Latest Stories from Derrick
Rwanda launches Africa’s first self-flying electric air taxi
The East African country is now the first in the continent to have a public flight of a self-flying electric air taxi, adding to its fast-growing reputation as a hub for advanced aviation and technology innovation. In a demonstration of the pilotless aircraft, which followed an agreement with an implementer from China’s Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), Rwandan skies witnessed an air taxi that embodies not only technological advancement but...
Burkina Faso’s new anti-LGBTQ+ law is a dangerous step backwards
Intimately caught up in the constant tussle for domination, Burkina Faso seems to be moving backward in time. Earlier this month, the West African nation enthroned a law criminalising promotion of homosexuality, for which people may be imprisoned for two-to-five years. Burkina Faso has long been considered comparatively safe for the LGBTQ+ people vis-a-vis its neighbours Mali and Ghana, but that couldn’t be further from the truth now. Not only does...
African agriculture must reckon with child labour
In many African countries, classrooms remain almost empty during farming season. This is due to the workforce needed on these farms, and children under 18 years, are burdened to offer such services with little to no pay. Africa’s child labour problem has become a global crisis. The International Labour Organisation (ILO), as well as UNICEF, estimates that globally more than 160 million children are still engaged in...
The Gen Z innovator changing lives across Africa, Elly Savatia
Across Africa, thousands of deaf individuals remain at a disadvantage when it comes to accessing education, healthcare, and work - simply because no tool exists to enable them to communicate. But a young Kenyan entrepreneur is demonstrating that locally-made technology can change that paradigm. Globally, according to the Burgeon Project, there are 466 million individuals living with hearing disabilities, and this is expected to almost double by 2050. Sub-Saharan Africa...
Nigeria’s illegal bird-trafficking trade is worsening
Nigeria's customs agency caught more than 1,600 parrots and canaries headed to Kuwait. Officials call this the country's 'largest' wildlife-trafficking bust by number. The shipment was seized at Lagos' Murtala Muhammed International Airport. This incident is indicative of a broader, ongoing issue - Nigeria as a source and transit point for illegal wildlife trade, which treaties such as CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild...
Africa’s youth is fighting injustice with memes
If you're African and online, chances are your first taste of politics came not from a news broadcast, but from a meme. A screenshot. A freeze-frame. A line of text in Impact font. Maybe it made you laugh, then made you think. Maybe it made you mad enough to post, to protest, to speak. Across the continent, memes have emerged as one of Gen Z’s sharpest weapons against injustice, a...
Can Gen Z fix Africa’s broken voting system?
In an age where African presidents outlive their mandates and ballots rarely reflect public will, a restless generation is rising. Gen Z, Africa’s most populous and connected demographic, is sick of the broken voting systems that have long been rigged to favor political dinosaurs. Now, these digital natives are organizing, educating, and agitating to fix the continent’s democratic crisis. The question isn’t whether Africa’s voting system is broken, it’s...
Understanding Africa’s cultural crescendo
Africa's creative wave is the strongest it's ever been, and the world is paying attention. As the pandemic ended, a global appetite for rawness and newness emerged, and Africa's artistic expressions are breaking away from the tired stereotypes to tell a different story, from the nightclubs of Lagos to the fashion houses of Paris, and everyhere in between. African music, fashion, and art are coming into their own, changing the global...
First malaria treatment approved for babies
For the first time ever, treatment for malaria specifically designed for newborns and small infants has received regulatory approval, which is exciting for millions across Africa, where malaria remains a serious public health threat. Malaria remains a huge public health challenge, particularly throughout Sub‑Saharan Africa. The World Health Organization reported 597,000 deaths in 2023 from malaria, over 95% in Africa, with three‑quarters involving children less than five years of age....
Why Africa must step up following USAID withdrawal
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which represents a fundamental element of American soft power and is one of the most consequential development agencies in the world, is closing its doors. While curtains never truly ‘fall’, there are flagging budget cuts, evolving US foreign policy objectives, and a rising tide of domestic investment that are all signaling a slow but inevitable decline. For Africa, it is the end...
