He and his family have since been in detention without access to running water or electricity, according to his party and relatives. The coup was widely condemned, led to sanctions from the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), and prompted widespread calls for Bazoum's release and a return to democratic rule. Bazoum and his family referred their case to…

Dec

15

2023

By The African Mirror

Turkey says Somalia leader’s son to participate in fatal car accident trial

NEWS

TURKISH Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said that he expected the son of Somalia's president to return to Turkey in the coming days to participate in a court case over a fatal car accident involving his use of a diplomatic car. Mohamed Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud was driving a Somali consulate car on November 30 when he hit a motorcycle courier in central Istanbul, seriously injuring him. He left the country on December 2, following a police interrogation. An arrest warrant was issued for him after the courier died in hospital on December 6. Tunc told reporters in Ankara that he discussed the incident…

Dec

15

2023

By VINING OGU

Nigerian patients feel pain of soaring drug prices

NEWS

WHEN Sodiq Ajibade emerged from a Lagos pharmacy holding asthma medication, one drug on his prescription was missing because he did not have the money to buy it. The price of some medicines has risen almost tenfold in Nigeria in the past few months, forcing patients like Ajibade to cut his doses or turn to traditional alternatives. Pharmaceutical industry officials said the plunge in the value of the naira after the removal of currency controls in June has sent prices of new stocks rocketing. British drugmaker GSK is moving from GSK-controlled local operating companies in Nigeria to a third-party direct distribution model.…

Dec

15

2023

By BIRD STORY AGENCY

A former Somali refugee in Kenya receives global UN award for championing refugee education

NEWS

ABDULLAHI Mire, a former Somali refugee to Kenya, has been awarded the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award 2023, a fete that celebrates individuals, groups, and organizations who go above and beyond the call of duty to protect refugees, displaced and stateless people. The 36-year-old was celebrated on the sidelines of the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva on Wednesday, the 14th, for his dedication to creating opportunities for young refugees in Kenya through education. A news release by the UNHCR explains that Mire “has provided crucial learning opportunities to tens of thousands of displaced children and youth at Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps…

Dec

15

2023

By NONDUDUZO KUNENE, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Salon to soil: The former hairdresser now styling avocado farming in Eswatini

NEWS

WHEN Fezile Hlophe fell pregnant and dropped out of school, her immediate plans had to be put on hold - but her dream of being a successful businesswoman was not. At only 17 years old, Hlophe had to find a way to provide for her child as a single parent, so she started braiding people’s hair in her neighbourhood. “I didn’t earn much but I had aspirations of being a better person one day,” she said. Several years later, when Hlophe went to braid the hair of a new customer located around 20 kilometres from where the young woman lived,…