lundi 26 février 2018
samedi 24 février 2018
vendredi 23 février 2018
Nigerian church burned after brother weds sister
Nigerian church burned after brother weds sister
Sammy Maina
BBC Monitoring, Nairobi
Angry villagers in the eastern Nigerian state of Anambra
have set a church ablaze after its pastor conducted a wedding between a man and his teenager sister, the website of
privately-owned daily Nigerian Tribune has reported.
The local community in Agba, Ekwulobia, termed the siblings' union as an abomination.
"In an apparent reaction to the unusual wedding, Agba Village youths who saw the marriage as an abomination set ablaze the church where the wedlock took place," the newspaper said.
According to the report, the siblings' older brother conducted the wedding, citing Biblical scriptures to back up his actions.
In a strange twist, far from condemning the act, the mother of the couple told local journalists that his son’s action was biblical, adding: “My son paid the dowry as required.”
Social media reports on the incident claim the brother, 25, had also impregnated the sister.
The local community in Agba, Ekwulobia, termed the siblings' union as an abomination.
"In an apparent reaction to the unusual wedding, Agba Village youths who saw the marriage as an abomination set ablaze the church where the wedlock took place," the newspaper said.
According to the report, the siblings' older brother conducted the wedding, citing Biblical scriptures to back up his actions.
In a strange twist, far from condemning the act, the mother of the couple told local journalists that his son’s action was biblical, adding: “My son paid the dowry as required.”
Social media reports on the incident claim the brother, 25, had also impregnated the sister.
Nigeria state: Put your child in school, or risk jail
Nigeria state: Put your child in school, or risk jail
Karina Igonikon
BBC Pidgin, Lagos
AFP
The state signed the new law into the books amid concerns children were not attending class despite the fact that it spent 70bn naira ($200m; £140m) on new school buildings and equipment.
"We feel it is important to have this law to protect that investment," state Commissioner of Education Jonathan Obuebite told reporters. "Clearly, the law is to demonstrate our commitment to education in the state.”
Both primary and secondary school education is free.
However, many parents appear to be nonchalant about sending their children to learn.
The state's Union of Teachers say it is a good move, but each case needs to be considered individually.
“Before you arrest a parent, you have to find out what the problem is," union Kalama John Tonipre told the BBC.
"if it is done in a legal and proper manner, it is okay. If it is not just a mere political statement and it is done with good intentions, it is good."
Otonye Fatayi, who lives in Yenagoa, says the law is good - but said people needed to be given time to get used to it.
jeudi 22 février 2018
Soft-Skills Education Kicks Off in African Schools
Soft-Skills Education Kicks Off in African
Schools
February 16, 2018 10:45 AM
THIES, SENEGAL —
It only takes a trip across
the street for senior students at St. Bernadette Kamonyi Secondary School to
learn what it takes to secure a job. The students cross the road, gathering
under umbrellas on a cloudy day in Kigali, the Rwandan capital.
For weeks, they've been going
on field trips that involve walking around the block to visit local businesses
and learn more about the workforce. They stop at a sim card vendor to ask what
he looks for in an employee.
For these senior level
students, this information is vital. In a few months they'll try their best to
get jobs.
"What I have to do in an
interview, I have to first introduce myself, name, age and I have to share my
education level and even my background. When you are going through the
interview process, you have to dress smart," says Aminadab Niyitegeka, a
22-year-old student.
Niyitegeka says he'll look for
any job that's available and is hopeful that what he's learning in his work
readiness class will help.
Traditionally, secondary
schools in Africa have emphasized core subjects like math and science, often
neglecting other areas like public speaking and teamwork.
New trend
But there's a new trend. Schools are exploring new teaching models to incorporate soft skills and professional training. It's an effort to equip students to become better communicators, problem solvers and global citizens.
Back on campus, Niyitegeka and his classmates conduct mock interviews. Niyitegeka stands in front of a female student who plays the role of the interviewer. Even practicing for the interview makes Niyitegeka nervous. He has a hard time looking at the "interviewer." He fiddles with the hem of his shirt and shyly looks away.
But there's a new trend. Schools are exploring new teaching models to incorporate soft skills and professional training. It's an effort to equip students to become better communicators, problem solvers and global citizens.
Back on campus, Niyitegeka and his classmates conduct mock interviews. Niyitegeka stands in front of a female student who plays the role of the interviewer. Even practicing for the interview makes Niyitegeka nervous. He has a hard time looking at the "interviewer." He fiddles with the hem of his shirt and shyly looks away.
Confidence is an integral part
of the soft skills lesson, along with leadership, geniality and emotional
stability. With support of the U.S.-based nonprofit Education Development
Center, or EDC, Rwanda has institutionalized the work readiness curriculum —
called Akazi Kanoze Access — into all secondary and vocation technical schools.
Akazi Kanoze, which means
"work well done" in Kinyarwanda, has trained more than 20,000
students with soft skills to make them more attractive to employers.
"Students must work in
groups, for example, a group of four students, five students, they interact. We
give them role plays. We give them scenarios. They present. Through presentations,
they acquire communication skills," says Emmanuel Ntagungira. He's a
teacher and trainer with Akazi Kanoze Access.
Ntagungira says he hopes the
curriculum will help to close the national unemployment gap, which stands at
13.2 percent according to the National Institute of Statistics. He routinely
visits employers who have hired high school graduates trained in the soft
skills program.
"They're very happy
because they're work ready, they have a positive attitude and employers are
satisfied with the work that they are doing," Ntagungira says.
Success
The program has seen success with female students in particular. Monitoring the progress of graduates, teachers and program organizers say females who participated in the work readiness classes were 12 percent more likely to be employed upon graduation than young women who had not taken the classes.
The program has seen success with female students in particular. Monitoring the progress of graduates, teachers and program organizers say females who participated in the work readiness classes were 12 percent more likely to be employed upon graduation than young women who had not taken the classes.
It's an innovative curriculum
that requires teachers to learn, too. In one of the classrooms, an Akozi Kanoze
trainer is teaching Rwandan and Senegalese educators to be more engaging. They
hop, skip and laugh like schoolchildren. The class is lively and
conversational. They say it's a huge step away from what they're used to in a
typical classroom.
Inspired by Akozi Kanoze, the
teachers visiting from Senegal take what they learn back to their schools.
With the goal of reaching
30,000 students, 250 schools in Senegal have been selected by the government
and EDC to participate in a trial to include soft skills, entrepreneurship and
financial literacy in a program called Improving Work Entrepreneurship
Performances, APTE. More than 1,000 teachers were trained last year and the
classes began in January.
Sokhna Mbaye is the principal
of a school in the city of Thies, 93 kilometers outside Dakar. Mbaye says she
was excited when she was approached by EDC to bring APTE into her school. The
principal said she encourages her teachers to be more open minded and willing
to try new teaching models.
"Local schools certainly
have failed somewhere. Because we know what geography is. We know what
mathematics is but we did not really have skills to face life and to make our
own choices. This is what we missed. We hope that the APTE program can fill the
gap," she said.
Mbaye sits at the back of a
classroom, watching students discuss their values. They mention ideas like
loyalty and dignity.
Mbaye smiles.
"Their names will be mine," Mbaye said, adding she hopes that they will have the confidence to go out into the world and achieve more than she did.
Mbaye smiles.
"Their names will be mine," Mbaye said, adding she hopes that they will have the confidence to go out into the world and achieve more than she did.
mercredi 21 février 2018
Black Panther smashes box office estimates
Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nyong'o star in Black Panther
Getty / PA
The US and Canada box office takings of more than $242m (£173m) put it miles ahead of the $120m (£86m) it had been estimated to make.
The movie is now the second highest-grossing four day opening of all time - behind only Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which earned $288m (£206m).
Based on the Marvel comic book character, Black Panther revolves around the ruler of a fictional central African nation who moonlights as a costumed crime-fighter.
The film has drawn praise for having a predominantly black cast, the majority of whom speak with African accents.
The igloo village built by African migrants
BBC
Recently, the tourists have started to return - but it isn't the slopes that are attracting the visitors, it's six newly built igloos.
Even more intriguing is the fact that they have been built by migrants from places like the Gambia and Senegal, who are staying in an empty hotel in the town.
Davide Midali, who came up with the idea, tells Lawrence Pollard how it came about:
mardi 20 février 2018
lundi 19 février 2018
Tributes paid to Burkinabe film director Ouedraogo
Tributes paid to Burkinabe film director Ouedraogo
AFP
Roch Marc Christian Kabore is quoted in the cinema magazine Variety as saying his country “has lost a filmmaker of immense talent,” noting that the director “truly contributed to turning the spotlight on Burkinabe and African cinema beyond our borders”.
Mr Ouedraogo was one of a group of film-makers who helped put the country at the centre of African cinema.
He is best known for the 1989 film Yaaba, which means Grandmother, and Tilai which was released the following year.
They both won awards at the Cannes film festival.
Mr Ouedraogo spent much of the 1980s learning the art of film-making in Kiev and Paris and then returned home to make what are now considered classic pieces of cinema, often set in remote villages, examining the struggle between tradition and change.
samedi 17 février 2018
jeudi 15 février 2018
mercredi 14 février 2018
mardi 13 février 2018
lundi 12 février 2018
samedi 10 février 2018
vendredi 9 février 2018
Zimbabwe hoping to build Bob Marley statue
Zimbabwe hoping to build Bob Marley statue
An arts consultant to the Zimbabwean government is hoping to build a statue of Bob Marley at the Rufaro stadium in Harare, where Marley performed in 1980 to mark the country's independence.
The announcement came three days after the anniversary of Bob Marley's birth on 6 February - a day celebrated in his home country of Jamaica.
Martin Chemhere has been speaking with Marley's estate about building the statue and seems to have got the go ahead.
But there are some conditions: the statue must be for the public and pre-approved by the Marley family. Zimbabwe, or a private sponsor, must also cover all the costs.
“I’m thrilled to have finally succeeded in this project for our beautiful country," Mr Chemhere said, according to TeleSur. "The approval is a great achievement for Zimbabwe... as the statue will attract tourists."
Marley had a good relationship with Zimbabwe, writing a song in support of its independence efforts.
When he performed in 1980, he famously covered all his expenses to and from the concert, and refused to accept money for performing.
jeudi 8 février 2018
mardi 6 février 2018
vendredi 2 février 2018
jeudi 1 février 2018
African women celebrate world Hijabi day
Aisha Afrah
BBC Somali
Muslim women around the world have been marking World Hijab Day.
The yearly event, which is celebrated on 1 February, was launched in 2013 to recognise women "who choose to wear the hijab and live a life of modesty", according to the founder's websiteThe organisers also invite all women, regardless their backgrounds and religious affiliations, to wear a hijab for a day, to show solidarity and sisterhood with Muslim women who face prejudice in many parts of the world.
Those taking part have been using the hashtag #WorldHijabDay.
Rihanna 'not welcome in Senegal' say religious groups
BBC
Pop star Rihanna is due to appear at a high-level summit in Senegal tomorrow but a religious association have declared her persona non grata, reports Jeune Afrique (in French)"No to Freemasonry and Homosexuality", an association of around 30 religious groups in Senegal, accuse the singer of using masonic symbolism and being a member of the so-called Illuminati, a conspiracy myth which suggests that a shadowy group of global elites are working to establish a New World Order.Such claims about Rihanna's beliefs have been roundly dismissed as outlandish by her musical collaborators in the past.
Rihanna will be visiting the West African nation in her role as an ambassador for the Global Partnership for Education (GPE).
The organisation aims to help fund the teaching of millions of children and young people in developing countries.
Jeune Afrique quotes Senegal's interior minister as saying he will ensure the safety of all conference attendees.
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