Author: Mahmud M-Nurudeen

The fight against malaria in Nigeria is becoming more targeted, with health authorities increasingly using information from individual states and local government areas to decide where interventions are most needed. The shift is based on subnational tailoring (SNT), an approach that recognises that malaria does not affect all parts of Nigeria in the same way. Research by Nigeria Health Watch shows that the approach is helping to shape decisions on malaria interventions, planning and funding. Nigeria began using SNT in 2019, building on the World Health Organisation’s High Burden to High Impact initiative. Instead of relying mainly on national averages,…

The possible extinction of one of West Africa’s rarest monkeys should serve as a wake-up call for governments and communities to protect nature before more species and the ecosystems people depend on are lost, a leading Ghanaian biodiversity scientist has warned. Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Environment and Sustainable Development (UESD), Professor Edward Wiafe Debrah, said the disappearance of Miss Waldron’s red colobus monkey, once found in the forests of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and other West African countries, reflects the growing pressure on biodiversity across the region. Speaking during a virtual media engagement organised by the West African Journalists…

A Ghanaian public university has launched two peer-reviewed academic journals aimed at strengthening African research, increasing access to locally generated knowledge and creating new publishing opportunities for scholars across the continent. The University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (USTED), formerly the Akenten Appiah-Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (AAMUSTED), released the maiden editions of the Journal of Applied Social Sciences and Entrepreneurship Education (JASSEE) and the Journal of Technology Education and Applied Sciences (JTEAS). The launch marks the university’s formal entry into academic publishing. The two online, peer-reviewed journals are open access, allowing researchers, students and policymakers…

Around the world, billions of dollars are invested in academic research each year, yet much of it remains locked behind subscription journals and technical language that few people outside academia can understand. Researchers in Kumasi, Ghana are now being encouraged to change that by communicating their findings in ways that inform the public, influence policy and improve lives. That was the message at the University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (USTED), where researchers, lecturers and university administrators took part in practical training designed to help transform academic studies into compelling stories for print, radio, television and digital media. Speaking…

African scientists and policymakers have launched a new research partnership aimed at understanding how climate change is affecting health across the continent, from extreme heat and floods to disease outbreaks and food insecurity. The Pan-African Climate and Health Science and Policy Consortiums were launched in Accra, bringing together institutions from West and Southern Africa to generate evidence that can guide governments in responding to growing climate-related health risks. The initiative is supported by the Wellcome Trust, which is investing £40 million in two climate and health science and policy consortiums, one in West Africa and another in Southern Africa. The…

Millions of people across East Africa and Asia could face severe flooding, disease outbreaks, heatwaves and drought in the coming months as an intensifying El Niño weather pattern gathers strength, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) has warned. The humanitarian organisation says communities in Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan are among those most at risk, urging governments and international donors to invest in early action before disasters strike. Somalia is expected to be among the hardest-hit countries. According to the IRC, June forecasts indicated a 60% chance of above-average rainfall across the country’s south and southwest, while a key…

As artificial intelligence transforms how people learn, work and communicate, language experts in Ghana are warning that technology alone cannot safeguard the country’s cultural identity. That question was at the centre of this year’s AfroCuration gathering at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, where linguists, educators, digital innovators and cultural advocates met to discuss how indigenous languages can survive in an increasingly digital world. Held under the theme “Advancing African Culture through Traditional Ghanaian Music, Symbols and Digital Language Innovation,” the event brought together experts working in Twi, Kusaal, Dagbani, Ewe, Mooré and Gurene. While…