vendredi 31 mai 2019
GM fungus 'kills 99% of malaria mosquitoes'
bbc
A fungus - genetically
enhanced to produce spider toxin - can rapidly kill huge numbers of the
mosquitoes that spread malaria, a study suggests.
Trials, which took place in
Burkina Faso, showed mosquito populations collapsed by 99% within 45 days.
The researchers say their aim
is not to make the insects extinct but to help stop the spread of malaria.
The disease, which is spread
when female mosquitoes drink blood, kills more than 400,000 people per year.
Worldwide, there are about 219
million cases of malaria each year.
Conducting the study,
researchers at the University of Maryland in the US - and the IRSS research
institute in Burkina Faso - first identified a fungus called Metarhizium
pingshaense,which naturally infects the Anopheles mosquitoes that spread
malaria.
The next stage was to enhance
the fungus. "They're very malleable, you can genetically engineer them
very easily," Prof Raymond St Leger, from the University of Maryland, told
BBC News.
jeudi 30 mai 2019
mercredi 29 mai 2019
Somaliland mosques told to turn down the volume
bbc
Mosques in the self-declared republic of Somaliland have been urged to turn down, or turn off, their loudspeakers for overnight prayers.
The
director general of the ministry of religious affairs, Aadan Abdillahi
Abdalle, told the BBC Somali service that imams and mosque authorities
had been urged to respect their neighbours when they issued the call for
the Tahajjud, a non-obligatory prayer which usually takes place after
midnight.
People
living near mosques have complained of disruption to their sleep from
the loudspeakers - a particular concern for the elderly, and for those
convalescing from illness.
However,
others have argued for the mosques' right to broadcast the call to
prayer, and have urged the government not to interfere in a religious
matter.
The
population of Somaliland is overwhelmingly Muslim. The territory has
its own autonomous government but is not internationally recognised as
independent.
The tablet computer pulled by donkey
bbc
Back in 2016, the remote community of Funhalouro, Mozambique, bore witness to the roll-out of a new mobile technology.
Back in 2016, the remote community of Funhalouro, Mozambique, bore witness to the roll-out of a new mobile technology.
A container - consisting of four LCD screens, powered by solar panels - arrived at the back of a donkey cart.
It
was a mobile roadshow, starting with music to draw a crowd and then
switching to a three-minute film on the biggest of the screens.
While
the topic - digital literacy - was not the most entertaining, it
engaged the audience, many of whom had never seen a screen or moving
images before.
mardi 28 mai 2019
Menstrual cups offer alternative to costly pads in Malawi
bbc
Keeping clean during your periods can be difficult if you can't afford to buy disposable sanitary towels every month.
An invention from the 1930s - a reusable silicone cup you fold and
insert up your vagina - is
now solving that problem for schoolgirls in Malawi.
lundi 27 mai 2019
samedi 25 mai 2019
vendredi 24 mai 2019
Wearing Hijab in the Military
Meet Capt. Maysaa Ouza, the first Air Force JAG Corps
officer allowed to wear a hijab while in uniform. The daughter of Lebanese
immigrants, Ouza was first told she could only request a religious
accommodation to wear her hijab after formally commissioning. But Ouza
challenged this decision and petitioned the Air Force to reconsider its policy.
She was awarded an early religious accommodation and the Air Force allowed her
last year to wear her hijab during commissioned officer training, as well as in
her role as chief of legal assistance at Scott Air Force Base.
East Africa Closer to Banning Hydroquinone Skin-Lightening Products
voanews
FILE - Aranmolate Ayobami, plastic surgeon at
Grandville Medical and Laser clinic in Lagos, holds a tube of Skinlite a skin
lightening product used at his clinic, on July 17, 2018, in Lagos, Nigeria.
ARUSHA, TANZANIA —
East African countries are set
to ban skin-lightening products that contain hydroquinone, a medical agent
linked to health problems when used in high concentrations. The East African
Legislative Assembly last week passed a resolution calling for a region-wide
ban on the manufacturing and importation of products containing hydroquinone.
At a beauty parlor in Arusha,
52-year-old Rose Mselle has been using skin-bleaching products since she was a
teenager. She says women like her want to be beautiful
"And in the process of
looking for beauty, or for our skin color to shine, we use things that we
shouldn't," she added.
At a nearby market,
32-year-old clothing vendor Janet Jonijosefu used skin-lightening products that
contain hydroquinone, a medical agent used to treat dark spots, for years. She
stopped after her skin became fragile.
She said the beauty products
containing hydroquinone badly affected her skin. She started developing patches
on her face. She went to the doctor and was advised to stop using products
containing hydroquinone and instead use aloe vera.
FILE - A shop sells
skin-lightening products in Accra, Ghana, on July 3, 2018.
Skin-lightening products often
use high concentrations of hydroquinone, which can cause skin problems or
become toxic when mixed with other bleaching chemicals.
Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya,
Nigeria, Rwanda, and South Africa ban or regulate the agent in cosmetics.
Tanzania bars imports.
The East African Legislative
Assembly last week passed a resolution on a region-wide ban of hydroquinone's
manufacture and importation.
Suzan Nakawuki, a member of
the regional assembly from Uganda, noted that hydroquinone is not only used by
women but also men.
"We have seen men
bleaching seriously even more than women," she said. "But it's
becoming a problem. If we don't regulate it, it is going to become very
problematic."
When used medically,
hydroquinone can be an effective treatment for skin discoloration. Some East
African lawmakers spoke out against a blanket ban.
Aden Abdikadir, a lawmaker from
Kenya, said he is concerned a blanket ban will cause "serious trade
disruption" for cosmetics.
If signed by heads of state,
the ban becomes law in all six East African Community states, which include
Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.
Critics point out bans on
hydroquinone have failed to stop smuggled products from being sold openly.
Cosmetics labeled as having hydroquinone are on display at shops in Arusha.
If bans are not backed by
enforcement, they will have little effect on the use of the high demand
skin-lightening products, despite the risk to health.
jeudi 23 mai 2019
Somalia's youngest sultan misses playing football
Issa Ahmed
BBC Somali, Nairobi
BBCCopyright: BBC
An 18-year-old boy is the youngest sultan, or traditional ruler, in Somalia's semi-autonomous region of Puntland.
Sultan Mohamed Sultan Hure still goes to school, and is preparing to write his exams this week.
But
when the BBC visited him at his palace, he said he has not led a normal
life since he, as the eldest son, inherited the post of sultan at the
age of 15 following the death of his father.
The
post comes with its own strict rules and responsibilities. He misses
playing football with children of his age, the sultan said.
Sultan
Hure is heavily involved in spearheading peace meetings in Puntlland,
and trying to improve relations between different communities.
The sultan is still influential in Somalia - and tends to have the final say in his community.
mercredi 22 mai 2019
mardi 21 mai 2019
lundi 20 mai 2019
samedi 18 mai 2019
vendredi 17 mai 2019
Zimbabwean scholar 'humbled' by US statue
bbc
A Zimbabwean-born academic who is to have a statue of her likeness unveiled outside New York's Rockefeller Centre has told the BBC she was shocked by the honour.
"I'm just so humbled, it is unbelievable," Tererai Trent told BBC Focus on Africa.
"When my name came up I never took it seriously," she added.
The
monument, which will be officially unveiled in August, is intended to
recognise Tererai Trent for her role in promoting equality and
empowerment for girls and women.
Her
statue will stand alongside new statues of other prominent women, such
as media mogul Oprah Winfrey, conservationist Jane Goodall, actress Cate
Blanchett, activist Janet Mock, chemist Tracy Dyson and Olympic gymnast
Gabby Douglas.
As
a child Ms Trent was prevented from going to school, but she taught
herself to read and write with some help from her brother and his school
books.
She
went on to earn her PhD in the US, where she is a university professor,
and also formed Tererai Trent International - a foundation which seeks
to provide quality education in rural communities in Zimbabwe.
She told BBC Focus on Africa:
Quote Message: I never dreamt in my life I'd be where I am today. Never ever think it's your past challenges that are going to determine your future.
I never dreamt in my life I'd be where I am today. Never ever think it's your past challenges that are going to determine your future.
Quote Message: But... we have a moral obligation, those of us able to achieve our dreams, to help others stand on our shoulders and provide that opportunity."
But... we have a moral obligation, those of us able to achieve our dreams, to help others stand on our shoulders and provide that opportunity."
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