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Articles by 'Double Burden'
Africa: Vaccine Mistrust Threatens Covid Immunity
Fewer than three quarters of people around the world say they are likely to use a vaccination against COVID-19 if one is approved by regulatory agencies, falling short of the levels required to achieve collective immunity, a study says.
Africa: Restoring Converted Lands Key to Combatting Extinction, Climate Change
Manila — Halting or reversing the effects of carbon dioxide and other planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions is best done by identifying key regions where action can be cost-effective, says a new study.
Africa: The Need to Create a Sound Mental Health Policy
Africa Science Focus takes time this week to reflect on how life issues like divorce take a toll on the mental health of the individual and the need for Africa to create a robust mental health policy. Listen here. Want to know more about what's happening in science in Africa? Send us your questions and we'll find an expert to answer them - text or voice message WhatsApp +254799042513. Africa Science Focus, with Selly Amutabi.
Africa: Wheat Disease Common to Asia Jumps to Africa
Nairobi — A deadly wheat disease common to Asia and South America has been identified in Africa for the first time, raising fears of potential spread to wheat crops across the continent. Pawan Kumar Singh, head, wheat pathology, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) says that the fast-acting and devastating fungal disease known as wheat blast was first spotted in Africa in the Zambian rainfed wheat production system in the 2017-2018 crop cycle.
Africa: Dried, Pressed Plants Predict Climate Future
Cotonou — Dried and pressed plants are being matched with artificial intelligence to help researchers predict climate change impacts. Scientists use herbaria - collections of preserved plant specimens - to study the phenology of plants, which reveals the timing of seasonal events, such as flowering, leafing and reproduction. The manual analysis of herbaria is a time-consuming process that involves annotating the number of visible reproductive structures.
Africa: New Malaria Mosquito Threatens Mass Outbreaks in Africa
Africa has just months to react to an invasive malaria mosquito that thrives in cities, before the situation escalates beyond control, experts warn. Scientists predict that more than 125 million city dwellers across Africa will face a higher malaria risk from a type of Asian mosquito that is quickly moving across the continent. The mosquito, Anopheles stephensi, is one of the few malaria mosquitoes that thrives in urban areas because of its ability to find clean water to lay its eggs.
Africa: World Sees Two Million Stillbirths Annually - Report
New Delhi — Nearly two million babies are stillborn every year, with 84 per cent of cases occurring in low- and lower middle-income countries, says an 8 October report by WHO, UNICEF and partners. The report says that a stillbirth occurs every 16 seconds. It defines stillbirth as "a baby born with no signs of life at 28 weeks of pregnancy or more". Over the past two decades, the report said, the world has suffered a total of 48 million stillbirths.
Nigeria: Q&A - How I Turned Brain Drain to Brain Gain
Folakemi Odedina was told she would never finish her studies when she got married and became pregnant in her first year at graduate school. But, she overcame doubt and discrimination to become an internationally recognised specialist in prostate cancer research.
Africa: Robots and One Tap Payment in Rwanda
On this week's show, we explore how climate change and COVID-19 are impacting farmers in Malawi, while contactless innovations are changing the way people live in Rwanda. Malawi's economy is driven by the agricultural sector, which accounts for nearly 80 per cent of employment. The country is experiencing a food crisis brought on by recent droughts and flooding. We hear from the agricultural extension services gurus spreading technology advice to farmers.
Africa: More Use of Female Condom Could 'Make Sex Safer for Women'
Cape Town — The low uptake of female condom use in Africa is due to the reluctance of healthcare workers to endorse it for preventing unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, a study says. The female condom can gain more prominence when healthcare workers overcome the reluctance to endorse use. Raising awareness to build demand is also paramount, the study, conducted in South Africa suggests.
Ethiopia: Lab in a Suitcase 'Aids Water Safety Monitoring'
Accra — A suitcase-size portable testing laboratory could cut back the time and money spent on monitoring water quality in developing countries. Researchers have created a portable testing laboratory for screening millions of bacteria in water samples without the need to run multiple tests at a time. Improving water quality is key to achieving several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including clean water and sanitation.
Africa: Innovative Policies Needed for Increasing Meat Demand
Nairobi — Africa may import as much as 20 per cent of animal source foods such as beef, poultry and milk by 2050 if it does not adopt innovative policies to meet increasing demand, a report warns. The World Bank projects that African producers will be unable to satisfy the growing demand for livestock products.
Africa: Covid-19 Could 'Raise Death of Women, Children By 50%'
Nairobi — The diversion of health workers from maternity services to COVID-19 treatment and care units is threatening the health and lives of pregnant women and new-borns, a report has found. COVID-19 is worsening progress towards 2030 targets to save women's and children's lives globally, which was already lagging by about 20 per cent prior to the pandemic, the report says.
South Africa: Covid-19 Is Independent South Africa's 'Gravest Crisis'
Cape Town — COVID-19 has presented South Africa with the gravest crisis in the history of its democracy, according to the country's President Cyril Ramaphosa. As South Africa grapples with an already burdened healthcare system, densely populated cities and a stark socio-economic divide, its disease response is under scrutiny. Gauteng Province, the country's most densely populated region, has become South Africa's virus epicentre, passing the 100,000-case mark on 14 July.
Africa: Crop Disease Pandemic Coming 'Sooner Rather Than Later'
Global trade and monoculture will lead to crop disease pandemics that jeopardise world food systems, experts warn. A healthy wheat crop in Uganda, just weeks from harvest, turns into a tangle of black stems and shrivelled grains. As much as 80 per cent of the harvest is lost, a fate that destroys the farmer's investment in the fields and damages the livelihood of the family. Soon wheat fields in Kenya, Ethiopia and Egypt experience the same fate. Iran follows, along with India, Pakistan and Lebanon.
Africa: Maize Gene Could Lure Natural Enemies of Crop Pests
Nairobi — Scientists have identified genes in local maize varieties that can fight off stemborers by summoning their natural enemies, raising hopes for pest-resistant varieties for African smallholders, a study says. Stemborer -- an insect larva that bores in plant stems -- is causing smallholders in Sub-Saharan Africa yield losses of about US$1.5 billion a year and negatively affecting the livelihoods of nearly 300 million people, according to the study.
Africa: More Conservation 'Could Create U.S.$454 Billion a Year'
Nairobi — Protecting 30 per cent of the earth's surface by 2030 could result in greater economic opportunities for emerging economies, such as those in Africa, a report says. According to the World Economic Forum, losing the different forms of living organisms on earth - known as biodiversity - including those on land and at sea could threaten the global economy.
Africa: HIV, Malaria, TB Deaths Could Rise By Up to 36%
Nairobi — Low- and middle-income countries could see HIV, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria deaths increase by up to 36 per cent over the next five years because of COVID-19-induced health services disruptions, a study projects. According to the 2019 World Malaria Report, an estimated 228 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide in 2018, with the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region reporting 213 million cases, or 93 per cent.
Africa Urged to Team Up in COVID-19 Vaccine Trials
Lagos — Africa has the capacity to mass-produce vaccines against COVID-19 if they become available next year but the region will need to be more involved in their search, a meeting has heard. The University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa announced last month (23 June) a COVID-19 vaccine trial it is conducting in collaboration with the UK-based Oxford University and Oxford Jenner Institute, which first developed the vaccine.
Africa: The Next Pandemic Is Coming - Now Is the Time to Unite
The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in a new era of disease risk as global surveillance systems reach breaking point, while rising meat consumption forces animal species together at an unprecedented rate. In this Spotlight, SciDev.Net looks ahead to the spectre of the next global pandemic -- where will it come from, what form will it take and, crucially, how might it be avoided?
Nigeria: Farmers Unaware Their Activities Trigger Climate Jolts
Accra — Nigerian maize and poultry farmers and traders' activities contribute to climate change, but only 14 per cent of them realise it, a study has found. Farming communities in Africa should be targeted in climate change education campaigns to develop their understanding of the role agriculture plays, according to scientists.
Malawi: HIV Testing 'Powered By Football' Increase to 30 Per Cent
Cape Town — A project that used football to attract the youth and educate them on HIV/AIDS increased testing for HIV by about 30 per cent, an impact evaluation report has found. Malawi, where the three-year project was implemented, has one million people living with HIV out of 17.6 million people in the country, according to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS.
Ghana: Malaria Elimination At Risk As Ghana Economy Improves
Accra — Ghana's efforts to eliminate malaria could be in jeopardy as its improved economy results in reduced external funding for fighting malaria, a study suggests. With Ghana experiencing a five-fold increase in gross domestic product per capita from US$ 309 to US$1,517 between 2002 and 2016, and thus becoming a lower middle-income country, its dependence on external support for malaria has been diminishing, according to the study.
Africa: World in 'Most Unprecedented' Disruption of Education
Nairobi — Most Sub-Saharan African countries have failed to target vulnerable learners such as students with disabilities during the COVID-19 schools shutdown, exacerbating educational inequality in the region, a UN report says. It comes as the world faces the "most unprecedented disruption in the history of education", the UNESCO report says, with over 90 percent of students globally affected by school closures.
Africa: Industrial Agriculture Threat to the Environment
Nairobi — Local and international donors are investing more in industrial agricultural projects to the detriment of interventions that simultaneously transform food systems and protect the environment, a report says.
Africa: Global Tree Pledge Frenzy Threatens Ancient Grasslands
Grassy ecosystems are under fire. Aisling Irwin investigates the world's booming tree campaigns. When Madagascans flocked to the country's barren Central Highlands in January this year to help plant a million trees in a day, botanist Cédrique Solofondranohatra stayed at home. Vehicles jammed the highway from the capital Antananarivo, the mood was jovial and an estimated 12,000 people turned up in Ankazobe, north-west of the capital.
Africa: Poisons Used to Beautify Food in Africa
Toxic chemicals are being used by food sellers across Sub-Saharan Africa to improve the look of meat and fish, scientists and food inspectors say, putting the health of millions at risk. Weak government testing capacities and informal food supply chains means there is little oversight of traders and fishermen, and almost no protection for unwary consumers. However, veterinary specialists say there are techniques that can help people identify contaminated food before they buy it.
Africa: Low-Cost Ultrasound Reveals Fluoride-Linked Bone Loss
Nairobi — An innovative ultrasound technique could be used to assess bone quality in hard-to-reach rural regions exposed to excessive intake of fluoride in drinking water, a study has found. Fluoride is usually added to public water systems to purify water but increased fluoride levels could be toxic to the body and cause effects such as weakened bones and increased hip and wrist fractures.
Ghana: Upcycling E-Waste Trash Into Innovative Treasure
Three poultry farmers in northern Ghana have found a new way to keep their eggs warm -- by keeping them in a fridge. A prototype incubator uses a repurposed fridge as a casing, while a mechanism inside turns the eggs when needed. The idea comes from a local company called Appcyclers, which developed the prototype when a team member complained about the scarcity and price of commercial incubators.
Malawi: Flowering Plants Boost Maize Yields By Half
Blantyre — Planting flowering plants such as acacia, shrubs, vines and faidherbia -- a fast growing nitrogen fixing plant -- could increase maize yields by up to 53 per cent, a study has found. These are part of agricultural strategies that if adopted, especially in countryside settings, could boost rural development amid climate change, according to the research. Flowering plants serve as cover crops -- which are planted to cover the soil to improve its quality and fertility.
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