African Pandemic Solutions Require Integrated Approach

BY Webster Mavhu — Covid-19 still threatens to wreak havoc across Africa with the World Health Organisation (WHO) projecting almost 200 000 deaths. But we must not ignore the threat from other diseases – now neglected – as we tackle this ongoing pandemic.  The WHO has warned that deaths from malaria could double across sub-Saharan Africa this year, if prevention efforts are disrupted by Covid-19. Indeed, we are already witnessing a rise in malaria …

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Will Men Respond to COVID-19’s Health Call?

BY Webster Mavhu — The latest data from New York tells us that the novel coronavirus is killing men at twice the rate of women. Death rates are higher around the world, including China, France, Italy and South Korea. Reasons for the gender disparity are unknown, although possible explanations have begun to emerge. However, whatever the underlying cause turns …

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How South Africa Can Address Digital Inequalities in e-Learning

BY Mmaki Jantjies — South Africa’s education system is complex, with historical inequalities dating back to apartheid. Most of the country’s pupils come from disadvantaged backgrounds. Language is an issue; most pupils do not speak English as a mother tongue, yet English dominates in many classrooms. And, as the COVID-19 crisis has showed, there’s a huge digital divide at play. The …

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A Pandemic-Driven Food Crisis in Africa Can Be Prevented

BY Cedric Habiyaremye — African governments need to act now to ensure small-scale farming and food supply chains remain uninterrupted. We have only just begun to see the far-ranging consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world. Chief among those is the threat of a food crisis of unprecedented magnitude.  Unless measures are taken fast to …

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COVID-19: Lockdown is Trapping 80m Women and Girls with Abusers

BY Lolo Cynthia Ihesie As cities observe a total lockdown in Nigeria to curb the spread of coronavirus, cases of rape and sexual assault are spiking, with about 80 million women and girls trapped with abusers. For too many, the home has become a battlefield for girls and women subjected to gender-based violence. As part …

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