There’s an Obama baby-naming boom in Kenya. Ever since President-elect Barack Obama won the election over his Republican rival last week, little baby “Obamas” have been popping up all over the world, reports United Press International. This is especially the case at a hospital in Kisumu, Kenya. Officials at Nyanza Provincial Hospital say that 43 babies, between Nov. 4 and Nov. 8, were named after Obama or some of his family members. Twenty-three boys were given “Barack Obama” as their first and middle names and 20 girls were named after his wife, Michelle Obama. One mother, Pamela Odhiambo, says she gave birth to little “Michelle Obama” during Obama’s victory speech. “It’s a new start, a new beginning,” said Odhiambo.

The U.N. is forced to cut food aid to Zimbabwe. The United Nations’ food charity has to cut back on food distribution in Zimbabwe because the international aid agency is running low on money. Although the U.N.’s World Food Program (WFP) has fed 2 million people in October, a number they expect to grow to 4 million this month and rise to more than 5 million by early 2009, it lacks the funds to keep it going in 2009. “There is currently no food in the pipeline for distributions in January and February - just when the crisis is reaching its peak,” said the agency in a statement. The U.N. also asked for $140 million in more funding so it will be able to keep distributing aid in the nation until at least the end of March. A “disastrous” harvest in the country has resulted in millions of Zimbabweans being hungry; the demand was such that the WFP had to reduce cereal and pulse rations. The country has had a rough time with food shortages for the past seven years. Critics of longtime leader Robert Mugabe say that the country’s food problems were made worse when he enforced his policy of kicking White farmers off their land to redistribute to Blacks. Black Zimbabweans gained their independence from White rule in 1980.

Kenya deports American author who criticized Obama. Kenyan authorities questioned then deported an American author who was in the nation to promote a book criticizing Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, reports the BBC. Jerome Corsi was going to hold a news conference about his book “The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality” before Kenyan authorities brought him in for questioning at immigration headquarters and took him to the airport and deported him. According to Corsi, his book would “expose deep secret ties between U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama and a section of the Kenyan government leaders.” The book also accuses Obama of contributing $1 million to Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga during Odinga’s run for president. (Odinga is from the same town as Obama’s father.) The book further claims that Obama was raised as a Muslim. Obama denies these charges. Obama, whose father was from Kenya, is wildly popular in the country so some are questioning the timing of immigration officials. Kenyan officials contend he was deported for not having all of his immigration papers. Corsi was taken in right before a press conference for the controversial book, but had already been in the country for a week.
 

Nigeria set to honor Black Americans. The west African nation of Nigeria will honor such Black Americans as Malcolm X, Martin Luther King and Marcus Garvey by renaming streets after them in the nation’s administrative capital. Federal Capital Territory Minister Aliyu Umar said the roads to be renamed, about 80 of them, had been “inappropriately named.” Many of them were named after former military governors, he said. “Some of the names have no relevance or affinity to our existence, history or culture,” he said during an event celebrating the nations 48 years of independence. “The occasion is to celebrate names which have contributed to Nigeria’s democracy,” he continued. Other legends in the nation such as Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe will also be honored by having a street named after them, along with several other noted countrymen in sports in music. “We honor Malcolm X, who taught Black people to stand up for their dignity wherever they are, Rosa Parks who single-handedly confronted discrimination and Martin Luther King [whose] dream lives on.”

Musician Wyclef Jean pitches in to help Haiti, Zimbabwe leaders are all smiles and the search for is on for Kenya’s next top model. See these pictures and more.
 

S.A.prosecutors plan to appeal ruling for Zuma. South African prosecutors announced they are planning to appeal a ruling made by the nation’s High Court dismissing charges against Jacob Zuma, head of the African National Congress. Zuma, who plans on running for president of the nation next year, had the charges dismissed on a technicality; the prosecutors did not inform him of the charges before filing them, reports the Associated Press. But, after they consult Zuma, they are welcome to file new charges, the court ruled. Nevertheless, the ANC had angry words for the prosecutors, who they accuse of trying to ruin Zuma’s chance of becoming president. “By not accepting the court’s ruling, the NPA has lost valuable opportunity to bring the relentless pursuit of Jacob Zuma to an end. The decision suggests that personal pride, rather than reason, is driving the actions of the NPA,” ANC said Wednesday. The charges against Zuma include corruption, fraud, money laundering and racketeering.

Zimbabwe leaders reportedly reach a power-sharing agreement. After a violent voting season and two disputed elections, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai have agreed on a power-sharing deal, according to reports. The two parties will sign the agreement on Monday, said South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki who mediated talks between the two, reports CNN. He did not, however, release any specifics about the deal. Earlier this week, Tsvangirai said he would only sign a deal if Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe since 1980, would agree to relinquish some power as leader and have his presidency reduced to a ceremonial position. The opposition leader won the majority of votes in the first round of elections in March but, according to the official figures, he didn’t get the more than 50 percent needed to secure a victory. The weeks before June’s runoff election were so violent, Tsvangirai decided to drop out of the race out of fear for his safety and the safety of his supporters. Mugabe, whose name was the only one on the ballot, won the runoff, which many in the international community dismissed as a “sham” election. Under intense scrutiny, both inside and outside of Zimbabwe, Mugabe agreed to sit down with the opposition to discuss a power-sharing deal.  The county has sunk to financial run in recent years, with an inflation rate at an astounding 11.2 million percent, which is the highest in the world.
Obama’s Kenyan grandma is targeted in burglary. People attempted to break into the home of Sen. Barack Obama’s grandmother in Kenya, reports CNN. They were not able to get into Sarah Obama’s house, though, despite using a ladder to get on the roof after they noticed all the doors were locked, according to Obama’s uncle, Said. “I just spoke to Sarah, and she’s OK. The police have been there since yesterday, and we’re not worried. Everything is fine,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press. The family is mum on what type of security, if any, they are given. No word on how many people were involved in the break-in or if the police caught them yet. Barack Obama, whose late father was Kenyan, is very popular in the nation.
Many Tanzanian students faint during finals. Were they sick or just trying to buy some study time? While taking final exams, 20 girls at a Tanzanian school fell out and fainted, reports the BBC. More than 140 students at Ali Hassan Mwinyi School in Tabora, a co-ed junior school, were taking the test when the incident happened. Officials aren’t positive why they all fainted at about the same time, but they have their speculations. “I’m not a specialist, but I imagine this was a case of mass hysteria that does happen in some of the schools,” the educational officer of Tabora told the news service. “There was chaos, crying, screaming, running after that first paper.” What makes this even more bizarre is that the mass fainting spells have become a common occurrence at the school within the last month or so; and in all incidents only girls were involved. After the girls were revived, they were permitted to finish their exams.

U.S. official nix African refugee program. The U.S. State Department has ended a program that allowed African refugees with family members in the United States because DNA tests proved that many of the Africans were not really related. The program, established nearly two decades ago to assist people trying to escape political unrest and violence, accepted close relatives, including parents and children, of people already here. Most of the refugees flowed through Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Gambia. Of the 3,000 who were tested, most were originally from Somalia, Ethiopia, or Liberia, according to the State Department. “The program has been suspended,” said State Department spokesman Robert Wood, noting that only about fifth of applicants from those countries had actual blood ties.

Worker is fired after hanging a noose at a children’s hospital. Authorities in Philadelphia are investigating a potential hate crime after finding a noose swinging in an electrical shop at The Children’s Hospital. The alleged culprit has been fired for the Aug. 11 incident, hospital officials announced this week, but they refused to disclose his name, which has infuriated some residents. The fired member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers allegedly hung a noose on a light fixture on the 13th floor of the Aberson Pediatric Research Center. According to FOX News 29, the worker’s colleagues had asked him at least three times to remove the racially offensive symbol. Children’s Hospital released a statement to the news channel that says: “We believe this to be a blatantact of racial intimidation, for which we have ZERO tolerance at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. This has not happened before and was an isolated incident.” Jerry Mondesire, who heads the local chapter of the NAACP, says he believes the hospital handled the situation the right way.

Togo gets its first Olympic medal ever

Togo, a country in West Africa, recently won its first medal ever in an Olympic event, reports the BBC. Benjamin Boukpeti (above) took home the bronze medal in the men’s single kayak slalom in Beijing. He was so excited about the win that he broke his paddle in half. “I can hardly believe it, but I’m not surprised,” he said. Aside from earning his nation’s first Olympic medal, Boukpeti also became the first male kayaker to win an Olympic slalom medal who is not European. After the race he hugged and kissed his parents (his mother is French, his father Togolese). Alexander Grimm, from Germany, won gold and France’s Fabien Lefevre – who was originally picked to win it all – won silver. But the day belonged to Boukpeti. “This is unexpected; it is a good surprise for Togo. It is more than a beautiful surprise because many Togolese are not aware of this sport’s discipline,” said Cornelius Aidam, Togo’s minister for communication, culture and civic education.

Food shortage is affecting thousands in northern Kenya. A critical food shortage in northern Kenya is leaving tens of thousands at risk, reports the Integrated Regional Information Networks. Affected are areas in Baringo and East Pokot, which are in Kenya’s north Rift, according to a charity official. “There is an acute food shortage and the situation has been rated as alarming,” said Anthony Mwangi, the public relations manager with Kenya’s Red Cross Society (KRCS). Skyrocketing food prices, as well as a lack of rain leading, are to blame for the food crisis. In addition, the nation’s livestock is not selling as well as it used to due to the poor health of the animals. “The livestock are in poor condition and are fetching low prices in the markets,” he said. The shortage is affecting almost 100,000 thousand people in total (at least 64,000 in East Pokot and 32,000 in Baringo). During the shortage many youths (at least 5 percent) have been missing school. “They are staying behind to support their parents,” Mwangi said. Some starving residents have had to eat wild fruits and rodents. The Kenya Red Cross Society has stepped in to help, distributing 1,246 tons of food and food materials to those affected, Mwangi said.

Keeping Kenyan girls in school helps reduce HIV.

Reducing the school dropout rate for girls in Kenya and providing adequate HIV/AIDS and sex education could reduce HIV incidence in the country, experts said recently. “Young people do not have the information they need, and the dropout rate, particularly for girls, is still too high,” Rosemarie Muganda-Onyando, executive director of the Centre for the Study of Adolescence in Nairobi, Kenya, told IRIN News. “Dropping out of school ensures a life of poverty for these girls, and many of them also wind up HIV-positive because the male-female power dynamics become even more slanted against them.” In 2003, Kenya introduced no-cost primary school education, but an estimated 1 million school-age children still are not attending school. In addition, up to 13,000 Kenyan girls drop out of school annually as a result of pregnancy, and about 17 percent of girls have had sex before age 15. HIV prevalence among Kenyan women between ages 15 and 24 is about 5 percent, compared with 1 percent for their male counterparts, IRIN News reports. According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey of 2004, educated girls were less likely to marry early and more likely to practice family planning. In addition, their children had a higher survival rate. UNICEF also found that uneducated girls are more likely to contract HIV, compared with girls who have had some schooling.

The U.N. extended its Darfur peacekeeping mission. The Security Council on Thursday extended by one year the mandate of the joint United Nations-African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission in the strife-torn western Sudanese region of Darfur. With 14 votes in favor and an abstention by the United States, a resolution was adopted to extend the mission known as UNAMID – which was authorized by the Council exactly one year ago – for another 12 months to 31 July 2009. The current mandate expired Thursday night. “The United States abstained because language added to the resolution would send the wrong signal to Sudanese President [Omar al-] Bashir” and undermine efforts to bring him to justice, U.S. Ambassador Alejandro D. Wolff told the 15-member panel after the vote. Earlier this month, Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced that he is seeking an arrest warrant for Mr. Bashir for “criminal responsibility in relation to 10 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.” Since taking over from an AU peace-monitoring mission at the start of this year, UNAMID has just under 10,000 uniformed personnel in place, far short of the approximately 26,000 troops and police officers expected when the force reaches full deployment. A report by a group of non-governmental organizations this week found that the peacekeeping mission faces critical shortages in troops, other personnel, helicopters, equipment and logistics. The report indicates that there are not enough troops, helicopters or other equipment for the force to be effective.