Monthly Archives: March 2023


Cholera Kills 8 in Cyclone-Hit Mozambique, Sickens Hundreds

Mozambique’s health minister said Friday a cholera outbreak in the area hit by Cyclone Freddy killed eight people this week and hospitalized 250 – part of 600 sickened since the record storm made landfall in February. Health Minister Armindo Tiago …


New Zealand to Ban TikTok on Devices Linked to Parliament

New Zealand said on Friday it would ban TikTok on devices with access to the country’s parliamentary network due to cybersecurity concerns, becoming the latest nation to limit the use of the video-sharing app on government-related devices. Concerns have mounted …


Nations Crack Down on TikTok

The Biden administration has demanded that TikTok’s Chinese owners divest their stakes in the popular video app or face a possible U.S. ban, the company told Reuters this week. The move follows the introduction of a new U.S. legislation that …


What Really Helped Michelle Yeoh Win an Oscar

As tough as action film star Michelle Yeoh is, it still might have been hard for her to clinch the best actress Oscar and become the first Asian woman to win the coveted award in its 95-year history—if everything hadn’t …


Water Experts Look to Change Attitudes, Policies

Lack of access to clean drinking water is being exacerbated by climate change. In fact, less than 1% of the world’s water is fresh and accessible, according to Melissa Ho, senior vice president of freshwater and food at the World …


White House Voices Support for Bipartisan Push to Ban TikTok

Time may be running out in the U.S. for Chinese-owned entertainment platform TikTok, with the White House on Thursday supporting proposed legislation that would effectively ban the app over concerns about the safety of the data of the 100 million …


US Military Moves to Cut Suicides, But Defers Action on Guns

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a number of improvements in access to mental health care on Thursday to reduce suicides in the military but held off on endorsing more controversial recommendations to restrict gun and ammunition purchases by young …


TikTok CEO to Testify Before US Congress

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to testify before the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce on March 23. Lawmakers have questions about the app’s connections to China. For VOA, Deana Mitchell reports. …


Reporter’s Notebook: FYI on Initialisms, AKA Acronyms 

Returning to the United States seven years ago, I was puzzled how the Bureau of Land Management had seemingly become involved with race politics. Then I deciphered that the hashtag #BLM had taken on a new meaning during my quarter …


Muay Thai World Champion Trains Children in Cameroon

Dany Bill is a Cameroon native and seven-time Muay Thai world champion. He was recently in Los Angeles, raising money for his foundation in Africa, which trains young people in the sport. Genia Dulot caught up with him there. …


TikTok Confirms US Urged Parting Ways With ByteDance to Dodge Ban

TikTok confirmed Wednesday that U.S. officials have recommended the popular video-sharing app part ways with its Chinese parent ByteDance to avoid a national ban. Western powers, including the European Union and the United States, have been taking an increasingly tough …


Future NASA Moonwalkers to Sport Sleeker Spacesuits

Moonwalking astronauts will have sleeker, more flexible spacesuits that come in different sizes when they step onto the lunar surface later this decade.  Exactly what that looks like remained under wraps. The company designing the next-generation spacesuits, Axiom Space, said …


Scientists Create Mice With Cells From 2 Males for First Time

For the first time, scientists have created baby mice from two males.  This raises the distant possibility of using the same technique for people — although experts caution that very few mouse embryos developed into live mouse pups, and no …


UN Labor Agency: Key COVID-19 Workers Undervalued, Underpaid, Abused

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses, truck drivers, grocery clerks and other essential workers were hailed as heroes. “Now we are vilifying them … and this has long-term ramifications for our well-being,” said Manuela Tomei, International Labor …


Ghanaian Teacher Innovates to Fight ‘Period Poverty’

Every month, young girls in Ghana are forced to miss school days due to menstruation. But a schoolteacher is working to find a solution by providing reusable sanitary pads. Hamza Adams visited a school in Afari, Ghana, and has this …


NASA Webb Telescope Captures Star on Cusp of Death

The Webb Space Telescope has captured the rare and fleeting phase of a star on the cusp of death. NASA released the picture Tuesday at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas. The observation was among the first made …


China’s Digital Silk Road, Advancing Technology’s Reach

From 5G infrastructure to mobile phones and more, Chinese technologies are used in many parts of the world. It’s part of China’s Digital Silk Road initiative, which is getting mixed reviews: welcomed by some countries, while others are assessing the …