Law student and human rights activist Mary C. Namagambe is the founder of She for She. This hybrid company is working to tackle the lack of access to appropriate health care information and products, as well as the rate at which young girls in Africa are dropping out of schooling due to period poverty.
Kylie Kiunguyu
Politics and Society Belgium apologises for kidnapping African mixed-race children
About 20 000 children born to Belgian settlers and African women in the 1940s and 1950s were forcibly taken to Belgium until the independence of each of its three colonies. Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel has apologised for these kidnappings and the subsequent treatment of these children
Lifestyle Thando Hopa is the first woman with albinism on the cover of “Vogue” mag
Thando Hopa, a South African model, lawyer and activist, is on the April cover of “Vogue Portugal” for their “Africa Motherland” edition. The magazine stated that the issue is an ode “to origins” and to “Africa, as the birthplace of mankind”.
Africans rising Meet South African biological scientist Patrick Siyambulela Mafunda, the man attempting to save the African penguin
African penguins, known for their irregular markings and loud call, are in sharp decline. The species has gone from a population of more than a million at the beginning of the 20th century to being endangered. South African bioscientist Patrick Mafunda is using in-vitro fertilisation to help the species survive.
Africans rising Senegalese media advisor Sibeth Ndiaye becomes France’s government spokeswoman
Senegalese-born media advisor Sibeth Ndiaye, who was French President Emmanuel Macron’s communications advisor for his presidential campaign, has been appointed as the spokeswoman for the French government. She is one of three new faces in the Cabinet as it gears up for the European Parliament elections next month.
African identities “Pink tax”: The reality of being an African female consumer
By now it is common knowledge that products marketed to women cost more. In some cases they cost multiple times more than the exact same products for men. This “pink tax” is imposed despite the fact that women are paid less than men. And in Africa, a lower level of quality seems to apply – as in the case of Proctor and Gamble’s Always sanitary products.
Arts and Culture Lupita Nyong’o’s children’s book ‘Sulwe’ takes on colourism and teaches self-love
Award-winning Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong’o is adding the title of author to her growing résumé. The actress is set to release a children’s book that focuses on colourism, self-love and acceptance to help girls and boys find the inspiration to ‘walk with joy in their own skin’.
Arts and Culture Niger’s practice of selling young girls as an unofficial “fifth wife” has been outlawed
Niger’s top court has outlawed ‘”Wahaya”, a unique form of slavery currently practiced in that country. It involves the sale of young girls from Tuareg communities to wealthy and prominent Hausa individuals as an unofficial “fifth wife”.
Africans rising Meet Dehlia Umunna, the first Nigerian to be appointed as a professor at Harvard Law School
Dehlia Umunna, deputy director and clinical instructor at Harvard Law School Criminal Justice Institute, is the first Nigerian to be appointed as a professor at Harvard School of Law.