Articles

Deep breathing can be a simple and effective way to reduce stress. But many people don’t think about how they’re inhaling and exhaling at work. Maybe they should.

Nigeria is considering the introduction of state police across the country’s 36 states as part of measures to tackle militant attacks, mass kidnappings and banditry activities that are wracking the country. The state police are an addition to the more than 300,000-member strong national police force who have been overwhelmed by the violence. Nigerians are cautiously welcoming the move, as Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja.

Nigeria is considering the introduction of state police across the country’s 36 states as part of measures to tackle militant attacks, mass kidnappings and banditry activities that are wracking the country. The state police are an addition to the more than 300,000-member strong national police force who have been overwhelmed by the violence. Nigerians are cautiously welcoming the move, as Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja.

Quincy Bareebe, a Maryland based Ugandan American who specializes in healthcare says she is looking to run for Congress in the next elections to represent her district which has one of the largest concentrations of African migrants in the U.S.
Bareebe recently visited VOA where she sat down with host of Upfront Africa, Jackson Mvunganyi, and discussed her political aspirations.

A short story written to highlight the traumatic experience of people abducted by Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria has been adapted into a short film. A Battered Life, written by Fatima Aliko Mohammed attempts to tell the Boko Haram story from the lenses of the victims rather than the fighters. Thousands of people died while millions of others were displaced as a result of the Boko Haram violence. Fatima talks about what motivated her to produce the film.

Young girls on the African continent and around the world are increasingly subjected to an lesser known but dangerous practice known as breast ironing. The procedure, also known as breast flattening, the involves the flattening or massaging of a young girl’s developing breasts using hot objects, like heated stones or spatulas, to delay the onset of puberty in girls to deter sexual attention. Observers have described breast ironing as a form of violence against girls as it causes severe pain, tissue damage, infection and psychological trauma. According to the United Nations, an estimated 3.8 million women are affected by this practice in many parts of Africa, but mainly Cameroon and Nigeria. Salem Solomon narrated this story, filed by Gibson Emeka.

Friends of The Congo, a Washington, DC-based advocacy organization is organizing a rally Saturday in Washington, DC to raise awareness about the violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and call for an end to what they call the war of aggression by Rwanda. Rwanda and DRC have both accused each other of supporting rebels operating in eastern DRC. VOA’s Douglas Mpuga reached Nels Kinuani, Board Director and Immigration coordinator for the Congolese community of the Washington metropolitan area to find out more about this planned demonstration.

“A Silent War: Stories of Human Suffering and Resilience in Congo” is a poignant documentary that sheds light on the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), particularly in its eastern region. Through a compelling 28-minute narrative, the film delves into the lives of individuals who have been internally displaced due to persistent intercommunal militia attacks and military operations, unraveling the profound impact of the conflict on the Congolese people.

“A Silent War: Stories of Human Suffering and Resilience in Congo” is a poignant documentary that sheds light on the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), particularly in its eastern region. Through a compelling 28-minute narrative, the film delves into the lives of individuals who have been internally displaced due to persistent intercommunal militia attacks and military operations, unraveling the profound impact of the conflict on the Congolese people.

Reeddi rents out small, lightweight solar-powered batteries in Nigeria that can power devices including TVs, laptops and refrigerators.