Financial Times: Africa told to view China as competitor – Nigeria’s central bank governor Lamido Sunusi has warned that “Africa must shake off its romantic view of China and accept Beijing is a competitor as much as a partner and capable of the same exploitative practices as the old colonial powers.” A growing number of senior African officials fear that the continent’s “anemic industrial sector is being battered by cheap Chinese imports.” Sanusi argues that “China is no longer a fellow underdeveloped economy” and “is a major contributor to the de-industrialization of Africa and thus African underdevelopment.” (William Wallis)
USA Today: With 176 million Catholics, Africa gains prominence – The number of Catholics in Africa has risen dramatically in the past 50 years, giving the continent increased importance as the church’s cardinals gather to elect a new pope. As the number of churchgoers drops in Europe and the United States, the number of faithful in Africa has risen dramatically, from 55 million in 1978 to 146 million in 2007. Ghana’s Cardinal Peter Turkson, 64, is a serious consideration for pope and is currently the head of the Vatican’s peace and justice office. Cardinal Turkson is known for “his efforts to alleviate poverty and kept to the church’s teachings that faithful relationships and not encouraging condom use is the moral way to end Africa’s AIDS epidemic.” (Robbie Corey-Boulet)
NYTimes: Kenyan Reaction to Disputed Election Is Far Calmer Than Last Time – Unlike the reaction after the last presidential election in 2007, which Mr. Odinga also lost amid evidence of vote rigging, in this current election there have been no major clashes anywhere across Kenya. President-elect, Uhuru Kenyatta said: “Finally, Kenya has come of age”, and this election was run differently and much more transparently, giving Kenyans a window into the vote counting as it was ticking along last week. Mr. Odinga has also decided to take his grievances to the courts this time, not the streets; he says he now has faith in the judiciary, which back in 2007 was widely dismisses as inept and corrupt, but is now respected as one of Kenya’s more dependable public institutions. (Jeffrey Gettleman)
The Guardian: Mozambique turns to technology in battle against tuberculosis – A new machine that should speed up diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis is being rolled out across Mozambique. The GeneXpert machine should speed up TB diagnosis from two to three months to two hours. These machines mean people can be tested, diagnosed and started on multi-drug resistant treatment on the same day; and the sooner patients are diagnosed, the better their prognosis. The equipment has been funded by Unitaid, a global health organization, hosted by the WHO, which uses innovative financing mechanisms to raise cash for the diagnosis and treatment of TB, HIV and malaria in low-income countries. Unitaid has also invested almost $40m in healthcare in Mozambique. (Lucy Lamble)
