Girls in Seychelles to receive free sanitary products
Sanitary products will be made available free of charge to all girls in Seychelles in both state and private secondary schools as of the new school year in January 2022.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Ten nations commit to build a massive ‘Great Blue Wall’ to help conserve western Indian Ocean
Only around 5-8% of the marine area in the Indian Ocean is under some form of legal protection, a far cry from the goal of protecting 30% of Earth’s land and oceans by 2030.
Uber and Opibus partner to deploy up to 3,000 electric motorcycles in Kenya by end of 2022
After the successful completion of a pilot program in Kenya, Opibus and Uber have announced a strategic partnership to scale the use of electric motorcycles in Africa.
12 international donors pledge $1.5 billion to support protection of the Congo Basin forests
The 500 million acres of forests may be the last significant land-based tropical carbon sink in the world, making the forests vitally important in the global fight against climate change.
Botswana decriminalizes homosexuality
Botswana’s Court of Appeal has declared the government’s appeal unsuccessful, effectively decriminalizing homosexuality in the country, a big win for the LGBTQ+ community.
China makes billion-dose vaccine pledge to Africa to help overcome the coronavirus pandemic
China will donate a billion vaccines, advance billions of dollars for trade and infrastructure, and write off interest-free loans to African countries to help them recover from the pandemic.
Kenya’s Indigenous Ogiek partner with government rangers to restore Mau Forest
Three years ago, community members started working with the Kenyan Forest Service to restore the forest complex and promote sustainable livelihoods. Volunteers have now planted more than 60,000 native trees within the forest,
New ATM helps Kenyans switch from charcoal to eco-friendly fuel
The blue ATMs from the startup Koko dispense bioethanol made from sugarcane. As of now, there are 700 Koko ATMs across Nairobi.
Conservationists bring the Saharan gazelle back from the brink of extinction
After a captive-breeding program in Spain, Dama gazelles have been reintroduced in protected reserves in Tunisia, Morocco, and Senegal and number roughly 4,000.
Benin becomes the first West African country to legalize abortion
Before, abortion was only permitted if the pregnancy endangered the life of the pregnant woman, was the result of rape, or was conceived in an incestuous relationship.