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Africa: TDS Girls Seal Final Place At CAF U-17 Girls Integrated Football Tournament (Gift)

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TDS Girls from Tanzania have booked their place in the final of the CAF U-17 Girls Integrated Football Tournament (GIFT) being staged at the Azam Complex Stadium in Dar es Salaam after they completed a clean sweep of two victories in the three-team Group B.
TDS Girls booked their final ticket with a 2-0 win over Aigle Noir FC from Burundi on Saturday, a victory handed to them after second half goals by Asha Omary and Helena Mtundagi.
That follows their earlier 2-0 win over Boni Consili Girls from Uganda that gives them an unassailable lead at the top of the pool. There are three sides in Group B due to the withdrawal of Hilaad FC from Somalia.
But it is still all to play for in Group A, which will resume on Monday.
Tanzania’s JKT Queens are in pole position after a pair of wins sees them head the table with six points. They face City Lights FC from South Sudan at 18:00 in their final game, where a draw will be enough to secure top spot.
Kenya Elite Junior Academy and Kenya Academy of Sports will both hope for a slip-up from JKT Queens as they clash in a local derby in their final pool game at 15:00.
With the final positions decided on goal-difference and then goals scored when two teams finish level on points, they can theoretically still catch JKT Queens.
The teams that finish third in the pools will battle it out for fifth position in the tournament on Friday, while the runners-up in each pool will play for third-place.
Saturday’s final between the top two teams in each pool will kick-off at the Azam Complex Stadium at 18:00.
The tournament is live on CAF’s YouTube channel, CAF TV and can also be followed across CAF’s digital platforms through #U17GIFT2025
For more on CAF Safeguarding and Women’s Football development, visit www.cafonline.com.
TOURNAMENT RESULTS
GROUP AJKT Queens 3 (Winifrida Gerald 26′, 33′, Janeth Matulanga 48′) Kenya Academy of Sports 0
Kenya Elite Junior Academy 6 (Emily Adhiambo 8′, Fleviah Khatenje 37′, Jane Sakwa 42′, Joan OgolΔ… 45′, 81′, Alice Wilson 51’og) City Lights FC 0
JKT Queens 2 (Lidya Kabambo 30′, Adija Sanyenge 60′) Kenya Elite Junior Academy 1 (Furaha Kifaru 66’og)
City Lights FC 1 (Rahma Dafalla 26′) Kenya Academy of Sports 5 (Joyangela Valencia 9′, Brenda Achieng 13′, Genevieve Mithel 45′, Mitshel Muthama 55′, Anna Khamis 60’og)

GROUP A P W D L GF GA GD PTS
JKT Queens (Tanzania) 2 2 0 0 5 1 4 6
Kenya Elite Junior Academy 2 1 0 1 7 2 5 3
Kenya Academy of Sports 2 1 0 1 5 4 1 3
City Lights FC (South Sudan) 2 0 0 2 1 11 -10 0

GROUP BTDS Girls 2 (Winifrida Mathias 60′, Mary Siyame 88′) Boni Consili Girls 0
TDS Girls 2 (Asha Omary 59′, Helena Mtundagi 76′) Aigle Noir FC 0

GROUP B P W D L GF GA GD PTS
TDS Girls (Tanzania) 2 2 0 0 4 0 4 6
Aigle Noir (Burundi) 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
Boni Consili Girls (Uganda) 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

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TOURNAMENT FIXTURESAll matches played at the Azam Complex StadiumGROUP A13 January, 15:00: Kenya Elite Junior Academy vs Kenya Academy of Sports
13 January, 18:00: JKT Queens vs City Lights FC
GROUP B14 January, 18:00: Boni Consili Girls vs Aigle Noir FC
FIFTH-PLACE PLAY-OFF
17 January, 15:00: Third in Group A vs Third in Group B
THIRD-PLACE PLAY-OFF
17 January, 18:00: Second in Group A vs Second in Group B
FINAL
18 January, 18:00: Winners Group A vs Winner Group B
Read the original article on CAF.
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Africa: Reimagining Health Financing in Africa – Navigating the Aftermath of the U.S. WHO Withdrawal

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The United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) and 90-day pause in foreign aid programmes following President Donald Trump’s re-election have sparked a global health debate. While critics warn that this decision threatens Universal Health Coverage (UHC), the commitment to ‘leave no one behind’ others see an opportunity for Africa to accelerate its vision of a new public health order focused on self-sufficiency.
Could this geopolitical development catalyse a paradigm shift, with African health systems moving from donor-dependency towards self-reliance, thereby strengthening the region’s health security and contribution to global health?
Progress toward achieving UHC, a guarantee that populations have access to quality health services without financial hardship, has been disturbingly off track. The “Tracking Universal Health Coverage: 2023 Global Monitoring Report” paints a bleak picture: 4.5 billion people globally cannot access affordable, quality care when they need it. Even worse, 2 billion people face financial hardship, with 1.3 billion of them being pushed into poverty by out-of-pocket health expenses.
For developing countries with poorly funded healthcare systems and high dependency on foreign aid for critical health programmes -such as Tuberculosis, Malaria, maternal and child health, and HIV/AIDS- the funding cut or reduction from the United States could pose an even more pressing global health issue.
However, while it exposes vulnerabilities in donor-dependent systems, it also presents a timely opportunity to reimagine and strengthen health sovereignty aligned with the new public health order. This will require a whole-of-society approach, driven by strong political commitment and civil society participation.
2025 and the global health financing landscape
The U.S., the WHO’s largest funder, has driven life-saving global health initiatives, including the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which saved 26 million lives and enabled 5.5 million HIV-free births. With over $640 billion spent in foreign aid from 2012 to 2022, its withdrawal threatens global health diplomacy and sparks opposition. Legal experts have argued that President Trump cannot unilaterally exit the WHO without congressional approval, as the U.S. joined through a 1948 joint resolution. Congress is now pursuing measures to block the move, underscoring the WHO’s indispensable role in global health security.
Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch
In response to the U.S. pause on foreign aid and retreat from the Paris Agreement, the WHO plans to reassess costs, urging the international community to pursue innovative financing. While philanthropic groups are pledging to address the funding gap, with emerging economies like BRICS nations potentially stepping up, their efforts must extend beyond financial support to include technical collaboration and knowledge sharing.
Time to focus on the African response?
This recent geopolitical shift exposes the vulnerabilities of Africa’s heavy reliance on foreign aid to realise its commitment to UHC, underscoring the urgent need to “not let this crisis go to waste” by strengthening health sovereignty.
Africa’s proactive response to COVID-19 demonstrated its capacity for regional coordination and innovation. Initiatives such as the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT) and the Africa Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP) highlighted the continent’s commitment to self-reliance. However, the pandemic also exposed deep vulnerabilities, including the overdependence on external sources for critical medical supplies, with less than 1% of vaccines manufactured locally.
In response, countries including Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, and Rwanda initiated steps to boost local vaccine production, with Nigeria more recently, initiating policy measures to unlock its healthcare value chain. Speaking at the 2025 World Economic Forum, Kashim Shettima, Nigeria’s Vice President reiterated the need for Africa to move beyond foreign aid and embrace partnerships rooted in equality and self-reliance. Similarly, Dr. Jean Kaseya, Africa CDC Director General, emphasised the need for domestic resource mobilisation, in the wake of the geopolitical shift. He stated that “I’m glad to announce that our Heads of State will meet on the 14th of February in Addis Ababa to discuss domestic resources for Africa and how to provide appropriate funding to Africa CDC and African Medicine Agency.”
Africa’s new public health order, introduced in 2021, provides a framework to consolidate these gains, by focusing on institutional strengthening, local manufacturing, and increase in domestic financing for health. However, achieving health sovereignty goes beyond financial independence — it demands the capacity to design, implement, and sustain programmes tailored to Africa’s unique contexts.
Collaborative path forward: Role of civil society organisations
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) are indispensable allies in advancing UHC goals, serving as watchdogs and bridges between underserved communities and policymakers. U.S.-funded CSOs, whose work directly impacts vulnerable populations, were abruptly told to halt operations, disrupting essential health interventions. In response, swift, and strategic advocacy efforts led to a life-saving waiver on emergency services from the U.S States Department, demonstrating that decision-makers recognised the potential harm of an outright freeze.
Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch
In Nigeria, the Federal Executive Council approved ₦4.8 billion for HIV/AIDS treatment and formed a multi-ministerial committee to sustain health programs impacted by U.S. policy shifts. This signals a move toward domestic health financing, creating a pivotal moment for CSOs to advocate for sustainable funding, transparency, and efficiency. Seizing this opportunity, the Nigeria UHC Forum — a coalition of indigenous CSOs — is moving to explore resilient financing pathways amid donor uncertainty, by convening a health financing policy dialogue this month.
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CSOs in Nigeria have demonstrated their capacity to shape impactful health reforms. The Health Sector Reform Coalition, for instance, led the development of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund Accountability Framework, ensuring transparency in the allocation and use of ₦12.9 billion earmarked for the fund. Similarly, advocacy by CSOs like the Centre for Social Justice catalysed the 2022 passage of the National Health Insurance Act, marking a critical moment in expanding access to health insurance and reinforcing Nigeria’s commitment to leave no one behind.
In light of shifting global dynamics, CSOs must take on an even more transformative role to reimagine Africa’s health systems, holding leaders accountable for their pledge of allocating 15% of their total expenditure to health, while fostering accountability, driving innovation, and amplifying local voices.
Read the original article on Nigeria Health Watch.
AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.
Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.
AllAfrica is a voice of, by and about Africa – aggregating, producing and distributing 500 news and information items daily from over 110 African news organizations and our own reporters to an African and global public. We operate from Cape Town, Dakar, Abuja, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington DC.
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4,500 teachers’ selection process ends next week

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By Mary Kachepa

The Teaching Service Commission- TSC- says the selection process for the recruitment of 4,500 teachers will be completed next week.

TSC Chairperson, DAPHNE CHIMUKA says Provincial and District education Officials are currently in Chilanga District were the selection process is underway.

Ms CHIMUKA says the selection process started two weeks ago.

She told ZNBC News in an interview that the teachers are being selected according to the needs of each District.

Ms. CHIMUKA said the teachers are being selected using the data base from the applicants that applied last year.

She said the recruitment of 4,500 teachers is budgeted for.

The post 4,500 teachers’ selection process ends next week appeared first on ZNBC-Just for you.

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Africa: Female Genital Mutilation Is a Leading Cause of Death for Girls Where It's Practised – New Study

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Female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) is a deeply entrenched cultural practice that affects around 200 million women and girls. It’s practised in at least 25 African countries, as well as parts of the Middle East and Asia and among immigrant populations globally.
It is a harmful traditional practice that involves removing or damaging female genital tissue. Often it’s “justified” by cultural beliefs about controlling female sexuality and marriageability. FGM/C causes immediate and lifelong physical and psychological harm to girls and women, including severe pain, complications during childbirth, infections and trauma.
We brought together our expertise in economics and gender based violence to examine excess mortality (avoidable deaths) due to FGM/C. Our new research now reveals a devastating reality: FGM/C is one of the leading causes of death for girls and young women in countries where it’s practised. FGM/C can result in death from severe bleeding, infection, shock, or obstructed labour.
Our study estimates that it causes approximately 44,000 deaths each year across the 15 countries we examined. That is equivalent to a young woman or girl every 12 minutes.
This makes it a more significant cause of death in the countries studied than any other excluding infection, malaria and respiratory infections or tuberculosis. Put differently, it is a bigger cause of death than HIV/Aids, measles, meningitis and many other well-known health threats for young women and girls in these countries.
Prior research has shown that FGM/C leads to severe pain, bleeding and infection. But tracking deaths directly caused by the practice has been nearly impossible. This is partly because FGM/C is illegal in many countries where it occurs, and it typically takes place in non-clinical settings without medical supervision.
Where the crisis is most severe
The practice is particularly prevalent in several African nations. In Guinea, our data show 97% of women and girls have undergone FGM/C, while in Mali the figure stands at 83%, and in Sierra Leone, 90%. The high prevalence rates in Egypt, with 87% of women and girls affected, are a reminder that FGM/C is not confined to sub-Saharan Africa.
For our study, we analysed data from the 15 African countries for which comprehensive “gold standard” FGM/C incidence information is available. Meaning, the data is comprehensive, reliable and widely accepted for research, policymaking and advocacy efforts to combat FGM/C.
We developed a new approach to help overcome previous gaps in data. We matched data on the proportion of girls subjected to FGM/C at different ages with age-specific mortality rates across 15 countries between 1990 and 2020. The age at which FGM occurs varies significantly by country. In Nigeria, 93% of procedures are performed on girls younger than five years old. In contrast, in Sierra Leone, most girls undergo the procedure between the ages of 10 and 14.
Since health conditions vary from place to place and over time, and vary in the same place from one year to the next, we made sure to consider these differences. This helped us figure out if more girls were dying at the ages when FGM/C usually happens in each country.
For example, in Chad, 11.2% of girls undergo FGM/C aged 0-4, 57.2% at 5-9 and 30% at 10-14. We could see how mortality rates changed between these age groups compared to countries with different FGM patterns.
This careful statistical approach helped us identify the excess deaths associated with the practice while accounting for other factors that might affect child mortality.
Striking findings
Our analysis revealed that when the proportion of girls subjected to FGM in a particular age group increases by 50 percentage points, their mortality rate rises by 0.1 percentage points. While this may sound small, when applied across the population of affected countries, it translates to tens of thousands of preventable deaths annually.
The scale is staggering: while armed conflicts in Africa caused approximately 48,000 combat deaths per year between 1995 and 2015, our research suggests FGM/C leads to about 44,000 deaths annually. This places FGM among the most serious public health challenges facing these nations.
Beyond the numbers
These statistics represent real lives cut short. Most FGM/C procedures are performed without anaesthesia, proper medical supervision, or sterile equipment. The resulting complications can include severe bleeding, infection and shock. Even when not immediately fatal, the practice can lead to long-term health problems and increased risks during childbirth.
The impact extends beyond physical health. Survivors often face psychological trauma and social challenges. In many communities, FGM/C is deeply embedded in cultural practices and tied to marriage prospects, making it difficult for families to resist the pressure to continue the tradition.
Urgent crisis
FGM/C is not just a human rights violation – it’s a public health crisis demanding urgent attention. While progress has been made in some areas, with some communities abandoning the practice, our research suggests that current efforts to combat FGM/C need to be dramatically scaled up.
The COVID-19 pandemic has potentially worsened the situation, owing to broader impacts of the pandemic on societies, economies and healthcare systems. The UN estimates that the pandemic may have led to 2 million additional cases of FGM/C that could have been prevented. Based on our mortality estimates, this could result in approximately 4,000 additional deaths in the 15 countries we studied.
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The way forward
Ending FGM/C requires a multi-faceted approach. Legal reforms are crucial – the practice remains legal in five of the 28 countries where it’s most commonly practised. However, laws alone aren’t enough. Community engagement, education, and support for grassroots organisations are essential for changing deeply held cultural beliefs and practices.
Previous research has shown that information campaigns and community-led initiatives can be effective. For instance, studies have documented reductions in FGM/C rates following increased social media reach in Egypt and the use of educational films showing different views on FGM/C.
Most importantly, any solution must involve the communities where FGM/C is practised. Our research underscores that this isn’t just about changing traditions – it’s about saving lives. Every year of delay means tens of thousands more preventable deaths.
Our findings suggest that ending FGM/C should be considered as urgent a priority as combating major infectious diseases. The lives of millions of girls and young women depend on it.
Heather D. Flowe, Professor of Psychology, University of Birmingham
Arpita Ghosh, Lecturer in Economics, University of Exeter
James Rockey, Professor of Economics, University of Birmingham
This article is republished from The Conversation Africa under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
‘The New Generation Is Different’ – in Djibouti, Activists Lobby to End Female Genital Mutilation
AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.
Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.
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