Aleppo, Syria | AFP | For Karam al-Masri, AFP’s reporter, photographer and videojournalist in rebel-held Aleppo, the past five years have been a series of tragedies: detention by the regime, and then the Islamic State group, the death of his parents in an air strike, the siege of his hometown, …
Read More »Uganda takes on the ‘world’s most dangerous road’
Witchcraft, poor roadwork and dangerous driving — all have been blamed for the killer highway whose users will often turn to prayer before taking the road. Mpigi, Uganda | AFP | Wearing pristine white with her woollen socks pulled high, Ugandan traffic police officer Edith Nanteza exudes natural authority at …
Read More »Oil jobs: Partakers or Spectators?
Foreigners could take lion’s share of oil and gas jobs as Uganda lags behind in building local capacity The government recently issued eight production licences to Tullow Uganda Operations Pty Ltd and Total E&P Uganda BV, a development that gives the oil companies the green light to finally proceed with …
Read More »Boko Haram leaves Nigeria a lifetime of mental trauma
Maiduguri, Nigeria | AFP | The soldier clutched his book with both hands. He shouted his name, rank and Nigerian Army number to no-one in particular. He stood up straight and ended every reply with a bark of “sah” (sir). But his eyes were fixed to a slowly cranking ceiling …
Read More »India’s poor fear ‘rent-a-womb’ industry shut down
Anand, India | AFP | At a hostel for dozens of pregnant women, impoverished widow Sharmila Mackwan weighs up her decision to carry twins for another couple — her only ticket out of poverty — as the government moves to close India’s multi-million dollar surrogacy industry. She has left her …
Read More »How Kampala is flipping the script on urban development
This article appeared on NEXT CITY July 26, 2016 titled How One African City Is Flipping the Script on Urban Development From Wall Street to the World Bank, people are looking at Kampala as a model for how cities can finance their futures, writes Liam Taylor Joseph Aliguma is perched …
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