Africa Daily

20 year old Rita Waeni was brutally murdered and dismembered. Her remains were discovered in rubbish bags at a rental apartment in the capital, Nairobi this month. The news shocked Kenya and led to uproar both online and offline with many saying that the government isn’t doing enough about violence against women. Research by Africa Data Hub shows that from 2016 to 2023, over 500 femicide cases wer...

Malaria kills more than 600,000 people around the world every year. But this week, Cameroon became the first country to start a mass rollout of the world’s first ever malaria vaccine – the WHO-approved RTS,S vaccine. It is hoped that other countries will follow, in a move projected to save thousands of children's lives across Africa. But will vaccine hesitancy stop parents having their children va...

We all have a beginning to our lives and we will all have an ending. At the end it is the work of morticians to look after our bodies when we die and to prepare them for burial. It is an incredibly important job, but one that most of us give no thought to. One person who is trying to change that is Filinda Wakuthi Kamau, a mortician and funeral director in Kenya. She publishes TikTok videos, using...

At the weekend, Felix Tshisekedi was sworn in as President of the Democratic Republic of Congo – starting his second term in office. Last week on the podcast we talked about whether democracy and the political classes were doing anything to improve the lives of normal citizens across the country. And today we’re taking a closer look at the Eastern DRC – where decades of war has left millions kille...

“Usually I would spend about 10,000 to 12,000 [South African Rands] on a bulk buy for the units of hair. But when I got this particular quotation, the hair on its own, the units I usually buy were at a total of 28,000 to 30,000” – Ziyanda Khumalo, South African small business owner Africa Daily’s Alan Kasujja looks at how the attacks by the Houthis, a Yemen-based rebel group, are affecting Africa....

A new government for the Democratic Republic of Congo will be sworn in at the weekend, and President Felix Tshisekedi will start his second term of office. The country faces many challenges: from conflict in the east, to poor infrastructure, to lack of investment in public services. There are also questions about how connected the political elite in the capital are with the rest of the country, th...

On the podcast in November last year we heard the terrible stories of South Africans who’d lost their loved ones to cholera. Then, the disease was sweeping across Southern Africa and was causing a public health crisis in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique and Cameroon. Now, just two months later – Zambia is scrambling to contain the disease with more than 9,500 people affected. Since 2023, 13 coun...

Former president Ernest Bai Koroma is due in court on Wednesday to face treason charges and other offences in connection with an attempted coup last November. More than 20 people were killed when key sites across the country were attacked, including a military barracks and a prison where more than 2,200 inmates were set free. Ernest Bai Koroma was elected in 2007 and was president for 11 years, he...

For many women and girls in Africa, getting their hair is a done is an essential ritual to feel and look good. Many find the hair salon to be one of the few places where they have time for themselves, to chat, laugh, to share good news and sorrows. But what if seeing your stylist was about something much more than getting your hair done… what if that relationship could help to save your life? In t...

“When you commit to a journey, the universe conspires to help you.“ In a surprise zoom call with student Mamadou Barry, Will Smith quoted those words from Paulo Coelho’s novel 'The Alchemist'. That story is about a boy who goes on a journey across north Africa to Egypt when he dreams of gold. In a case of real life mirroring fiction, Mamadou also gave up his normal life to undertake a long journey...

Africa Daily’s Alan Kasujja takes a look at how Ivory Coast is preparing for the Africa Cup of Nations, scheduled to kick off this Saturday. The host nation will take on Guinea-Bissau in a clash that promises to set the tone for the rest of the competition. Other countries to watch include title holders Senegal, 2022 finalists Egypt, Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and Morocco who reached the semifinal o...

The drama, the excitement and the big talking points – every match day. Star guests join the BBC’s John Bennett for reaction and analysis. We’ll take you from the group stage all the way to the final, with everything you need to know from one of the biggest tournaments in the global game. Search for World Football, wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

On the 7th of October 2023, Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and other factions, launched a surprise attack on Israel. It led to the deaths of about 1,200 people, including foreign nationals, according to the Israeli government. More than 200 others were taken to Gaza as hostages, over a hundred have since been released. Israel retaliated with a series of air and artillery strikes in Gaza. The Ham...

This week, pictures of the leader of the paramilitary group the Rapid Support Forces Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, better known as Hemedti, at a genocide memorial in Rwanda and in Kenya hugging President William Ruto might have confused many. That’s because a civil war has raged in Sudan since last April. It began after Hemedti and the head of the armed forces General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan disagreed on t...

Can you imagine life without plastic? It’s cheap and convenient – but makes up an estimated 400 million tonnes of waste every year, of which only 10% is recycled. It’s hoped ongoing negotiations could lead to an internationally legally binding treaty on ending plastic pollution by end of this year. But calls for a reduction in the production of plastics is being strongly opposed by the plastics in...

The number of women studying STEM subjects in African universities - that’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – has risen dramatically over the last five decades. Female students now make up for almost 50% of the total number, a higher percentage of female representation than any other continent in the world. How has this happened and does this translate into similar representation...

"I don't think the Somali government is interested in a fist fight with Ethiopia." A diplomatic row broke out this week in response to a deal between Ethiopia and Somaliland allowing landlocked Ethiopia access to Somaliland’s coastline. Somalia described the agreement as an act of "aggression". Both the African Union and US have issued statements saying Somalia’s sovereignty must be respected. Som...

Like many children in Africa, Masai Ujiri was obsessed with football as he was growing up. But one day a new love struck him and he started what was to become a lifelong love affair with basketball. He’s been a player, a scout, an agent and today he’s the president of the NBA side the Toronto Raptors, making him the first and only African-born president of a professional sports franchise in North...

Peter Mutabazi is a Ugandan single dad who has fostered 38 children and adopted three of those kids. He lives in North Carolina in the US and these children come from different backgrounds and walks of life. This is something that gets him regularly noticed when he’s out with his family- he’s a black man in America raising white children. Peter was drawn to fostering and adoption because of what h...

'The Beauty of Impermanence: An Architecture of Adaptability.’ Think about architecture and you probably think about tall buildings of steel and glass. But the theme of this year’s Sharjah Architecture Triennial is design influenced by scarcity – and how we can build in a way that adapts to decreasing resources and hotter climates. Africa has been disproportionately impacted by climate change. The...

2023 was full of big news, interesting personal stories and some disastrous events like floods and earthquakes in different parts of Africa. So, what does 2024 hold for countries across Africa? Guests: Anne Soy, Mpho Lakaje and Thomas Naadi. Presenter: Alan Kasujja.

2023 has been an eventful year for Africa and it's that time of the year when Africa Daily reflects on some of the things that have happened. There's so much to discuss from South Africa's Springboks winning the rugby world cup to the Nigerian elections, as well as some disastrous floods and earthquakes in different regions. Guests: Anne Soy, Mpho Lakaje, Sally Nabil, and Thomas Naadi. Presenter:...

Letsile Tebogo is well on his way to becoming an African superstar. He took the athletics world by storm when he became the first African and first man from Botswana to win a medal in the 100 metres. He won silver and ran with a race time of 9.88 seconds, making him the first man from Botswana to run the 100 metres in under 10 seconds. And he’s only 20 years old. His talent is a huge topic of conv...

Buying affordable and safe medicines across Africa is often difficult. There are not enough pharmacies and the price of medicine is often too high for many people to afford. If you do get hold of the medicine you need, then there is the question of whether you can trust it; shocking statistics from the United Nations show that close to 500,000 people in sub Saharan Africa die each year due to fake...

"The majority of the men who come into my life feel they want to be my saviours... they can say: 'I'm dating a blind girl. Guess what guys, I'm taking one for the team'." Imagine losing your sight after 31 years of clear vision. The simple tasks like attaching a file to an email, entering an office building or going for a walk unassisted now become so difficult. And what about things like dating a...