Stories from and

Second Most Spoken Languages in Africa

  20 May 2015

Don Osborne discusses a news feature on the Olivet Nazarene University website showing a map of “The Second Most Spoken Languages Around the World.” He points out key problems from the map: The first issue is assuming that “The most spoken language in any country is often obvious; usually, it’s...

5 Muslim Countries Where Gays Are Not Prosecuted by the Law

  28 October 2014

The LGBT Muslims blog identified 5 Muslim nations where the legal system does not outlaw homosexuality. The 5 countries are : Mali, Jordan, Indonesia, Turkey and Albania. While the law in these countries does not criminalize gay lifestyles, the LGBT Muslims blog points out that LGBT communities still suffer from...

AQIM Losing Ground to Dāʻish in the Sahel Region

  4 October 2014

While the Islamist group Boko Haram threatens to  extend its caliphate in the north -east part of Nigeria, major developments are taking place in the Sahel with respect to the security of the region. Kaci Racelma, a Nigerien blogger wrote in his blog A Niamey ( In Niamey) about the relationship...

Why Elders Protect Doves in Rural Mali

  7 January 2014

Fasokan explains why elders in rural Mali pay special attention to the protection of doves [fr] : Les vieilles personnes font tout pour protéger ces oiseaux contre la tuerie des enfants pendant leurs chasses avec des lance-pierres. Si par hasard il arrive qu’un groupe de jeunes garçons attrape une tourterelle...

Innovation: A Solar Energy-Powered PC Made in Mali

  2 January 2014

As part of our series on innovation made in Africa, we recently showcased the 3D printer made from E-waste in Togo and a spell checker for Bambara language. Today, we present the first low-power PC made in Mali. The PC called Limmorgal (Calculator in Peul language) is the brainchild of...

Innovation: A Spell Checker for Bambara Language

  22 December 2013

Fasokan in Mali reports on the creation of an app to help spell check texts in Bambara [fr] : Il est disponible sur les traitements de texte et outils bureautiques libres et gratuit : Open Office, Libre Office, Néo Office, et sur les ordinateurs Windows, Mac, et Linux. Qu’est-ce qui...

Fire Destroys Basin Market in Bamako, Mali

  16 December 2013

An accidental fire destroyed the basin market [fr] located near the Wahhabites Mosque of Bamako yesterday (12/15). It is the third tragedy of such kind in market area of Bamako in 4 years. Nama explains why such incident seems to repeat itself in his city [fr] : Plusieurs plans d'aménagement de...

Sadness and Anger in Kidal, Mali

  10 November 2013

Blogger Wirriyamu mourns the two French journalists killed [fr] in Kidal, Mali. But beside his immense sadness, Wirriyamu also feels angry at seeing Northern Mali left helpless yet again to terrorists attacks. He writes [fr] about his silent anger at the situation there  : Tant qu’il ne sera pas possible...

The FIRE Awards Winners for Internet Development in Africa

  6 November 2013

The FIRE programme awards, an initiative of AFRINIC, acknowledge the actors from the African region who strive to provide solutions to internet development for the African Continent. The 2013 FIRE Awards Winners are :  Nikohapa Ventures Ltd for their customer engagement platform (Kenya) HSoft Africa, Ltd for an adapted mail-order pharmacy (Benin...

Follow the Presidential Election in Mali in Real Time

  28 July 2013

Today (July 28) is the first round of the presidential election in Mali.  To keep track of the proceedings in real time, updates are available on twitter via the hashtag #Mali2013, on the twitter accounts @Malivote (and its website)  and @angaelections (site) and  on the news group “Info élections 2013″ on Facebook [fr].

What Issues do Malian Voters Care about in the Presidential Election?

  25 July 2013

Bruce Whitehouse parses out five key issues for the upcoming presidential election in Mali (July 28). As for what Malians expect from the poll, Whitehouse reports: Voters are overwhelmingly concerned about the high cost of living, unemployment, corruption, law and order, and everyday quality-of-life questions, particularly water and sanitation. Preserving...

Twin Suicide Car Bombings in Niger Kill 23

  23 May 2013

Benjamin Roger for Jeune Afrique reports [fr] that 18 soldiers, one civilian and four terrorists were killed early morning in an suicide car bombing in Agadez, Niger on May 23. He adds that military school students are currently being held hostages by another attacker following the bombing. Simultaneously, another car...

British Security Firm Profits from Mali War

Ramzy Baroud writes [fr] about the conflict in Mali on Pambazuka: British security firm G4S will rake in enormous profits due to the crisis taking place in Mali, Libya and Algeria. Recognized as the biggest security firm in the world, the group was downgraded at the time of the Olympic Games in London last...

The Idleness of African Leadership in Mali

  11 February 2013

Ousmane Gueye on the site Mondoblog writes [fr] about the slow deployment of African troops in northern Mali : If we were to judge the impact of the intervention in Mali by the jubilant euphoria of liberated populations, then it should be obvious that by deploying so slowly, African countries failed Mali...

Mali: Threats All Around

  7 February 2013

The Malian army has committed serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL) during the ongoing conflict against armed groups, including extrajudicial executions of civilians, according to testimonies collected by Amnesty International during a ten days mission in Mali.

Tuareg Families Regroup to Avoid Airstrikes in Northern Mali

  14 January 2013

We must regroup so that airplanes can tell us apart from the targeted ismalists fighters who will be on the move. Tuareg refugees in Borj and Timeaouine in Northern Mali are hurrying to gather around their family members in order to avoid airstrikes by French planes against islamist groups, Tamoudre reports...