How pain, trauma and politics silenced art criticism ART | EDDY FRANKEL | My friend winced. He’d asked for my thoughts on a recent exhibition of abstract paintings and I told him the truth: I found the show heinous. It was wall-to-wall brain-petrifying, gentle, zombie abstraction; the kind of painting that …
Read More »Uganda’s ride-hailing bikers pressured to speed
We already know from existing research that the gig economy places new pressures on transport workers to drive fast and take risky decisions Kampala, Uganda | RICH MALLETT | Motorcycle-taxis are one of the fastest and most convenient ways to get around Uganda’s congested capital, Kampala. But they are also the most dangerous. …
Read More »Africa launches first Pan-African card scheme – PAPSSCARD
African central banks and payment systems are set to spearhead the continent-wide adoption and rollout of the new card Abuja, Nigeria | THE INDEPENDENT | Africa has marked a significant step towards financial independence following the launch of PAPSSCARD, the continent’s first Pan-African card scheme. Unveiled on June 27 at the …
Read More »MTN Nigeria targets $1bn cloud market to take on Amazon, Microsoft and Google
The telecoms giant is betting on a naira-priced cloud to undercut AWS and Azure Abuja, Nigeria | AGENCIES | MTN Nigeria has launched what it claims is the country’s largest prefabricated modular data centre, marking a bold push into the country’s fast-growing cloud market and taking aim at global giants such …
Read More »KOICA transforms maternal health in Uganda
28 facilities across five districts upgraded, with solar power, water, essential medical equipment Mayuge, Uganda | AGENCIES | For years, childbirth for many women in Uganda meant facing it alone, in dim, overcrowded rooms, with no privacy, no comfort, and no one to hold their hand. Husbands waited outside. Health workers …
Read More »Equity Bank taps UAE for global growth
The lender’s shareholders approved a dividend payout of Kshs. 16 billion (approximately Shs 444.9 billion) for the year ending December 2024 Nairobi, Kenya | THE INDEPENDENT | Equity Group Holdings Plc is set to open a Representative Office in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), marking its first venture outside Africa and …
Read More »Israel, U.S. war won’t end Iran’s nuclear program
It will drive it underground, following North Korea’s model, and irreversibly damage the nonproliferation regime COMMENT | ANTHONY BURKE | The United States’ and Israel’s strikes on Iran are concerning, and not just for the questionable legal justifications provided by both governments. Even if their attacks cause severe damage to Iran’s …
Read More »Nigeria’s Detty December
Started as a Nigerian cultural moment, it’s spreading across the continent – and minting money FEATURE | NNAMDI O.MADICHIE, MOTSHEDISI MATHIBE & NOBULALI DANGAZELE | Every December in Nigeria and Ghana a giant party takes place, unfolding in a whirlwind of concerts, festivals, weddings, art shows, dress-ups, meet-ups and travel. …
Read More »From analyst to architect: Prof Oramah’s 30-year Afreximbank legacy ends
The bank’s net income climbed from US$125.3 million to US$973.5 million over the same period—representing nearly an eightfold increase Abuja, Nigeria | ISAAC KHISA & AGENCIES | When Professor Benedict Oramah joined the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in 1994 as a young chief analyst, few could have foreseen that he would …
Read More »Is Artificial Intelligence a con?
A new book punctures the hype and proposes some ways to resist BOOK | LUKE MUNN | Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) going to take over the world? Have scientists created an artificial lifeform that can think on its own? Is it going to replace all our jobs, even creative ones, like …
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