Six years after violence and conflict marked Kenyan elections in 2007, millions of Kenyans will travel to the polls to elect their new leaders in early March. This is a pivotal moment in Kenyan history following the peaceful ratification of Kenya’s new progressive constitution in 2010. Each moment in Kenyan history is unique, and we …
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It brings me great pleasure to share that Ikal Angelei, director of AJWS grantee Friends of Lake Turkana in Kenya is one of the winners of the 2012 Goldman Prize! She was awarded this prestigious prize for risking her life fighting the construction of the massive Gibe 3 Dam that would block access to water …
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The ongoing famine and food crisis in Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia has fallen out of the headlines. But it continues to have devastating effects on communities. The international community is still responding to the crisis, but resources are limited. Most relief efforts are focusing on the regions of Somalia where the famine has resulted in …
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I was very saddened to read about the death of Wangari Maathai yesterday, just a few days after I returned from spending several weeks with AJWS’s partners in Kenya and Ethiopia. Maathai was a world renowned environmentalist, the founder of the Green Belt Movement, a political and human rights activist, and the first woman from …
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Last week, I wrote about the horrors of the ongoing drought and famine crisis in East Africa and what AJWS is doing to respond. As the crisis continues to unfold, we are hearing more and more about the perils faced by Somalis and Kenyans fleeing the famine. Today, however, instead of writing about the number …
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There is no denying the severity of the crisis in East Africa right now. We’ve read the headlines and seen horrifying photos of starving children. The situation is getting worse every day. Two days ago, the United Nations declared a famine in three more areas of Somalia. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) …
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Originally posted on AidBuzz. As the world takes some time to reflect on the growing refugee crisis in many parts of the world, I’m taking a minute to think about some of the “lost refugees” who, for most people, are totally invisible. Medecins Sans Frontieres recently published a report that Dadaab Refugee Camp in north …
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One rape every minute?! Unbelievable. And that might be underestimating how bad the situation is… Several weeks ago, the New York Times published a shocking article on the massive prevalence of rape and sexually-based violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The article cites a new study in the American Journal of Public Health …
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A few weeks ago, the Wall Street Journal featured a story about the fallout from the controversy around Greg Mortenson’s memoir Three Cups of Tea. If you haven’t been following the story, CBS’s 60 Minutes did an investigation on Mortenson (a former mountain climber, humanitarian, founder of the Central Asia Institute, and best-selling author) only …
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“These people want Africa to remain as it currently is with all its misery and poverty… I believe the position taken by such groups is not only irrational but also bordering on the criminal.” If someone were to read this passage from a recent speech given by Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Meles Zenawi at the Conference …
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