The continent’s pension funds could lead institutional investors in committing funds to local infrastructure COMMENT | IBRAHIM ASSANE MAYAKI | As the US Federal Reserve embarks on the “great unwinding” of the stimulus program it began nearly a decade ago, emerging economies are growing anxious that a stronger dollar will adversely …

Washington, United States | AFP | People who regularly snack on a variety of nuts may face a lower risk of heart disease than people who don’t, said the largest study of its kind, which was released this week. Eating five weekly servings of walnuts, peanuts or other kinds of tree …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | On Harare’s streets, many expressed amazement and delight Wednesday that President Robert Mugabe’s long reign may be coming to a close, but people also admitted the future looked unstable. Mugabe, 93, has ruled Zimbabwe since 1980 — longer than many can remember — and the sudden …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Eleven people have died after a plane belonging to a safari company crashed in northern Tanzania, according to the aircraft’s owners, Coastal Aviation. “We are deeply saddened to report that eleven people have died after a single-plane accident this morning in Northern Tanzania,” the company said …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Female domestic workers from Tanzania are being physically and sexually abused and exploited by Gulf employers, a rights group said Tuesday in a report blocked from publication in Tanzania. In a 100-page report on treatment of East African female domestic workers in Oman and the …

Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | The European Union on Tuesday joined an international chorus urging Liberian political parties and its electoral commission to end “unnecessary delays” and elect a new president. A second round of voting to choose a successor to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was suspended indefinitely by the …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain’s Mo Farah says he could compete in the marathon at the 2020 Olympics if he feels confident of winning a medal. Farah retired from the track in August to focus on road racing and has been coy about his Olympic future. Congratulations Sir …

Washington, United States | AFP | US regulators have approved the first pill that contains a digital tracking sensor to alert doctors and caregivers as to whether a patient is taking a medication as scheduled. The pill, called Abilify MyCite (aripiprazole tablets with sensor), is designed for patients with schizophrenia, …

Publicising violence against journalists will end an era of historically keeping it behind the headlines COMMENT | LEON WILLEMS | Every five days, on average, somewhere in the world, a journalist is murdered for being a journalist. Nine out of ten times, no one is prosecuted, creating an atmosphere of impunity that extends …

Washington, US | MICHELLE ROBERTS | People with malaria give off a distinctive “breath-print” that could be used as a test for the disease, according to American scientists. They had already tried out a crude prototype breathalyser in Africa, a tropical medicine conference heard. The test was reasonably good at detecting …