Although an emergency meeting of health experts last month stopped short of calling the yellow fever outbreak in Angola a global public health emergency, humanitarian groups on the ground warn the epidemic is still far from over. Even as the number of newly reported cases declines, the disease continues to spread. If it reaches areas with low vaccination coverage, the outbreak could flare up again. Read more.
Kenya’s national elections are more than a year away, but political tensions are already rising. Starting in late April, the main political opposition group began organizing a near-weekly protest against the commission charged with organizing the vote. It has accused the commission’s members of being in the pocket of President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is set to stand for a second term. The recent demonstrations have consistently been met with widespread police brutality; at least three protesters were killed during the latest incident late last month.
Following those deaths, Kenyatta’s government and the opposition have started negotiations, and future demonstrations have been temporarily suspended. Even if they reach a compromise on this issue, though, there is every reason to suspect it is only the first in what promises to be a year of political clashes. Whether those battles tip over into further physical violence is up to the country’s leaders. Read more.
South Sudan’s health system faces a crisis nearly a year in the making. Health centers across the country are experiencing dangerous stock outs of the medicines needed to treat the most basic health problems. Beyond leaving patients without immediate medical care, it also means parts of the country are now unequipped to stem potential disease outbreaks. Read more.
South Sudan’s conflict has reshaped the country’s HIV epidemic in ways that will be difficult to contain once peace returns. Read more.
The government of Gabon has launched a new program to improve healthcare services in the country, starting with those for maternal and child health. Read more.
In mid-April, public health, veterinary and food security experts gathered for the first time to draft a list of priority interventions to better understand and control zoonotic tuberculosis. The 10-point program begins with improved surveillance and new diagnostic tools, but also calls for efforts to increase global awareness. Read more.
South Sudan's original political odd couple is back together again. In late April, President Salva Kiir watched over the swearing in of his very recent rival, Riek Machar, as first vice president. But it would be dangerous to reduce the fragile peace process to the relationship between the two leaders. Read more.
The night before Uganda’s February 18 presidential vote, David Tumusiime went to bed with a firm plan in place for the next day’s coverage. The website editor for Uganda Radio Network, a syndicate of more than 20 correspondents spread across the East African country, Tumusiime had set up a WhatsApp group to collect video clips and audio reports from his team. Then he would use URN’s Facebook page and Twitter feed to share that information with the news organization’s thousands of followers.
But there was a hitch. When he woke up on Election Day, someone had turned off the country’s social media.
But if Washington doesn’t put more money behind its ambitious rhetoric, HIV could make a major comeback. An investigation on the front line of the disease. Read more.
An innovative non-governmental organization is breaking some of the toughest barriers to attaining a university education imaginable – offering refugees living in Kiziba, a remote camp tucked away in far eastern Rwanda, access to degree courses. Read more.
In June, Mozambique dropped a colonial-era law criminalizing homosexual activities. The change passed relatively quietly in the southern African country. After all, no one had ever been convicted.
A few weeks later, Tony Andrea felt like he was coming down with malaria. The 22-year-old went to a government health clinic. Andrea is gay and, despite the recently overturned prohibition, had always felt safe being open about his sexuality. He certainly never suspected it might interfere with his ability to access malaria treatment.
Activists in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are locked in a battle with President Joseph Kabila’s administration over what they are describing as an attempt to extend his mandate beyond the official end of his second – and final – term in November. In the process, political organizers are drawing on a deep well of support among university students. Read more.
Despite some progress, the nearly yearlong Burundian refugee crisis — in which more than 250,000 people have fled the country’s ongoing political instability — continues to threaten to overwhelm the East African region amid scant signs the situation will improve soon. Read more.
Nigeria's government has promised to provide health coverage to millions of citizens, but experts are not convinced it will happen based on the country's track record. Read more.
Zimbabwe's worst drought in three decades has caused food shortages in large swathes of the country and worries are building about increasing child malnutrition rates. Read more.