Speak UP: Making the best of power cuts in Nigeria
Power outages are widespread in Africa, and Port Harcourt, Nigeria, is no exception. Electricity cuts definitely makes life less convenient. But, in classic Naija entrepreneurialism, where there’s a...
View ArticleSpeak UP: Chop my money
They say money can’t buy you love. But in Nigeria, it can get you the flashy car, nice clothes and fancy meals that can be just as thrilling. Maybe that explains why young Nigerian women are going for...
View ArticleSpeak UP: The obsession with lighter skin
You can buy them almost anywhere in the world: beauty products that promise to turn even the darkest-skinned person as fair as snow. What is behind the obsession with lighter skin? And why are women,...
View ArticleSpeak UP: WhatsApp, yo?
It’s nearly five years old, but WhatsApp has taken Africa by storm with millions of users on the continent. The instant messaging app for smartphones can be addictive. But does all that time people...
View ArticleSpeak UP: Does the prosperity gospel really work?
Worshippers in some African churches are led to believe that giving money to the church will actually make them rich. What’s behind the so-called ‘prosperity gospel’? Some say actual spiritual value;...
View ArticleRudeboys of the road: commuter taxi conductors in Zimbabwe
In many, if not all, African countries, people move around in commuter taxis. In Kenya they are called matattu, in Uganda they are known as bodabodas, and in Zimbabwe people hop into an imtshova or a...
View ArticlePublic display of affection? Not in Nigeria
In many cities in Africa, if you’re out with your better half, you may want to keep your affection for each other hidden from everyone else. Things such as kissing, hugging or petting - even between...
View Article'As long as it's out of my sight': Transgender in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwean society, like many parts of Africa, is not very welcoming to lesbians, gays, transgenders, bisexual and intersex people (LGBTIs). Few people have stronger testimony of this than Ricky...
View ArticleParty like there's no tomorrow: Expensive ceremonies in Nigeria
Africans love a big party. Whether it’s a birth, a graduation, an initiation, a new home, a wedding, a chief’s inauguration, or an engagement: for most of us these things call for a big celebration....
View ArticleSecond chances: A former street kid's tale
You can see them in almost any city in Africa, children who live on the streets. They’re dirty, they’re rude and they scavenge in the dustbins. Many people find them annoying; but do they really know...
View ArticleYoung drug addicts in Zimbabwe
In recent years, the use of drugs has been on the increase among youths in Africa. Marijuana, glue, nyaope (South African street drug), cocaine and bronchodilator (a lung medicine that contains codeine...
View ArticleDomestic violence in Nigeria: "I’m only with him because of our children, I...
Domestic violence is something that happens all over the world, but in many societies in Africa it’s just swept under the carpet. Should police or neighbors intervene? Or is it a private matter between...
View ArticleUganda: Life after Kony
If you lost all the members of your family to war, do you think you could ever pick up your life again? And how would you do that?In this week’s Speak UP!, Rogers Bishop, a young man from northern...
View ArticleCircumcision in Zimbabwe: 'I don't want my item chopped off'
Circumcision is being pushed in many African countries as a means to help reduce HIV infection and the risk of cervical cancer. ‘Pinda muSmart!’, or ‘Be smart, get circumcised!’ If you’re living in...
View ArticleTo spank or not to spank?
Spanking or corporal punishment has been a part of African culture for as long as people remember. Today opinions in Africa are divided on whether spanking is helpful or harmful to children. Some who...
View ArticleUgandan teenagers born with HIV
For many sexually active young people, HIV/AIDS is a threat, an infectious, potentially lethal disease they should protect themselves against. But what if you were born with HIV?The young people in...
View ArticleSpeaking my mother tongue? No thanks, English please!
Africa, with all its diverse cultures, boasts more than 2000 languages, which is almost one third of the world’s native languages according to the United Nations. But these languages are gradually...
View ArticleA life of gambling: Sports betting in Uganda
They say life is always a gamble, but can you make a living out of gambling? Many young people have taken up sports betting in Kampala, Uganda. While some may do it for fun, many people become...
View ArticleSpeak UP: The obsession with lighter skin
You can buy them almost anywhere in the world: beauty products that promise to turn even the darkest-skinned person as fair as snow. What is behind the obsession with lighter skin? And why are women,...
View ArticlePublic display of affection? Not in Africa
At the beginning of the new academic year, the University of Zimbabwe issued a list of 'misconducts that attract immediate eviction from halls of residence'. Number 4 on the list: 'Caught in intimate...
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