FINLAND, with its baffling language and culture of reserve, is not an easy place for outsiders to penetrate. For Nura Farah, the breakthrough came via the dissected brains of dead cows. Ms Farah, who arrived with her mother in 1993 as a teenager seeking asylum from Somalia’s civil war, spent eight years dreaming of a...
NAIROBI, (Reuters) – The Kenyan shilling gained against the dollar on Thursday but was seen vulnerable from the side-effects of a global rout of emerging market currencies. Shares fell. At the close of trade, commercial banks posted the shilling at 103.20/30 per dollar, firmer than Thursday’s close of 103.45/55 per dollar. Joshua Anene, a trader...
By Paul Richardson Soma Oil & Gas Holdings Ltd., the U.K.-based explorer chaired by former Conservative Party leader Michael Howard, requested a meeting with the United Nations to discuss allegations about its dealings in Somalia. The company asked for talks with UN Security Council Committee Chairman Rafael Dario Ramirez Carreno in a letter published on...
Africa’s middle class is rising and they have money to spend. About a third of the continent spends between $4 to $20 a day—a group that is expected to grow to 42% by 2060, according to data from the Africa Development Bank. That’s more than a billion people. Consumption on the continent rose to more...
By JODI KANTOR and DAVID STREITFELD SEATTLE — On Monday mornings, fresh recruits line up for an orientation intended to catapult them into Amazon’s singular way of working. They are told to forget the “poor habits” they learned at previous jobs, one employee recalled. When they “hit the wall” from the unrelenting pace, there is...
By Thomas C. Mountain The tiny country of Djibouti sitting at the strategically critical entrance from the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea is quickly turning into the latest confrontation between the USA and China in Africa. Djibouti, home to the only US permanent military presence in Africa, has recently notified the American military that...
By Howard W. French Discussions about the fate of Africa have long had a cyclical quality. That is especially the case when it comes to the question of how to explain the region’s persistent underdevelopment. At times, the dominant view has stressed the importance of centuries of exploitation by outsiders, from the distant past all...
By Tehmina Shaukat China’s expanding presence in sub-Saharan Africa has been a major catalyst for growth in the region. Contrary to widespread opinion, its engagement covers all aspects of development. Stronger domestic policies will help countries in the region increase the gains from this growing partnership. A few years back, I had the opportunity to...
Egypt has opened a major expansion of the Suez Canal, which deepens the main waterway and provides ships with a 35km (22 mile) channel parallel to it. At the inauguration, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi welcomed foreign leaders aboard a historic yacht as helicopters and fighter jets flew by. The expansion aims to increase the...
By BRIAN MOSETI With more than 10 universities and many more set to open their doors to students, Kisii Town can very well be referred to as a university town. Kisii University, Jomo Kenyatta University of Science & Technology, the University of Nairobi, Narok University, Moi University, Mount Kenya University, Africa Nazarene University and Jaramogi...