Ethiopia begins planting 4 billion trees to fight deforestation
Hundreds of thousands of volunteers are needed for the planting and bedding in of the four billion saplings.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Endangered rhino numbers ‘soar by 1,000%’ in Tanzania after crackdown on poaching gangs
The number of endangered rhinos in Tanzania has risen from just 15 to over 150 after a government crackdown on industrial-scale poaching, officials claim.
Judges in Botswana unanimously rule to decriminalize homosexuality
In the landmark ruling, the southern African nation’s High Court rejected sections of the penal code that criminalize same-sex relations and impose up to seven years in prison.
Democratic Republic of Congo completes its first peaceful transfer of power
Felix Tshisekedi has been sworn in as the president of the DRC, in the vast central African country’s first transfer of power through an election in 59 years of independence.
Tanzania bans the use of plastic bags
In a historic conservation move the government of the United Republic of Tanzania has announced the ban on plastic bag use beginning June 1, 2019.
World Data Lab projects Kenya to eradicate extreme poverty by 2032
A global data enterprise suggested in a post published last week by a US think tank that the share of abjectly poor Kenyans will drop from nearly 21 percent to 4.3 percent in 2030.
Ghana marks 10 years of polio-free status
The Ghana National PolioPlus Committee on Wednesday has marked 10 years of the country’s polio-free status.
World Bank commits $22.5 billion more to Africa for climate change
World Bank Group is providing USD$22.5 billion to Africa for climate mitigation and adaptation across five years beginning with 2021, adding to the $17 billion already committed through the Africa Climate Business Plan.
World-leading ivory ban becomes law in the U.K.
The act will introduce a total ban on dealing in items containing elephant ivory, regardless of their age, within the U.K., including export from or import to the U.K..
U.K. Government invests £100 million in renewable energy projects in Africa
The projects funded by the new investment could help cut carbon emissions equivalent to those created by 800,000 cars a year.