What's Going On? Eyes on Africa and the Caribbean

All eyes are on Kenya's parliamentary leaders to see if they have the will to achieve the Constitutional amendment for gender equality to raise female representation in elected office. Kenyan lawyer and women's rights advocate Mary Chege explains why the two-thirds gender rule, a bill necessary to effect the change,  is making some members of Kenya's Parliament uncomfortable. The Co...

Ingrid Griffith is an award-winning playwright, stage actress, solo artist, and an adjunct professor who, until the coronavirus pandemic stopped everyone in their tracks, had been touring London and the Caribbean over the last six years with her solo performances of plays that she has written, including Unbossed and Unbowed : The Life and Times of Shirley Chisholm, and Demerara Gold , an immigrant...

Episode 9. Patrice Juah, former Ms. Liberia uses her experience and status to develop initiatives focused on educating girls in Liberia with programs such as "Girl Power" and "Sexy Like a Book."  In this episode, Ms. Juah, a poet, media professional, activist, and entrepreneur talks about her experience living through the horrors of the brutal civil war in Liberia. Now she is o...

Episode 8.  During a walking tour of Glasgow, her adopted home for more than 30 years, Dr. Myrtle Peterkin stumbles on information that leads her to trace her family's life in her native Guyana and discovers her entire life is connected to slave owners from Glasgow, Scotland. Dr. Peterkin, a retired physician, is shocked and horrified.  Listen as she tells her story. 

British-Guyanese author Gareth R. Miles read from his debut novel, Soul Shakedown: A Metaphysical Adventure, and talks about the experiences and inspiration that led to the metaphysical adventure that readers take with the lead character, Compton. If you don't have a summer reading list or you just want something fun to read, this is the book that you should have on your list. Soul Shakedown...

When the Coronavirus pandemic shut down businesses and social gathering place worldwide following government orders for social distancing, some churchgoers and leaders resisted.  Religious leaders wandered how they would remain connected with their flock.  After all what is Sunday with Church!   However, it did not take long before churches and other religious institutions made their way online—fr...

Welcome to Episode 5 of What's Going On? Eyes on Africa and the Caribbean. It's no secret that young adults are not filling the church pews the way they used to in many countries around the world. Millennials are also less likely to identify with any religious group, according to recent research.  In this episode of What's Going On? Eyes on Africa and the Caribbean. we ask why are y...

Ambassador Barwuah explains Ghana's goal to develop the country without dependence on foreign aid and to create economic opportunities for Ghanaians, particularly young people to encourage them to see their future in Ghana.  He explains that President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, in his much-acclaimed 2017 speech, was articulating a concern that "we Africans are at some kind of crossroad, a...

Part one of a Conversation with Ghana Ambassador to the United States, Baffour Adjei Bawuah, on the "Ghana Unites Against Covid-19" Virtual Benefit Concert hosted by the Embassy on May 1, 2020.  The Ambassador also reflects on the purpose, achievement, and followup to Ghana's hugely successful "Year of Return," which marked 400 years of the first enslaved Africans arriving...

An April 2020 report by the African Union predicts that in the aftermath of the battle against the coronavirus in Africa, "20 million jobs will be lost in Africa"....and "the continent could lose up to $500 billion" from the economy.   In this episode, UN Communication Specialist, Dr. Kingsley Lington Ighobor describes how Africa is united in battling the coronavirus pandemic u...

In this episode, we interview Guyanese Physician, Dr. Carl Niamatali, who is an oncologist, social entrepreneur, and passionate advocate for a healthful lifestyle, nutrition and early intervention to avert disease, clarifies what he believes individuals and leaders should be doing to contain the Coronavirus and the death toll.  Dr. Niamatali connects the current coronavirus pandemic with nutrition...