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TOPIC: kenya

Geopolitics

Kenya Is Coming To Help Haiti — And Where Are Our Neighbors From The Americas?

A lack of action by countries in the Western Hemisphere could increase the risk of Haiti truly turning into a failed state.

-Analysis-

The kidnapping and subsequent release of U.S. nurse Alix Dorsainvil and her young daughter in Haiti in early August drew brief international attention to crime in the impoverished Caribbean nation.

But the truth is that such kidnappings are commonplace for Haitians, and they rarely receive attention from outside the country itself. Indeed, Haiti has become a forgotten crisis to many international bodies and foreign governments. News that Kenya has offered to lead an international effort to bring order to the country only underscores the lack of action by other nations closer to Haiti.

As someone who has written a book, “Fixing Haiti,” on the last concerted outside intervention – the United Nations’ stabilizing mission (MINUSTAH) – I fear the lack of action by countries in the Americas could increase the risk of Haiti transitioning from a fragile state to a failed one.

MINUSTAH was the first U.N. mission formed by a majority of Latin American troops, with Chile and Brazil taking the lead. The prospect of outsourcing that role now to Kenya may have sparked concerns from human rights groups, but it might also lead to soul-searching questions in capitals from Washington to Brasília, as well as at United Nations headquarters in New York.

Haiti has been falling into chaos for the last two years, ever since the murder of President Jovenel Moïseoïse in July 2021. A subsequent earthquake that struck the southern part of the country only further worsened the plight of Haitians.

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Seeds Of Doubt: East African Suspicions About GMOs And Food Security

East African concerns about food security are accompanied by farmers' concerns that they will not have sovereignty over their own crops in the wake of a push toward GMOs.

WAKISO, UGANDA— Outside her brick house in central Uganda’s Kavule village, Nalwoga Mary, 89, gently spreads out seeds of maize and beans on a tarpaulin. The seeds will be out in the sun all day, every day for almost a week until the moisture completely dries out. They will then be stored either in a plastic container or plastic carryout bags for use in the next growing season. Every harvest, Nalwoga saves around 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds) of maize and bean seeds.

Spread over 3 acres of land, her farm has coffee, sweet potatoes, beans, maize and a Ugandan staple: matooke, a type of green banana grown in the country and other places in East Africa. Drying, storing and replanting the seeds is a routine she has followed for over 60 years now.

But a recent conversation with her coffee buyer has raised some apprehensions in Nalwoga’s mind. The buyer informed her about neighboring Kenya’s recent decision to cultivate and import genetically modified organisms and told her what that could mean for farmers like her in Uganda.

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Auckland Shooting, Kissinger Meets Xi, Columbus Letter Returned

👋 नमस्कार*

Welcome to Thursday, where a shooting leaves two dead in Auckland as the soccer Women’s World Cup kicks off in New Zealand and Australia, Russia launches new attacks on Odessa and Mykolaiv and Italy’s got some 15th-century mail. Meanwhile, Persian-language media Kayhan-London reports on the murder of a 15-year-old girl by her parents, in the context of so-called “honor killings” in Iran.

[*Namaskār - Marathi, India]

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Russian General Dissent, Kenya Protests, Golden Roots Retrieval

👋 Haia!*

Welcome to Thursday, where a Russian general is dismissed after speaking out, Kenyan protests kill at least six and the Scottish Highlands welcome some old best friends. Meanwhile, independent Russian-language outlet Proekt media reports on the chilling findings from Yevgeny Prigozhin’s house in St. Petersburg after it was raided by Russian police.

[*Welsh]

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Economy
Christian Putsch and Christina zur Nedden

First Signs The China-Africa Love Affair Is Growing Cold

China has invested billions in multiple African countries in order to expand its influence. But both sides have been quietly scaling back the relationship, as Africans resent one-sided deals and China fears defaults on debt.

-Analysis-

JOHANNESBURG — In December, Kenya's new president, William Ruto, broke a taboo that pertains to pretty much every Chinese loan agreement with African governments: the secrecy clause.

Ruto's predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta had refused to publish contracts for billion-dollar projects, citing clauses to that effect. But that caused so much public anger that Ruto made disclosure a campaign promise.

The ominous details relate to the construction of an entirely overpriced rail line from Nairobi to the coastal city of Mombasa worth $3.6 billion. The case explains why Beijing is so keen to keep such contracts confidential.

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In The News
Ginevra Falciani & Renate Mattar

Battered Bakhmut, Overwhelmed Aleppo Hospitals, Ottawa’s Ice Shortage

👋 Kamusta!*

Welcome to Thursday, where Russian troops double down in the battle for Bakhmut, hospitals in Syria’s capital city of Aleppo are overwhelmed by victims of the Feb. 6 earthquake, and Canadian ice-skaters are left disappointed. Meanwhile, as debates and protests continue in France over increasing the pension age, business daily Les Echos looks at the reasons why some companies are seeking to recruit senior employees.

[*Filipino]

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Society
Georgina Gustin

In Northern Kenya, Where Climate Change Is Measured In Starving Children

The worst drought in 40 years, which has deepened from the effects of climate change, is hitting the young the hardest around the Horn of Africa. A close-up look at the victims, and attempts to save lives and limit lasting effects on an already fragile region in Kenya.

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here.

KAKUMA — The words "Stabilization Ward" are painted in uneven black letters above the entrance, but everyone in this massive refugee camp in Kakuma, Kenya, calls it ya maziwa: The place of milk.

Rescue workers and doctors, mothers and fathers, have carried hundreds of starving children through the doors of this one-room hospital wing, which is sometimes so crowded that babies and toddlers have to share beds. A pediatric unit is only a few steps away, but malnourished children don’t go there. They need special care, and even that doesn’t always save them.

In an office of the International Rescue Committee nearby, Vincent Opinya sits behind a desk with figures on dry-erase boards and a map of the camp on the walls around him. “We’ve lost 45 children this year due to malnutrition,” he says, juggling emergencies, phone calls, and texts. “We’re seeing a significant increase in malnutrition cases as a result of the drought — the worst we’ve faced in 40 years.”

From January to June, the ward experienced an 800 percent rise in admissions of children under 5 who needed treatment for malnourishment — a surge that aid groups blame mostly on a climate change-fueled drought that has turned the region into a parched barren.

Opinya, the nutrition manager for the IRC here, has had to rattle off these statistics many times, but the reality of the numbers is starting to crack his professional armor. “It’s a very sad situation,” he says, wearily. And he believes it will only get worse. A third year of drought is likely on the way.

More children may die. But millions will survive malnutrition and hunger only to live through a compromised future, researchers say. The longer-term health effects of this drought — weakened immune systems, developmental problems — will persist for a generation or more, with consequences that will cascade into communities and societies for decades.

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In The News
Anne-Sophie Goninet, Lisa Berdet, Chloé Touchard and Lila Paulou

Armenia-Azerbaijan Reignites, Greenpeace Nuke Protest, Godard Dies

👋 Ushé-ushé!*

Welcome to Tuesday, where Ukraine continues to reconquer territory, fresh clashes on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border leave at least 49 dead and France says adieu to two 20th-century titans of the visual arts. Meanwhile, business daily Les Echos draws a profile of Vladimir Potanin, one of Russia's top 10 billionaires who continues to grow his business despite Western sanctions.

[*Kanuri, Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon]

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In The News
Lisa Berdet, Chloé Touchard, Lila Paulou and Bertrand Hauger

UK’s New Prime Minister, Saskatchewan Manhunt, Chile Says “No” To New Constitution

👋 Bonjour!*

Welcome to Monday, where Liz Truss is the new British prime minister, Chileans reject drastic changes to the country’s Constitution, and the new Lord of the Rings series becomes Amazon Prime's biggest premiere. Meanwhile, German daily Die Welt and Ukraine's Livy Bereg show how the Ukraine grain deal may actually play in Putin’s hands.

[*French]

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Ideas
Carlo Petrini*

Butterfly Wings & Wheat: How The Ukraine War Could Spark Global Food Crises

In an interconnected world, we are faced again with the negative implications of the so-called "butterfly effect" when a localized conflict can have far-reaching consequences and trigger lasting crises. For our world's broken food systems, the war in Ukraine should be a wake-up call.

-OpEd-

Could the conflict that erupted in Ukraine cause a new bread revolution in Egypt? Alas yes, the conditions are in place for this — and other similar upheavals — to happen.

Stay up-to-date with the latest on the Russia-Ukraine war, with our exclusive international coverage.

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The outbreak of war in Ukraine — which is upsetting, unexpected and utterly unjustifiable — again leaves us feeling powerless and overwhelmed by circumstances far beyond our control. In a deeply interconnected world, this also forces us to again reckon with the negative implications of the so-called "butterfly effect:" how a dramatic event limited to a specific geographical area can have unexpected consequences in faraway areas of the planet, laying the foundations for serious and lasting crises.

Here, I want to focus specifically on the agri-food sector, in light of a sad fact: conflict and hunger are intimately connected phenomena, when one occurs the other follows almost naturally.

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In The News
Hannah Steinkopf-Frank, Anne-Sophie Goninet and Jane Herbelin

Sudan Prime Minister Resigns, Australia COVID Peak, Ciao Venice Bridge

👋 Kia ora!*

Happy New Year! Welcome to Monday, where Sudan’s embattled prime minister resigns, Australia sees record daily COVID cases and Venice says ciao to its Instagrammable footbridge for safety reasons. Meanwhile, we look at what could bring down the budding alliance between China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin.

[*Maori]

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In The News
Anne-Sophie Goninet, Jane Herbelin and Bertrand Hauger

Taiwan Tower Blaze, Norway Bow-And-Arrow Attack, Walruses From Space

👋 Bună ziua!*

Welcome to Thursday, where a blaze at a Taiwan tower kills at least 46, a suspect is in custody in the deadly Norway bow-and-arrow attack and scientists try to count walruses from space. We also take a look at what unites and opposes Russia's Vladimir and Ukraine's Volodymir.

[*Romanian]

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