Author - Mary-Jean Nleya

Diamonds In The Rough: Making Quality Education A Reality

On Wednesday, 18 October 2017, The Global Communiqué’s 5th segment of Grassroots Reporting journeyed to Chiwenga Primary School in Likuni – a village centrally located in Malawi – situated in the outskirts of the capital, Lilongwe. Two interviews were conducted at the school: one with the Head Teacher, Mr. Fanuel Dzinziye and the second interview with a Standard 7 Teacher at the primary school, Ms. Grace Mkute. Below are excerpts from the two respective interviews, mildly edited for brevity. Interview...

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A Collective Journey Towards Agenda 2030 – Grassroots Conversations in Malawi’s Senti Market

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development envisages to ensure that "no one is left behind". The achievement of all of the 17 global goals, is said to be a "collective journey" - not just the journey for the educated, the elite, the politicians or the diplomats to take; but a "collective journey" for the uneducated, the micro business owners, the poor, and those at the grassroots. The preamble to the SDGs, which can be found on the Sustainable Development...

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Harnessing Tech Innovation for the SDGs – Leaving No-One Behind

The 72nd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) runs until Monday 25 September. Speeches from different heads of state commenced on 19 September. The much-anticipated debut of President Donald Trump on the world stage took place on Tuesday. He applauded the African Union and United in his debut speech for “[leading] peacekeeping missions [and] to have invaluable contributions in stabilizing conflicts in Africa”. Among African heads of state, President Alpha Condé of Guinea was the first African to take the international stage....

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Grassroots Reporting on Youth Issues on the Eve of the 72nd UNGA

The 72nd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will be kicking off today at the UN Headquarters in New York City. There are a lot of world and international issues that are on the table for debate, discussion and clarification. The leader of the free world, President Donald Trump, is set to take the world stage on Tuesday, September 19th – and the international community awaits to hear the clarification over some of the rhetoric he conveyed, both pre-and post...

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Youth Involvement & Participation in Providing Scalable Solutions to the SDGs

Africa and Its Youth Population Africa is considered the youngest continent. In 2016, the World Economic Forum indicated that the “world’s 10 youngest populations are all in Africa”. This youth bulge on the African continent should be harnessed positively to avoid a Malthusian disaster, given that food and agricultural production on the African continent is yet to be maximized. According to the World Bank the youthfulness of the African continent could potentially yield a 11 – 15 percent of...

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Is Global Peace Hanging on the Precipice?

This article first appeared on YourCommonwealth Prime Minister Theresa May’s bid for early elections flowed directly from the 2016 EU referendum. On the other side of the Atlantic, 2016 campaign rhetoric relating to U.S. foreign policy on China, Syria and Russia had been at odds with the recent sharp turns President Trump made on his journey as president of the United States. President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 7th, 2017, and days later stated in an interview that China...

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Politics, Elections, Opposition Parties & Leaders: A Look at Different Country-Contexts & their Elections between the years 2016 – 2018

Citizens of different regions of the world are bracing themselves for democratic elections that will be taking place in the year 2017. The United States underwent its democratic duty in November 2016 by electing President Donald Trump of the Republican Party into office after what was a hotly contested campaign and election between him and Democratic Party former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The whole world watched to see the ultimate outcome of that election, the famed 2016 US elections. Whereas...

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Nigeria’s Market Women Express their Views on Matters Relating to Nigeria’s Economy

In this second edition of The Global Communiqué’s ‘Grassroots Reporting’ section, we take you – the reader – to Lagos, Nigeria, specifically to the vigorous and energetic Ikotun Market – a marketplace in the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos state. The Global Communiqué engaged in conversation with three different market women. Nigeria, one of Africa’s largest economies, slipped into an economic recession in 2016. Nigeria was particularly hit the hardest by the decline of global oil prices which make...

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Oxford Street Artists

“I Am at the Bottom of the Pile … But Everybody Is Equal”: In Conversation with one of Oxford’s Street Artists

Interview by Mary-Jean Nleya This is the first article of this section referred to as ‘Grassroots Reporting’. In an effort to dismantle the silos and bubbles that plague society’s civil discourse; this section aims to gain insights from, and be in conversation with, those at the grassroots level. On the evening of Sunday, December 4, 2016, The Global Communiqué sat down with Ms. Carol – a woman who sits daily on one of Oxford’s streets – to discuss politics and politicians,...

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