africa - The Purbottar

17 Jun

Third largest diamond in the world found in Botswana

editor0 CommentsNorth Eastafrica, diamond, international

A diamond believed to be the third largest ever found has been put on display in Botswana. The stone - weighing 1,098 carats - was shown to President Mokgweetsi Masisi, two weeks after the diamond firm, Debswana, unearthed it. The huge gem is only slightly less heavy than the world's second-largest diamond which was also found in Botswana in 2015. Botswana is Africa's largest producer of diamonds. "This is the largest diamond to be recovered by Debswana in its history of over 50 years in operation. From our preliminary analysis it could be the world's third largest gem quality stone."…

11 Jun

Ethiopia is now facing a Famine: Reports UN humanitarian chief

editor0 CommentsHealthafrica, ethiopia, famine, food crisis, Health, international

"There is famine now, this is going to get a lot worse," said UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock, addressing the crisis in northern Ethiopia. UN analytic study found that 350,000 people were living in "severe crisis" in the Tigray region. Tigray has been torn up by continuous war between government forces and rebels. This has displaced 1.7 million people since the fighting began in November 2020. The food situation in the region has reached the level of a "catastrophe", which it defines as starvation and death affecting small groups of people spread over large areas. Thus, UN's World Food Programme…

24 May

Deadly Volcano erupts in Congo: 22 deaths confirmed

editor0 CommentsHealthafrica, international, Volcano

At least 22 deaths have been confirmed following Saturday's eruption of a nearby volcano, Mount Nyiragongo. But the lava stopped short of the city's built-up area. This avoided the level of death and destruction witnessed in 2002. Five people died of asphyxiation while trying to cross the lava when it was cooling in a place just north of Goma. A sixth person is in hospital with breathing difficulties, civil society leader Mambo Kawaya told the AFP news agency. Since then, the authorities have tried to prevent people from visiting places where the lava is cooling, Goma journalist Esdras Tsongo told…

06 May

Scientist find the oldest burial of a human being

editor0 CommentsNorth Eastafrica, burial, history, international

About 78,000 years ago, deep inside a cave near the coast of what is now Kenya, the body of a small child was carefully laid to rest in a tiny grave. Now, an international group of researchers has used advanced scientific techniques to peer into the past, revealing for the first time details of the ancient interment — finding that it is the oldest deliberate burial of a Homo sapiens individual in Africa. The child was only about 3 years old when they died. Their body was curled up on their side, as if to sleep or to keep warm, and the…

05 May

West African woman gives birth to nine babies at once

editor0 CommentsHealthafrica, international, nine babies

Halima Cisse gave birth to the nonuplets in Morocco. Mali's government flew her there for specialist care. "I'm very happy," her husband told the BBC. "My wife and the babies [five girls and four boys] are doing well." A woman who had eight babies in the US in 2009 holds the Guinness World Record for the most children delivered at a single birth to survive. Two sets of nonuplets have previously been recorded - one born to a woman in Australia in 1971 and another to a woman in Malaysia in 1999 - but none of the babies survived more…

04 May

Why did the Victoria falls stand silent in 2019? Read:

editor0 CommentsHealthafrica, climate, victoria falls, world

In our monthly feature, Then and Now, we reveal some of the ways that planet Earth has been changing against the backdrop of a warming world. Here, we look at the effects of global heating on Victoria Falls, one of the natural wonders of the world - and how Sub-Saharan Africa is learning to cope with the climate crisis. In full flow, Victoria Falls easily qualifies as one of the natural wonders of the world. Spanning 1.7km at its widest point and with a height of more than 100m, locals refer to Africa's greatest waterfall as "the smoke that thunders".…