Africa Rise And Shine

South Africa's power utility Eskom implemented Stage 4 load shedding yesterday. This was due to additional breakdowns of a unit at Medupi and two units at Duvha Power Station, together with the high winter demand. To discuss this further, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Energy Expert and Mining Consultant Ted Blom.... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recent research has shown the potential technology has in the effective delivery of primary healthcare services across South Africa. The research suggests that trans-disciplinary health consultancy; Percept should be used as a roadmap to better healthcare services for all in the country. Percept's research looked at a range of innovations that were rolled out in countries like Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya and Mozambique. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Anja Smith, a Economist at South African based Percept… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dozens of children, most of them girls, have been abducted by non-state armed groups over the past year in northern Mozambique. This is according to a report by charity organisation Save the Children. The charity says at least 51 children have been abducted amid violence and insecurity that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people. It notes that the number of children abductions is likely to be far higher, as its report only reflects the reported cases. To find out more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Nourshan Hannan, Save the Children Programmes Manager in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado Province… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US government has voiced concern over Nigeria's decision to ban Twitter after the US social media giant deleted a tweet from President Muhammadu Buhari's account for violating its rules. Nigerian telecoms operators complied with a government directive on saturday to suspend access to Twitter. The diplomatic missions of the EU, US, Britain, Canada and Ireland issued a joint statement condemning the ban. Channel Africa's correspondent in Lagos, Collins Nosa Atohengbe has more... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

South Africa's economy performed better than expected in the first quarter of this year. Eight of the ten industries recorded positive gains. Stats SA data shows between January and March this year, the economy grew by 1-point-1 percent. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Maarten Ackerman, Chief Economist at Citadel... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President of the Resident Doctors Association of Zambia, Brian Sampa has been fired following a strike which demanded the recruitment of 500 doctors and payment of salary arrears. Sampa's dismissal letter notes that he had being absent from work for more than 10 consecutive days. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Dr Brian Sampa... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mali's military leader Assimi Goita, who orchestrated his second coup in nine months, has been sworn in as the transitional president despite international condemnation of May's power grab. Goita, who served as Mali's vice president under transitional President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane, seized power late last month after accusing them of failing to consult him about a cabinet reshuffle that would have replaced the defence and security ministers. Within hours of his swearing in, Goita appointed opposition leader and former Minister Choguel Maiga as Prime minister. To get a sense of what Goita said during his swearing-ceremony, Channel Africa spoke to Malian Political analyst, Kassoum Coulibaly... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 10th SA AIDS Virtual Conference is set to take place this Wednesday and Thursday. The virtual conference will discuss progress made on the South African and regional HIV epidemic response against set goals and targets and the socio-economic and behavioural impact of COVID-19 on people living with HIV amongst others. The theme of the 10th SA AIDS Conference 2021 is: Ending AIDS amid Pandemics. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Conference Chair, Dr Gloria Maimela… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The African Energy Chamber has condemned Africa Oil Week's decision to relocate the conference venue for its flagship event from Cape Town, South Africa, to the United Arab Emirates. As the voice of Africa's energy sector, the African Energy Chamber says it fully supports and commits to conferences of African nature being held on African terrain. To discuss this further, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Africa Energy Chamber Executive Chairperson, NJ Ayuk... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aid groups have expressed concerns over the plight of about 6 000 displaced people in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's Ituri Province. Deadly attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) have forced people to flee multiple displacement sites. ADF simultaneously attacked displacement sites and villages near the towns of Boga and Tchabi, killing 57 civilians. Jean Noël Ba-Mweze reports from Kinshasa… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The South African Medical Association (SAMA) predicts that the country will breach the 6 000 mark of Covid-19 infections in the next two weeks to officially enter the third wave of the pandemic. The southern African nation has been recording over 5 000 new infections daily in the past week, while the country recorded over 3 000 cases last night. SAMA has appealed to the public to ensure they observe the COVID-19 protocols, that people observe social distance and wear masks when visiting each other's homes. SAMA spokesperson, Dr Angelique Coetzee, explains... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two prisoners who spent close to 10 years at Zimbabwe's notorious Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison after they were wrongly convicted of murder have been acquitted and released after an appeal. They were sentenced to serve 20 years for allegedly murdering a Zimbabwe Republic Police officer. Channel Africa's John Cassim reports from Harare... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The South African National Blood Service (SANBS) has unveiled the world's first 'Journey of Blood' facility based in Kwazulu Natal Province. This state-of-the-art laboratory will enable the public to go on a walk through the facility without physically entering the laboratory space. People will see first-hand the testing and processing of blood to get it ready to save a life. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Khensani Mahlangu from the SANBS… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United Kingdom has been working very hard to make sure that no momentum is lost in terms of action against climate change ahead of the next United Nations climate summit, or COP26 - due to take place in Glasgow in November. This is according to the Acting British High Commissioner to South Africa, Adam Bye. The British High Commission together with South Africa's National Press Club co-hosted a briefing session last week which discussed the progress made towards the highly anticipated conference and how the ambition has increased globally. Postponed from last year due to Covid-19 restrictions, the summit will be co-hosted by the United Kingdom and Italy, and countries are expected to announce new climate targets in advance. Bye says action will have to be taken at the conference before it is too late... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today marks World Food Safety Day, an annual campaign on June 7, which aims help combat food-borne diseases all around the world. According to the World Health Organisation, there is no food security without food safety. Ending hunger is about all people having access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food all year round. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to German More, of the MAMAS Alliance, a corporate social investment agency in South Africa… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some countries in Africa, like Tanzania and Chad, have not started COVID-19 vaccination while others have only just begun. Meanwhile, more statistics show that the third wave of the virus is starting to engulf South Africa, a nation with the highest case load of COVID infections on the continent. To unpack Africa's readiness to deal with a fresh surge of infections, following the World Health Organisation's warning of a looming continental third wave, Channel Africa's Lulu Gaboo spoke to Professor Adrian Puren from the National Institute of Communicable Diseases in South Africa… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government of Kenya has formally challenged a ruling by the country's High Court last month that found that President Uhuru Kenyatta's proposed constitutional reforms were illegal. The sweeping constitutional changes, popularly known as the Building Bridges Initiative -or BBI - were dismissed by the court on May 14, in a blow to Kenyatta and his allies who wanted the amendments put to a referendum before next year's elections. In a formal appeal filed in court Solicitor General Kennedy Ogeto said the five-panel bench had "erred" in determining that the president did not have the legal authority to spearhead such amendments. To discuss this further, Khumbelo Mundzelele spoke to Christine Nkonge, Human Rights Lawyer and Executive Director at Kenya's Katiba Institute... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A book titled 'Budding Democracy or Judicialization: Lessons from Africa's Emerging Electoral Jurisprudence' will be launched today, virtually. The book touches on a number of electoral laws, democracy and the role of the judiciary during elections in selected countries across the continent. While elections have been regarded as a form of democracy, their results are often disputed and recently the judiciary has had to determine the outcomes, making elections a source of both excitement and misery in Africa. John Cassim reports from Harare… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ever since the Stonewall riots in New York City in 1969, June is celebrated as Pride Month all over the world. It is an initiative to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and fight against discrimination and violence towards them. The month aims to increase awareness among people and get rid of the stigma around it. According to an online publication, Independant, LGBTQ+ campaigners have warned that homophobic incidents are more common than many people realise, as Pride Month gets underway. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Devan Moonsamy, Chief Executive Officer of ICHAF Training Institute... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

June is World Infertility Awareness Month, a time dedicated to heightening awareness regarding numerous infertility issues faced by couples across the globe. This includes problems related to female as well as male fertility. During this month, several myths regarding infertility are debunked and a lot of options are brought forward to those who may want to conceive. For more on this, Lulu Gaboo spoke to Dr Thato Maoto, a registered obstetrician and gynaecologist based in South Africa.... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.