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Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus WHO director General

‘We Need to Be on a War Footing’: Head of WHO Calls for Vaccine Patent Waivers to Halt Pandemic

Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday urged global powers to “pull out all the stops” to defeat the coronavirus pandemic including by waiving Big Pharma’s vaccine patents to ensure equitable access to the drugs. “Sharing doses,...

Should Africa consider the nuclear energy route?

Despite its advancements over the years particularly in the oil, gas and power industries, it is no secret that Africa is still plagued with the very real issue of inefficient energy supply. Recording nearly 600 million people with no access...

De-Funding the World Health Organization: Unethical, Cruel, and Dangerous for the World

Just when we thought things couldn’t get any worse than a global pandemic that has reached all corners of the earth, infecting over 2 million people and killing over 146,000 — over 33,000 so far in the U.S. — President...

Mitigating COVID-19’s impact on Africa’s food systems

We are facing great uncertainty on the African continent. The global spread of COVID-19 and the rising number of coronavirus cases in Africa are fueling anxiety about negative economic growth, failing healthcare and collapsing food systems. We are already grappling...

African Governments Failing in Provision of Water and Sanitation, Says Afrobarometer survey

More than half of Africans say their governments are failing them when it comes to one of their top priorities – the provision of clean water and sanitation services, a new Afrobarometer analysis shows. Half of survey respondents say they...

COVID-19 as an emergency human rights issue

In our homes, streets, public places, radio stations, newspapers and international television news channels, everybody is talking about: COVID-19. Maintaining reasonable physical distance and practising good personal hygiene, such as regularly washing hands and avoiding touching one’s face, are some...

Europe and African relations post COVID-19: time to add size, scale and speed

Since 2000, European and African leaders have been talking about giving the partnership between the two continents a “new strategic” dimension. In 2007, they reiterated their ambition to come together in awareness of the lessons and experiences of the past, but also in...

The pandemic is no time for fiscal distancing

These are very difficult days, as the world faces one of its worst challenges ever: the novel coronavirus pandemic. And it seems almost no nation is spared. As infection rates rise, so does panic across financial markets, as economies drastically...

Increasing the volume and quality of intra-Africa trade for social economic transformation

African States and development partners have invested heavily towards supporting integration and the promotion of intra-Africa and extra-Africa trade. These investments have gone a long way to assist the countries, through their respective regional economic groupings, in implementing integration programmes...

The Energy Entrepreneur: A Remedy for Africa’s Energy Deficit

Africa’s energy needs can be met through vigorous STEM-driven entrepreneurship. To this end, a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem is a precondition. To successfully create a thriving ecosystem, Africa needs short- and long-term strategic plans. The short-term strategy must focus on the...

Local government – transforming people’s lives

As a South African, I have witnessed many of the changes that have taken place since the end of apartheid. I also contributed to that transition, principally through supporting and strengthening our new local government system in South Africa after...

Seize the opportunity offered by Africa’s continental free trade area

Since the turn of the millennium, Africa has experienced a steady and unprecedented economic growth. However, poverty continues for people across the continent, especially in the sub-Saharan region. Unemployment and inequality have remained high. The rural population and the urban...