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Undated: Somalia is considered a globalized nation, with more than 1 million Somalis currently living outside the country. Somalis are largely concentrated in three areas: the Horn of Africa and Yemen, Gulf States, and Western Europe and North America [15]. Nearly two-thirds of all Somalis living outside Somalia live in neighboring countries, namely Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Yemen [16]. In Europe, the United Kingdom is home to the largest Somali community, followed by the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark [15]. A growing number of Somalis have also settled in Switzerland, many of whom arrived as asylum seekers [16]. Lastly, Malaysia and Australia have also seen an influx of Somali immigrants in recent years [15]. In the United States, Minnesota is home to the largest Somali community, with the majority residing in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area (Hennepin and Ramsey counties), as well as St. Cloud and Rochester [17]. Many Somali refugees and immigrants have also settled in the Seattle metropolitan area, as well as Columbus (Ohio) and the surrounding area [14, 18].
As of December 2016, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that more than 1.5 million Somalis were internally displaced. Additionally, as of January 2018, more than 875,000 Somalis were registered with UNHCR as refugees in Africa and the Middle East [19, 20]. However, this figure only accounts for registered refugees, and therefore likely underestimates the scale of the refugee crisis in the Horn of Africa. Kenya, Ethiopia, and Yemen host the largest numbers of Somali refugees. Somali refugees have also fled, in smaller numbers, to Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Uganda, and South Africa [20].
https://www.cdc.gov/immigrantrefugeehealth/profiles/somali/populationMovements.html
-- 2017 --
May 22: Wounded Elephant Crushes, Kills Trophy Hunter
The deadly incident highlights how dangerous elephants can be when threatened and casts further scrutiny on the practice of trophy hunting.
... elephants often fare much worse in their interactions with humans; some 33,000 are killed each year by poachers ..
Proponents argue that some of the money trophy hunting groups make from wealthy foreigners goes toward local communities and elephant conservation.
But the benefits that trickle down to communities are often small: The industry doesn’t employ many people, government corruption affects available trophy hunting land, and the practice of trophy hunting isn’t stopping poachers. Poaching for ivory is the biggest threat to elephants in southern Africa.
This isn't the first time trophy hunts in this part of Zimbabwe have caught international attention. In 2015, Cecil the lion was killed by Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer, a trophy hunter, outside of the same national park, sparking international outrage and greater scrutiny of trophy hunting. Charges against the local professional who guided Palmer in the hunt have since been dropped.
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/elephant-crushes-kills-trophy-hunter-zimbabwe/
-- 2018 --
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October 4: Trump’s alleged “shithole” comments come back to haunt Melania during Africa visit
Two people held up signs during her visit to Malawi.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/10/4/17936752/melania-malawi-trump-comments-shithole-countries
November 29: Amref Health Africa welcomes the recent findings published in BMJ Global Health that the prevalence of female genital mutilation/cutting of girls under the age of 14 has fallen significantly in the 29 countries in Africa that were part of the study. Using Demographic Health Survey (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) data sets from Africa, the study finds that the prevalence of FGM/C for girls under 14 dropped the most in East Africa where it went from 71.4% in 1995 to 8.0% in 2016.
https://www.amrefusa.org/newsroom/news/prevalence-of-fgmc-in-girls-under-14-has-significantly-dropped-in-africa-according-to-recent-study/
-- 2019 --
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January 13: The Day ‘Shithole’ Entered the Presidential Lexicon
In insulting certain countries, Trump revealed the hierarchy he imposes on the world.
On January 11, 2018, during an Oval Office talk with several U.S. senators about protecting immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador, and African countries in a new immigration package, President Donald Trump unleashed a word that Americans aren't accustomed to hearing from their president.
“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” Trump reportedly asked. (He later denied having said this.)
Months earlier, Trump had reportedly complained that Nigerian immigrants would never “go back to their huts” and Haitians “all have AIDS.” He doubled down at the Oval Office meeting. “Why do we need more Haitians?” Trump said. “Take them out.”
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/01/shithole-countries/580054/
April 9: Big game hunter who has killed more than 5,000 elephants says he is 'totally unrepentant' after being named in investigation into plummeting numbers – and admits killing 60 lions, 50 hippos, and 40 leopards
An African hunter who claims to have killed more than 5,000 elephants says he is 'totally unrepentant' about the deaths he has caused.
Ron Thomson, 77, who worked in Africa's national parks for almost six decades, claims he was not hunting the animals for pure sport but was managing population that would otherwise have got out of control.
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However, animal rights campaigners point out that elephant numbers are in steep decline and say 'management culling' is often used as a cover for trophy hunting.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6902739/African-big-game-hunter-killed-5-000-elephants-totally-unrepentant.html
April 26: Trophy hunter ‘slaughters second rare large-tusked elephant in Zimbabwe’
Same man reportedly killed record-breaking elephant ‘in its prime’ in 2015
According to AfricaGeographic.com the hunter is the same person who shot dead a bull elephant in 2015 estimated to be the largest killed since 1986.
At the time, the hunters reportedly claimed the hunt was ethical as the elephant was past his breeding years. However, elephant experts later said the bull was 35-40 years old and was of prime breeding age.
There is concern regarding the loss of the genes that such a large tusker carries.
Elephants are now believed to be growing smaller tusks because poaching and hunting has removed so many big-tusked elephants from the gene pool, the National Geographic said in 2015.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/elephant-shot-killed-zimbabwe-tophy-hunting-big-tusker-a8887376.html
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April 29: African economies have grown rapidly over the past two decades. Growth between 2009 and 2017 averaged 3.8 percent per year, compared to the world average of 2.5 percent. Africa’s growth has been driven not only by high commodity prices but also economic reforms that have improved the macroeconomic and business environments.
Although Africa has contributed the least to climate change, it is already experiencing devastating climate impacts and will bear the brunt of future global warming.
Warming looks exceedingly likely to exceed 2 degrees Celsius, given the IPCC’s latest report. Even if it doesn’t, Africa can still expect a reduction of 10 percent in crop production and a 40 to 80 percent reduction in cropping areas by 2050.
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An estimated 43 million people could be pushed below the poverty line by 2030 as a result of climate change. The number of climate migrants could reach 86 million by 2050, compared to 40 million in South Asia.
http://acetforafrica.org/media/acet-in-the-news/africa-will-bear-the-brunt-of-climate-change-can-economic-growth-fix-it/
May 19: The rumour that led to medical researchers in Ethiopia being killed by a mob
In October last year, three research scientists from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa travelled to a village called Gonji in the country’s Amhara region to investigate intestinal worms and the eye disease trachoma at a local school.
Two of them were killed by a mob who believed they were there to poison the children. Haileyesus Mulu survived, but with life-changing injuries.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-48313462/the-rumour-that-led-to-medical-researchers-in-ethiopia-being-killed-by-a-mob
-- 2020 --
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