Calls for education reform across Africa are not new, but the one ingredient necessary to facilitate these reforms - data - is not readily available in many countries. The Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) has rolled out a five-year initiative aimed at transforming how education data is collected, understood, and used across the continent. Inyang Umoren, Project Manager of the Tackling Education and Skills Data Challenges in Africa project at ADEA, breaks down the challenges associated with collecting education data and how better use of data can help in decision-making and plans for education reform. Click here to read a UNICEF brief on the state of education in Africa.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - TEDxTalk (TEDxIUEA) and BBC News.
Africa's green energy transition is underway, but without dedicated funding, some countries may be forced to delay or abandon it altogether. Despite contributing less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions, Africa remains vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Research Fellow at the Climate Policy Lab at Tufts University and IPPG, Seth Owusu-Mante, unpacks the burden of the green transition: the cost, the politics, and how some African countries are forging ahead with their own limited resources. Read the IPPG paper on emissions levy here.
Additional audio expert: Credit - BBC News
By the end of this century, your native language may no longer exist. Already, over 300 African languages are said to be at risk or have already disappeared. How do we ensure the rest survive? Nigerian writer and linguist, Kola Tubosun, joins us with some thoughts on preservation, the power of archiving, and what happens when we lose what we inherited from generations before us. Read his interview with the African Writer, Renaissance is Badly Needed in African Language Literature, here.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - TEDx Talks (The Power of Language)
Defining art may be difficult, but it is visible in nearly everything around us. For many of us, our impressions of art and artists have been ones of struggle, and at times being 'broke'. But today's generation of African artists has proven that art pays. So, what is with the hesitation many of us have about art? Essenam Dabla-Attikpo gives us an insight into the fascinating world of art and tells us how her organization, This No Be Art, is helping move African art to higher heights.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - DW
From its print origins in the mid-20th century to its digital rebirth in the early 2000s, African-focused literary magazines have helped propel the careers of many writers. But with many of the digital magazines operating without external sources of funding, how sustainable are they in the long term? We speak with Nzube Nlebedim, founding editor of The Shallow Tales Review, about his writing and the future of digital publishing of literary magazines in Africa. Read Nzube's essay When the Flutist Burns His Pipe: The Rise of Queer and Emigration Literature in Africa here.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - African Roots and Routes (YouTube)
While slavery in the American south has largely been documented in fiction including films and novels, the same cannot be said about slavery in the north of the country, especially in New York. Close to New York's City Hall is a monument honoring that tells the story of enslaved Africans who first arrived in the city in the 1600s. In this episode, we learn more about the African Burial Ground monument from Park Ranger, Kenrick Joseph and retrace the lives of enslaved Africans in New York.
Additional audio excerpts: Credit - CBS Texas, WRNN-TV (YouTube), History (YouTube), InsideOut TV (YouTube)
Since Black Panther's release in 2018, afro-futurism has surged into mainstream consciousness. But as that genre expands, creatives like our guest, Kwame-Michael Brako are pushing beyond it to tell stories that fuse African ancestral knowledge, cosmology, and futurism together. Kwame joins us to unpack this creative shift and share why after working on blockbuster franchises like the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, he chose to leave Hollywood behind to open his own visual effects studio in his native Ghana.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - David Kirkman (Youtube), BrakoVerseTV (Youtube)
Sudan's two-year-old conflict which started as a power struggle between two military Generals shows no sign of ending soon. Happening alongside the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars, many consider Sudan's conflict a 'forgotten war.' But how is it a forgotten war when it's become the worst humanitarian situation in the world with millions displaced, thousands killed, and half of the population at risk of extreme hunger? Ensuring Sudanese voices aren't silenced by the conflict, award-winning Sudanese writer and medical student, Noor Salah Elfaki, is documenting the harsh realities of the day through her writing. Her short story, 'Khartoum Cats', captures the terrifying early days of the ongoing conflict.
Click here to donate to the Sudanese American Physicians Association to help bring medical aid to those in need.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - BBC
We've been away for a while ... sorry to have kept you waiting. But the wait is almost over! Our brand-new season starts Friday, August 1, 2025!!
Discovering one's true calling in life doesn't always come easily. Awe Ogon learned that the hard way. She studied law to please her father but realized after a few years of practice that she was not as passionate about law as she was about creating art, so she quit law and left her home country, Nigeria. Now, the author of 3 books and a collection of poems, Awe talks to us about how she found her voice as a writer. Plus, an iconic New Zealand landmark has been granted legal recognition as a person.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - WION TV
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Before Nollywood came calling, Collins Okoh worked for Nigeria's Ministry of Health while nursing a dream of becoming a novelist. But that all changed when Nollywood actor, producer, and director Funke Akindele Bello invited him to collaborate on her 2020 film, Omo Ghetto: The Saga. Since then, Collins and Funke have churned out some of the highest grossing movies in Nollywood history including A Tribe Called Judah. All these movies have all surpassed the 1-billion-naira mark. Collins joins us to share his insights and his formula for writing box office hits. Plus, a Maryland resident trying to renew her driver's license discovers that she has been registered as dead though she is very much alive.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit: FAANTV (Youtube), Galaxy NewsTV, NBC 10WJAR
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Esports is a multi-billion-dollar industry attracting young people from around the world. International and regional tournaments, including tournaments for university teams, offer players a pathway to becoming professional gamers. In Africa, esports is gaining grounds despite challenges such as the cost of accessing the internet and electricity cost. As many worry about the effect long hours of gaming may be having on the mental health of young people, insiders say there are some advantages to playing video games. President of Esports Association, Ghana, Kwesi Hayford joined us to discuss those benefits. Plus, a Michelin-starred sushi chain restaurant in Japan spends over a million dollars at auction for the first tuna catch of 2025.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - Esports Association, Ghana
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On January 29, 2025, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) will lose three of its members. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger who have formed a new group known as the Alliance of Sahel States say their decision to leave the larger union is irreversible, yet ECOWAS says it will continue to engage their leaders until July 2025. Dr. Lassane Ouedraogo, a professor at Université Nazi Boni and a research fellow at the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD West Africa) joins us to discuss the impact of the ECOWAS splinter on the sub region and the Sahel states as well as why Prime Minister Apollinaire Joachim de Tambela was dismissed by Burkina Faso's military leader, Capt. Ibrahim Traore. Plus, we celebrate some outstanding African women for their achievements this year.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - France24
A55 podcast on YouTube!
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Ghana has a storied tradition of storytelling and a wealth of writers, yet the commercial theater scene experienced a lull between the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2008, playwright, James Ebo Whyte, affectionately called Uncle Ebo, reignited the passion for theater with his play, "Unhappy Wives, Confused Husbands," drawing crowds back to the playhouse. Since then, commercial theater appears to have been revitalized. So, what caused the decline of commercial theater in Ghana? Uncle Ebo shares his insights on the topic, the revival, and sustenance of a vibrant theater culture in Ghana. And a New Zealand Scrabble pro has won the Spanish world title remarkably without speaking Spanish!
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - Roverman Productions (YouTube)
A55 podcast on YouTube!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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As the year draws to a close, businesses as well as individuals like to take stock of their activities in the year that's ending and find ways to improve in the coming year. For businesses, it also means finding ways to thrive in an ever-evolving business environment. But what does it mean to thrive in uncertainty and what does it take? Organizational transformation consultant, Benjamin Yaw Manu walks us through some tried and tested ways to get your organization ready to transform and thrive in spite of the uncertainties. And a Youtuber in Argentina makes a stunning and controversial debut in a premier league soccer match.
Assess your organizational readiness to transform.
Is your organization ready to thrive in a rapidly changing business landscape? Assess your organizational readiness to transform with the Nimdier scorecard! Find out where your organization stands and how you can position yourself for success.
Take the scorecard now at: https://organizationaltransformationscorecard.scoreapp.com
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - UCToday
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In African tradition, the elderly, especially ancestors are highly revered for their wisdom which they've passed down for generations through proverbs and even folktales. But in our modern world where patience for instance is more of a luxury than a virtue, relying on the wisdom of our elders may appear to be out of sync with our busy lives. Author and teacher of Malian ancestral traditions, Anna Dao, joins us to talk about how the traditional lessons from her grandmother aided her journey of self-discovery and healing. She also talks to us about her memoir, Finding Lalla's Anna, which expands further on her relationship with her grandmother. And Police in the German city of Dusseldorf bust a local pizzeria that sold more than pizza to its customers.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - Miguel Ammah (By the Fireside - YouTube)
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There's a 50/50 chance for students who gain admission to study a course in humanities at Ghana's premiere university, the University of Ghana, to be offered archaeology as a course of study. Fewer students out of the number minor or major in archaeology in their final year. It is one of the courses at the university many students would rather avoid. So why did Beatrice Darko-Yeboah (PhD) give up her dream of becoming a banker to pursue a career in archaeology to the point of becoming the second female ever in the University's history to obtain a PhD in the subject? Dr. Darko-Yeboah tells us about her journey and why archaeology appears to be an unpopular subject. And a Swiss court rules a luxury watch making company was within right to ask workers to clock-out when going to use the bathroom.
Additional audio excerpt: Credit - Cooper's Ferry Site (YouTube)
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Born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts to Nigerian parents, Dr. Adeoye Owolewa, popularly known as Rep. Oye, is leading the charge for America's capital city, the District of Columbia, to become the country's 51st state. Having moved to Washington D.C after his doctoral studies in Pharmacy, Rep. Oye made his first foray into politics on a dare which landed him in spot on the D.C Neighborhood Advisory Commission. In 2020, he was elected the D.C Representative to Congress, a position that puts him right at the heart of the fight for D.C statehood. Rep. Oye joins us to talk about the importance of statehood for his constituents and the other initiatives he's rolled out since assuming office in January 2021. And although the Earth is known to have one moon, a temporary "second moon" will be hanging out in our skies until about November 25.
Additional audio excerpts: Credit - Now This Impact, France24, WQAD News 8.
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