An election in Kyrgyzstan is cleaner than usual
THE LAST time Kyrgyzstan had a general election, just over a year ago, the consequences were, by any democratic criterion, far from orthodox—and even by the eccentric and sometimes violent standards of the mountain republic they were unusual. When the incumbent president wangled a parliamentary majority with copious vote-buying, protests erupted that led to his…
Africa’s ties to China and the West are starting to look more alike
WHEN PRESIDENT XI JINPING of China meets African leaders, grandiose claims abound. On this count, at least, the triennial diplomatic jamboree known as the Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC), held recently in Senegal, did not disappoint. China and Africa have “forged unbreakable fraternity”, declared Mr Xi, who spoke from China by video. Mr Xi painted…
The Omicron variant and travel bans are hurting southern Africa
SOUTH AFRICA had a rotten 2021. Corrupt politicians plundered covid-19 relief funds, deadly riots took more than 330 lives and rolling power cuts hobbled the economy. Yet South African scientists have deservedly won praise this year. It was local virologists and epidemiologists who had honed their skills studying another virus, HIV, who discovered the new…
Sleeping sickness and its kin may have arrived via beehives
Dec 4th 2021AS RECENT EVENTS have made abundantly clear, new viral diseases in people often start as spillovers from infections affecting other species. But viruses are not the only pathogens to do so. Leishmaniasis, sleeping sickness and Chagas’ disease, three potentially lethal illnesses caused by single-celled creatures called trypanosomes, are probably in this category, too.…
To find the origin of the oceans, look in outer space
Dec 1st 2021EARTH—the quintessential blue planet—has not always been covered by water. Around 4.6bn years ago, in the solar system’s early years, the energetic young sun’s radiation meant the zone immediately surrounding it was hot and dry. Earth, then coalescing from dust and gas in this region, thus began as a desiccated rock. How it…
Have SPACs been cleaned up?
Dec 4th 2021GREAT FLOODS are supposed to wash away the world’s ills. Facing a divine deluge, Noah built an ark in which to escape. In “Metamorphoses” Ovid, a Roman poet, describes how Jove, king of the gods, unleashes a flood to wipe out a degenerate humanity: “now seas and Earth were in confusion, lost; a…
India inches towards inclusion in big bond indices
A WAVE OF passive capital flows is the handsome prize for countries that secure a place in major bond indices. That prospect seems to be on the horizon for India. Many analysts expect part of its government-bond market to enter indices compiled by Bloomberg, a data provider, and JPMorgan Chase, a bank, as early as…
Chinese influence is spurring violence in the Solomon Islands
Dec 4th 2021THE EVENTS that unspooled in the Solomon Islands on November 24th were from an old script. Protesters from Malaita, the most populous island, crossed to the biggest, Guadalcanal, with grievances over corruption and inequality. They called for the prime minister to go. Near parliament in Honiara, the capital, the protest descended into violence.…
Japan’s small businesses are in trouble
INOUE TOYOSAKU moved to Tokyo in 1913 and became an apprentice to a metalworker. When he struck out on his own a few years later he found profit making scissors for hair salons. The company he founded, Tokosha, now sells its Joewell brand scissors in more than 50 countries, for as much as ¥330,000 ($2,900)…
Data centres are taking root in Africa
IN THE NAMANVE industrial park on the edge of the Ugandan capital, Kampala, trucks rumble through the dust, laden with steel. Sacks of coffee pile up in warehouses. And at Raxio data centre, which opened this year, a local corner of the internet is encased in rows of gleaming racks. Reach out, and you can…