New York, United States | AFP | For many visitors to New York, Times Square is a must-see. For one British man, it was where his romantic marriage proposal went horribly wrong — the diamond ring fell through a grate. But don’t worry, thanks to the power of the internet, …
Read More »Olympic broadcasters gear up for the biggest show on earth
Madrid, Spain | AFP | Clock-watching is an integral part of any Olympic Games but even the most eagle-eyed sporting anoraks might be forgiven for missing the fact that Sunday marks 600 days until the start of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. For most people, it is not actually a …
Read More »The weight is over!
One kilogram is being redefined – a physicist explains Kampala, Uganda | KEVIN PIMBBLET | How much is a kilogram? 1,000 grams.2.20462 pounds. Or 0.0685 slugs based on the old Imperial gravitational system. But where does this amount actually come from and how can everyone be sure they are using …
Read More »Vaolah Amumpaire on running an online hardware store
Kampala, Uganda | AGNES E NANTABA | Vaolah Amumpaire is a marketeer and the brain behind Wenahardware.com, a multi vendor e-commerce platform for building and construction materials. She says she got to establish an online hardware store from disappointments caused by dishonest people who fail to building and construction materials …
Read More »Drought, conflict driving Afghans to marry off children: UN
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | With a devastating drought worsening an already horrendous humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, parents are increasingly compelled to “sell” young daughters into marriage to pay off debt or buy food, the UN said Tuesday. In the drought-hit Herat and Baghdis provinces of Afghanistan, the UN children’s …
Read More »DR Congo ex-militia chief goes on trial for mass rape
Goma, DR Congo | AFP | A former milita leader accused of mass rape and crimes against humanity in the Democratic Republic of Congo went on trial Tuesday at a military court in the eastern city of Goma. Ntabo Ntaberi Sheka and his militiamen are accused of raping more than …
Read More »In the #MeToo era, theologians publish ‘Women’s Bible’
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Tired of seeing their holy texts used to justify the subjugation of women, a group of feminist theologians from across the Protestant-Catholic divide have joined forces to draft “A Women’s Bible”. As the #MeToo movement continues to expose sexual abuse across cultures and industries, some …
Read More »‘Green fuel’: Bananas to help wean Angola off oil
Caxito, Angola | AFP | Boxes of still-green bananas were shifted one-by-one from a towering stack of crates into a refrigerated shipping container. Stamped “From Angola, with love”, the fruit is shipped to consumers 6,000 kilometres (3,700 miles) away and are part of Luanda’s drive to diversify its economy …
Read More »Lion poaching The brutal new threat to Africa’s prides
The big cats are horribly easy to kill with poisoned meat, allowing poachers to hack off their faces and paws Kampala, Uganda | DAMIAN CARRINGTON | That’s fresh, just a few hours old,” says Kris Everatt, pointing at a clear print of a lion’s paw in the hot dust. “It’s the …
Read More »China’s youth embrace street dance amid hip-hop crackdown
Beijing, China | AFP | In China, where children are often saddled with a packed schedule of extracurricular activities before they even enter grade school, some parents are making room for a surprising pursuit: hip-hop dance classes. Inside a dance studio in central Beijing, a group of kids bopped up …
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