Business, Economics and Jobs
Whose Century Is It?
August 03, 2017
It wasn't so long ago that South Africa was seen as the natural leader of its continent, with bright economic prospects and a nascent, post-apartheid democracy. It developed strong trade ties with China, and, in 2010, was named one of the BRICS countries — with Brazil, Russia, India and China, the economies seen by some investors (the term was coined by a Goldman Sachs executive) to be the era's dynamic up-and-comers. But it hasn't quite turned out that way. This year, South Africa dipped into recession, with unemployment near 30 percent. What happened?
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Science, Tech & Environment
Sudanese American parents look at Ahmed Mohamed and think of their own kids
PRI's The World
September 18, 2015
After a Sudanese American teenager was arrested and detained in Texas for bringing a homemade digital clock to school, Sudanese American parents wonder what Ahmed Mohamed's story means for their kids growing up in the US.
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Health & Medicine
Thousands of health workers in Senegal receive no pay. Is that fair?
PRI's The World
December 19, 2013
In many developing countries, thousands of volunteers serve as community health workers. But who is looking after their interests? Amy Costello reports from the West African nation of Senegal.
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Conflict & Justice
What do American troops have to do with medical emergencies? A lot
PRI's The World
September 17, 2014
President Obama has deployed 3,000 troops to combat Ebola in West Africa. That may seem like a stretch for a group of people who aren't medical experts, but the US military has a long history of stepping into humanitarian crises – and can add real value to aid efforts.
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Arts, Culture & Media
This male rapper in Burkina Faso is trying to help stop female genital mutilation
PRI's The World
March 13, 2015
"Smockey" is a male rapper from Burkina Faso, and he's dealing out some serious lyrics about the all-too-common practice of female genital mutilation. His latest song, "Tomber la Lame," or "Drop the Blade," is a plea for his fellow countrymen to stop FGM.
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Politics
Famine haunted his childhood in Ethiopia. Now he sees food running out again.
PRI's The World
May 05, 2016
An Ethiopian expat worries for his homeland as drought and climate change threaten to trigger another famine.
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Politics
In job-hungry Italy, neo-Fascists await young migrants
The GroundTruth Project
October 29, 2014
With the youth unemployment rate in Italy at 44 percent, competition for jobs pits native Italians against Eritreans, Sudanese and Syrians fleeing war and repression.
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Development & Education
Somali youth in one Maine city are learning to navigate several cultures
PRI's The World
January 26, 2016
Maine is home to many Somali refugees in the US, but fitting in hasn’t always been easy. There's even tension among Somali communities — between those who arrived first and those who came later. That also plays out at public schools in Lewiston, Maine’s second largest city.
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Development & Education
Discussion: How Do You Know a Good Charity When You See It?
PRI's The World
August 07, 2013
When people find out that I reported from Africa for many years and am now producing a series called Tracking Charity, they frequently ask me this: "Which charities do you think are doing really good work on the ground overseas?"
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Science, Tech & Environment
When you buy ivory, you may be funding al-Shabab terrorists
PRI's The World
October 08, 2013
Illegal sales of ivory and rhino horn are estimated to be a $2 billion a year industry. And some of that money is going to fund Islamic militant terrorists, according to a Dutch conservation group.
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Science, Tech & Environment
Recycling sewage into drinking water is no big deal. They've been doing it in Namibia for 50 years.
PRI's The World
December 15, 2016
Water-starved cities around the world are starting to turn to a once-unpalatable solution: recycling their sewage. And they have a surprising pioneer to thank for developing the technology — the southern African desert country of Namibia.