“Strengthening rural livelihoods in the face of rapid urbanisation in Africa” was the topic of a Brussels Briefing organised on 20 March by the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), BMZ/GIZ and partners. Thomas Allen, from the Sahel and West Africa Club Secretariat (SWAC/OECD) participated in a panel discussion on rural transformation and job creation. His presentation argued that although the farming sector will continue to provide the most jobs, labour is increasingly moving out of farming, requiring people to develop different skills. Read on

Since 1985, 8 March has been a public holiday in Burkina Faso. Thomas Sankara had the idea to keep women from going the market on that day, and demand that men do the shopping and cooking instead. This inversion of gender roles was intended to remind men about the realities of the daily grind of their wives, mothers and sisters, and to, above all, allow men to experience those things first-hand. The president of Burkina Faso also left his mark by making himself a tireless advocate for women prostitutes. Read on

ECOWAS ministers met on 9 February 2017 in Abidjan to discuss how to make faster progress on gender equality and equity within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. Côte d’Ivoire’s Vice-President Daniel Duncan participated in the opening session and encouraged ministers to take ownership of the newly approved roadmap, which aims to accelerate the implementation of Supplementary Act on Equal Rights for Men and Women for Sustainable Development in the Community. Read on

While Côte d’Ivoire has recorded strong growth over the past five years, the country lags behind in education. The decade of crisis strongly affected the education system and the level of schooling in the country, exacerbating inequalities faced by girls, children from rural areas and children from poor families. A recent World Bank report makes a number of recommendations to reduce administrative expenses, purchase equipment and introduce a more effective financial aid system for families. Read on