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Africa | Nigeria | Corruption

Nigeria police rescue 19 young women, girls from ‘baby factory’

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Nigerian authorities said Monday that 19 girls and young women who were abducted and impregnated by captors who planned to sell their babies have been rescued. Lagos police spokesman Bala Elkana said the victims and four babies were rescued from four locations in Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city. The victims, aged between 15 and 28, are mainly from eastern Nigeria. They told police they were tricked into coming to Lagos with the promise of jobs. Nigeria has a high number of syndicates that keep young women to produce babies for sale – a scheme locally termed "baby factories." The p
Africa | South Africa | Activism

Revealed: Meghan told entrepreneurs in Cape Town that she’s determined to ‘fulfil her heart’s desires’ and refuses to let her own needs ‘fade away’ amid her royal duties

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Meghan Markle is determined to 'fulfil her heart's desires' and not let her own needs 'fade away' now she's a member of the Royal Family - and wants to be a role model for young boys as well as girls. The Duchess of Sussex, 38, reportedly made the remarks during an event for inspiring female entrepreneurs at Woodstock Exchange in Cape Town earlier this week during her tour of South Africa with husband Prince Harry. Woodstock Exchange, the UK-SA Tech Hub, focuses on skills development and access to markets by assisting entrepreneurs, particularly women, to acquire skills, resources and
Africa | Liberia | Activism

Advancing Sexual Health and Rights for Liberia’s Next Generation

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In Liberia, cultural norms, patriarchy, and government inaction all puts girls at risk. Discussing sex is considered taboo, which keeps girls disempowered and puts them at risk for exploitation by men in positions of authority (such as teachers). While the government has passed laws that support and affirm the sexual and reproductive health rights of girls and women, these laws often directly contradict accepted cultural practices, and implementation of the laws aren’t well enforced. (For example, the Children’s Act—which guarantees the rights of children and specifically addresses issue
Africa | Burundi | Crimes

Merck Wants To ‘Empower’ Infertile Women In Africa. Can Music Videos Help?

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In June, an unusual email arrived in the inbox of an NPR global health correspondent. The headline was: "Merck Foundation together with First Lady of Burundi release 'Plus Qu'une Mere' an empowering French Song as courtesy to all infertile women in Burundi and Africa." The email had a link to a video of a performance with an all-female choir. Wearing traditional African clothing printed with the Merck Foundation's logo, they sing a song with lyrics that encourage people not to blame women for infertility. They're performing before an audience of maybe a hundred people, most of them in
Africa | Nigeria | Culture

The fallout from a church rape scandal shows the harsh reality of being a woman in Nigeria

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On Sunday, June 30, Nigerian women organized a protest against sexual violence in the church following recent allegations by the wife of a popular singer that the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA) general overseer pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo raped her when she was 17 years old. Nigerian women have had a lot to protest lately. In May, there were significant protests after mass arrests of women in clubs and bars at night for alleged prostitution in Abuja, the federal capital city. It’s worth noting none of the men who were apparently being solicited shared the same fate. Soon after their
Africa | South Africa | Politics

South Africa makes history as women make up half of cabinet for first time

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Women will now make up half of South Africa's new cabinet for the first time in the country's history. President Cyril Ramaphosa who announced the move on Wednesday said the decision was to create a line of leaders that would advance the country's future. "For the first time in the history of our country, half of all the ministers are women," Ramaphosa said in a televised press conference.
Africa | Nigeria | Corruption

Nigerian police arrested 65 women in a raid. Some of the women say officers raped them

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In a sparsely decorated room in Nigeria's capital city of Abuja, seven women are seated in a row, their backs turned to the assembled media to remain anonymous. One after the other, the women recount horrific physical and sexual abuse they say they were subjected to following their arrests on April 27 by officers of a special task force that raided hotels and nightclubs in Abuja. The 65 women who were arrested say they were beaten and harassed by officers, who forced them into their vans and drove them to the police station, their lawyers and NGOs told CNN. The seven women in the vid
Africa | Zimbabwe | Activism

Zimbabwe: Author, Activist and Educator – Dr Tererai Trent

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Humanitarian, scholar, educator, and author, Dr Tererai Trent is one of the world’s most internationally recognized voices for quality education and women’s empowerment. Distinguished as Oprah Winfrey’s “All-time favorite guest”, Trent is a prominent activist for equal rights to education, her contribution to this cause was born from her own fight against adversity. Trent was born in Zimbabwe (formally Rhodesia) when poverty, war, and traditional women’s roles denied women the opportunity to attend school. She secretly taught herself to read, and later wrote her dreams, which incl
Africa | Ethiopia | Technology

Change attitudes for future generations of women in tech, UN urges

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Celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday of April, the Day is an initiative of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and aims to encourage and empower girls and young women to consider entering the growing field of ICT,​ enabling both girls and technology companies to reap the benefits of greater female participation in the sector. This year, falling on 25 April, and with main celebrations happening in the Ethiopian capital, the day was marked across the world. The UN telecomms agency estimates that within the next 10 years, there could be as many as two mi
Africa | Uganda | Entrepreneurship

Tribe + Glory Aims to Raise up Female Entrepreneurs in Uganda

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Tribe + Glory’s cofounders Loren Thomas and Caragh Bennet jetted away from their Uganda home office for a few days of business meetings in New York. All about women’s empowerment, their business model is an unusual one that helps entrepreneurs gain the skills they need to succeed while also helping to make Tribe + Glory accessories. More than half of their earnings go back to savings for their own business plans and the remaining amount allows workers and their families to live above the poverty line. The end result is that they complete their runs at Tribe + Glory equipped with the sk
Africa | Morocco | Activism

A Muslim woman’s place? In Casablanca, it could be burning rubber on a Harley…

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Silhouetted against a backdrop of moving traffic, it’s easy to make out lots of long hair being flicked, shaken and ruffled back into place. None of which would be surprising… but for fact that this group is made up entirely of women, something that has also caught the attention of the crowd of tea drinkers, many of whom are now staring at them with astonishment. “We call ourselves Les Miss Moto Maroc and we’re the first all-female motorcycle club in Morocco,” says Dalila Mosbah, the leader of the group, sitting down at a table. The club also hosts an annual international rally,�
Africa | Nigeria | Culture

‘Stop Touching Us’: Women Protest Against Harassment At Nigeria’s Street Markets

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In a poll of 105 women from February 2019, The Guardian Nigeria found that three quarters of those surveyed said they had experienced harassment at Nigerian markets. The traders say that's just the way they drum up business. "We are hustlers, so sometimes we need to touch," says Victor Robinson, who sells ladies' trousers at Yaba. But now there's pushback. Last October, Damilola Marcus started the Market March Movement to bring an end to sexual harassment at Yaba and other markets across the country.
Africa | Ethiopia | Activism

Ivanka Trump in Ethiopia to ‘promote women’

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President Donald Trump's eldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, is in Ethiopia to promote a US government initiative aimed at advancing women's participation in the workplace. The initiative aims to benefit 50 million women in developing countries by 2025. Ms Trump toured a female-run textile facility in the capital, Addis Ababa. The US policy in Africa under President Trump has prioritised the war on terror and checking the influence of China. When his administration's long-delayed policy on Africa was finally unveiled at the close of 2018, many observers of the continent were quick to poin
Africa | Kenya | Culture

Inside the Umoja community in Kenya where women rule — and men are banned

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In a part of Kenya where women are often culturally regarded as second-class citizens, there is a village where women rule. Samburu is an extremely rural part of Kenya where there is rampant poverty and unemployment. The infant mortality rate is over 35 percent. It's hard enough to be a woman in Samburu, but without a child there, you are regarded as nothing, reports CBS News' Debora Patta. Diana Lekanta proved her worth by having three children – including 6-month-old baby Tau. Like so many women in African countries, where there is poverty, children are your riches. It can come at

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