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World food systems ‘pushed to the brink’ by extreme heat, UN warns

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Severe heatwaves in commonly hot regions could leave farmers unable to work outside, with livestock mortality rates expected to rise Extreme heat is threatening the world’s food systems, with farmers unable to work outside , livestock experiencing stress and crop yields falling, putting the livelihoods of more than a billion people in peril, the UN has warned . Experts said food supply in some areas was being “pushed to the brink” by increasingly common and severe heatwaves , on land and at sea, in a major report written jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Continue reading…

Co-op Bank signals expansion and new CEO under holding company restructuring

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Co-operative Bank of Kenya has signalled plans to expand into new markets and appoint a separate CEO to lead its banking unit in the country following the creation of a holding company and a new subsidiary for its core banking operations. The Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed bank has said that it has received approval by its […]

FKE warns job losses and economic strain after KIM closure

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The Federation of Kenya Workers (FKE) has warned of adverse effects on employment and the economy following the closure of the Kenya Institute of Management by the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA). The federation has expressed concern over the impact of this decision on employers whose staff hold certificates from the institution. […]

Nigeria charges six over alleged coup plot to overthrow Tinubu

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Nigeria’s government filed 13 criminal charges against six former security officials accused of plotting the violent overthrow of President Bola Tinubu’s government last year, court documents showed on Tuesday. Prosecutors charged a retired army major-general and others with treason, terrorism and terrorism financing. A seventh suspect, a former state governor, remains at large. Attorney-General and […]

Gaucho’s appointment to public hospital board raises legal scrutiny

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Recent board appointments by Governor Johnson Sakaja to hospitals in Nairobi have sparked mixed reactions, with critics questioning some of the individuals selected — among them Calvince Okoth, alias Gaucho. Gaucho, who dropped out of school in Class Six and has previously been linked to groups accused of attacking protesters, has been deemed by some […]

‘Nobody knows what works. There’s a lot of panic’: can African pop get back to global success?

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Tracks by Rema, Burna Boy and more were streaming in the billions, but hits are drying up. Stars and analysts across the African music industry fret about how to change course In 2016, Afrobeats – the catchall term for a range of contemporary dance music emerging from west Africa – began to seep into global pop culture, propelled by intercontinental collaborations such as Wizkid and Drake’s Come Closer . Olabode Otolorin, then a university student, would dispatch optimistic forecasts on the internet about the genre’s future. Nearly a decade on and now a campaign associate at Mavin Records, one of Africa’s leading labels, Otolorin has a more downbeat outlook on Afrobeats. “It is currently in a perilous state in terms of our exports,” he says. Otolorin is not alone in this sentiment. Addressing the 200 or so fans gathered at a spruced-up warehouse in Lagos for a recent listening party for his new album, Clarity of Mind, Afrobeats stalwart Omah Lay made a startling but accurate observation. “Afrobeats is declining overseas – that’s a fact. The sound from 2020 to 2024 isn’t what it is today. I’ve been watching, learning and studying my idols, looking for a way to bring that energy back,” he said pensively. Continue reading…

Fertilizer Fallout: How US-Israel Tensions Starve Africa’s Farms

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As the US-Israel war on Iran disrupts fertilizer supply, Africa’s reliance on imported inputs exposes the deeper political economy driving food insecurity. The post Fertilizer Fallout: How US-Israel Tensions Starve Africa’s Farms first appeared on The Elephant .

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