Africa in Focus

Herdsmen walk cattle home during sunset in the outskirts of Eritrea's capital Asmara, February 21, 2016. Picture taken February 21, 2016. To match Insight ERITREA-POLITICS/ REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya - RTX28H5A

Foresight Africa viewpoint: The year of Africa

Thursday, January 19, 2017

A view of evening traffic near Kenya's Central Bank offices in capital Nairobi November 10, 2015. REUTERS/Noor Khamis/File photo - RTSQ1CG

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Why is strengthening cities in Africa important when considering political decisions and policymaking?

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Workers rest on the balcony of a house under construction at the Greenpark estate in Lukenya, near Kenya's capital Nairobi, October 31, 2014. Kenya, like other nations on a continent that boasts some of the fastest growth rates in the world, is racing to upgrade neglected infrastructure, improve regulations and revise often outdated economic figures to spur investment. To match text AFRICA-INVESTMENT/ REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya (KENYA - Tags: BUSINESS CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYMENT) - RTR4CBXG

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Unlocking infrastructure investment across Africa

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Ivory Coast's Minister of Defense Alain-Richard Donwahi is welcomed by Army officers as he arrives to speak with mutinous soldiers, at the airport in Bouake, Ivory Coast January 13, 2017. REUTERS/Thierry Gouegnon - RTX2YT6A

Africa in the news: Nigeria plans diaspora bonds, Côte d’Ivoire contends with mutiny, and report highlights the economics of tobacco control

Friday, January 13, 2017

Farmers cover plants inside a Chinese farm as China's Minister of Agriculture Han Changfu visits the area for the Sudan-China Agriculture Cooperation Development Forum in Khartoum, Sudan September 24, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah - RTSP86O

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Science and the farm

Friday, January 13, 2017

Chadi Srour (in white shirt), technical director of real estate company Sipim, walks at a Sipim development site with his colleagues in Grand Bassam, Ivory Coast, September 15, 2015. From Abidjan’s packed airport arrivals hall to the buildings mushrooming across the capital, Ivory Coast is booming, a rare African bright spot as the world’s biggest cocoa producer bounces back from a 2011 civil war. Buyers of luxury apartments include Ivorians living overseas, while promoters from Morocco, Turkey and China are attracted by tax breaks. Elections - the source of national unrest four years ago - are due in a month but there is no let-up in investment given expectations of an easy victory for incumbent Alassane Ouattara. The government predicts 9.6 percent growth this year, making the former French colony the standout performer on a continent hammered by a slump in commodity prices, capital outflows and tumbling currencies. REUTERS/Joe PenneyPICTURE 17 OF 33 FOR WIDER IMAGE STORY "IVORY COAST IS BOOMING". SEARCH "BOOMING PENNEY" FOR ALL IMAGES - RTX1SEEB

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Potential potholes to investment to watch for in 2017

Elizabeth Littlefield

Friday, January 13, 2017

People crowd a street at the central business district in Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos ahead of Christmas December 23, 2016. REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye - RTX2WC3Q

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Supporting secondary cities

Eyerusalem Siba

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Storm clouds hover as a cyclist rides past a field of maize after late rains near Malawi's capital Lilongwe, February 1, 2016. Late rains in Malawi threaten the staple maize crop and have pushed prices to record highs.About 14 million people face hunger in Southern Africa because of a drought that has been exacerbated by an El Nino weather pattern, according to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). REUTERS/Mike Hutchings - RTX24Z7D

Thunder is not yet rain: Sustaining progress towards realizing Africa’s vision

Amadou Sy, Christina Golubski, and Amy Copley

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Cattle graze in Lake Naivasha, the only fresh water ecosystem in the eastern Rift Valley, June 4, 2009, which is drying up due to the drought and pollution caused by large-scale flower farming. World Environment Day (WED) 2009 will be commemorated June 5, under the theme "Your Planet Needs You, Unite to Combat Climate Change". WED is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya (KENYA ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY ANIMALS) - RTR24A1C

Foresight Africa Viewpoint: Small-scale, high-impact policies for fighting climate change in 2017

Ousseynou Nakoulima

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

An employee of online retailer Jumia sorts packages for delivery at the company's warehouse in Lagos February 16, 2015. The growth of Africa's middle class has created demand for products that conventional retail struggles to satisfy due to a shortage of malls and grinding traffic in many cities that deters shoppers. The sector is still in its infancy. The internet's contribution to Africa's gross domestic product stood at 1.1 percent in 2013, much lower than other emerging markets. But this could rise to 10 percent, or $300 billion, by 2025, according to a report by consultants McKinsey's & Company. REUTERS/Joe Penney (NIGERIA - Tags: BUSINESS SOCIETY EMPLOYMENT) - RTR4PSUQ

Figures of the week: Sub-Saharan Africa’s labor market in 2017

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

A woman gets registered before casting her vote at a polling station during the legislative elections in Abidjan, Ivory Coast December 18, 2016. REUTERS/Thierry Gouegnon - RTX2VIML

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Democracy in Africa in 2017

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

People work on computers at the online store Jumia in Ikeja district, in Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos June 10, 2016.REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye - RTX2IUNQ

Foresight Africa viewpoint: Skills for a changing world

Rebecca Winthrop and Eileen McGivney

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

People walk past roadside stalls with umbrellas in the central business district, near Marina in Lagos, Nigeria December 13, 2016.REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye - RTX2UUPF

Foresight Africa: What do you think should be the top priority for Africa in 2017?

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

A Women carries fire wood on her head as she walks below Eskom's Elecricity pylons in Soweto, South Africa. August 8,2016. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko - RTSMORN

Foresight Africa: Join the conversation on the top priorities for Africa in 2017

Monday, January 9, 2017

Valentin Mubake, an adviser to Democratic Republic of Congo's main opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, signs the accord between the opposition and the government of President Joseph Kabila at the Conference episcopale nationale du Congo (CENCO) headquarters in Gombe Municipality, in the Congolese capital Kinshasa, December 31, 2016. Picture taken December 31, 2016. REUTERS/Robert Carrubba - RTX2X47G

Africa in the news: Nigeria starts CCT program, DRC deal reached, and South Africa’s education numbers improve

Christina Golubski

Friday, January 6, 2017