Features catergory

   The force is female: India’s women cops take a stand Jaipur, India | AFP |  All-female police units are shaking up the male-dominated force in conservative northwest India, hitting the streets to combat sex crimes and a pervasive culture of silence around rape. One such squad in Jaipur has …

  S.Africa circumcision ritual: a dangerous route to manhood Coffee Bay, South Africa | AFP |  Naked, covered in white clay mud, and with his penis wrapped in leaves, Abongile Maqegu, 20, sits in a hut in South Africa recovering from his circumcision — a traditional ritual that can prove …

Ssebaana Kizito: Born at right time, dead at wrong time Kampala, Uganda | ANDREW S. KAGGWA |  THE political will he left for the country may have been contained in one of the last interviews he gave to a local TV station a few weeks before his death. “Leaders should …

Dr. Richard Kalungi has chosen rare path in the practice of medicine. Although the common practice in Uganda is for anyone seeking medical attention to visit a health facility, Kalungi is pioneering a concept of doctors visiting patients in homes, work places, and schools. “I wanted to get a solution …

Unknown to most Ugandans, NARO currently runs one of the most active GMO research facilities on the African continent Kampala, Uganda| ANDREW S. KAGGWA |  Barbara Ntambirweki, a research fellow with Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE) is preparing for a bit fight – against introduction into the country of Genetically …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP |  Guards check drivers’ papers to keep out uninvited guests from gated compounds where Egypt’s rich can escape the chaos of Cairo’s streets in a country with a widening wealth gap. Built in the deserts around Cairo, some compounds offer amenities such as indoor and outdoor …

Aweil, South Sudan | AFP |  “I sell the small bottle of cooking oil for 140 SSP. Six months ago, it was 70. The customers complain,” said James Deng, an 18-year-old stallholder in Aweil, South Sudan. In this regional market in the country’s northwest — just as at the main …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP |  Leggy dancers in tight shorts, bottles of Moet champagne and flashy cars feature in Nigerian pop icon Wizkid’s bling-bling music videos. But the singer himself has now swapped the Versace T-shirts and low-slung jeans that show his underwear for traditional African dress — a new …

Fangshan, China | AFP |  The water might be chilly but dozens of naked men happily relax in an outdoor pool in a Beijing suburb making the most of the sunshine. “This is a paradise for Chinese nudists,” says 18-year-old Zhen, displaying a tiger tattoo on his chest. The small …

SPECIAL FEATURE: For Egypt, 1967 war marked end of pan-Arab dream This month, AFP will move a series of stories marking the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War between Israel and neighbouring Arab countries from June 5 to 10, 1967 ****** Cairo, Egypt | AFP |  Its vaunted air force …