February 2022 – Page 2 – Science Africa

China Pledges to Achieve Carbon Neutrality, Water Security Before 2060

By Mary Hearty The world’s biggest emitter of carbon dioxide (CO2), China has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2060, with a key focus on decarbonizing its industrial sector. Moreover, due to severe water scarcity experienced in the country, the Chinese government has imposed stringent limitations on industrial water use by 2030, as China’s industries […]

18 Feb, 22

Kenya Launches Five-year Plan for Zoonotic Diseases

By Aziza Atieno and Sharon Atieno With Kenya bearing a tremendous burden of zoonotic diseases- transmitted from animals to humans and vice versa- with multiple outbreaks of different diseases yearly, the country has launched a five-year plan to tackle these diseases. Globally, zoonotic diseases account for over 60% of all human infections and over 75% […]

COVID-19: Uganda Receives 1,000 Medical Oxygen Cylinders

By Mary Hearty In an effort to cushion Uganda’s response to COVID-19, the Ministry of Health has received a complete set of one thousand oxygen cylinders worth US$ 233,000 procured by the World Health Organization (WHO) with financial support from the Government of Denmark for the management of critical cases of COVID-19 in the country. […]

17 Feb, 22

KEMRI Launches New Malaria, COVID-19 Kits

By Gift Briton The Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) has launched two new products- Plasmochek and KEMCOV-19- that will revolutionize COVID-19 and Malaria testing. Malaria is an endemic disease in sub-Saharan Africa, including Kenya, where the country’s Centre for disease control and prevention (CDC) estimates that the mortality due to the disease is at 10,700 people yearly. With Kenya listed among […]

16 Feb, 22

Nigeria Needs New Seed System Approach to Transform Cassava Production

Nigeria, the largest producer of cassava in the world, needs to adopt a new seed system approach to compete globally and keep the price of cassava-based foods stable and affordable in the country, experts say. Speaking at a media parley at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) on Wednesday, Prof Lateef Sanni, the project […]

Food Security Recovery Likely to Take Time, FSNWG Says

By Muia Thomas Food security recovery is likely going to take time following extremely poor and unpredictable rainfall patterns, Food Security and Nutrition Working Group (FSNWG) says. In a report provided by the FSNWG, at least 12-14 million people in Southern and South Eastern Ethiopia, arid and semi-arid lands (ASALS) of Kenya and Somalia will most […]

WHO: Boosting Africa’s Vaccines Self-Reliance

By Gift Briton The World Health Organization(WHO), South African government and other international partners are collaborating to build and develop mRNA vaccine hub in South Africa, an initiative which aims at producing COVID-19, HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria vaccines. For greater part of 2021, inadequate supply of COVID-19 vaccine globally, left billions of people mostly from African […]

$11.4mn Grant to Strengthen AUC Governance

By Aziza Atieno The African Development Fund has approved $11.48 million grant to the African Union Commission (AUC) to strengthen its governance and provide it with institutional support to improve its capacity to drive the continent’s agenda. Agenda 2063 is the AU’s vision for “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a […]

WHO: Africa on Track to Control COVID-19, Continuous Vigilance Needed

By Mary Hearty Africa should continue being vigilant despite the continent’s possibility of controlling the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022, World Health Organization (WHO) says. Over the last two years, the continent has witnessed four waves of COVID-19, each with higher peaks or more total new cases than the previous one. The surges have been mostly […]

UNESCO: Over US$730,000 to Support Culture

By Gift Briton Taking into account the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has negatively impacted livelihoods of many artists and cultural professionals globally, Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions – a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO’s) body -approved over US$730,000 in funding for cultural projects in […]