ICYMI: Good news from around the world
May 7, 2021
Kenya's Martha Koome to become first female chief justice
Martha Koome is set to become Kenya's first female chief justice after being selected by a judicial panel. She will be the first female head of any branch of Kenyan government.
A child of subsistence farmers, she has 33 years of legal experience. Koome represented political detainees, including former prime minister Raila Odinga when he protested against former President Daniel Arap Moi in the 1980s and 1990s.
She co-founded and chaired the Federation of Women Lawyers, which has campaigned for women's rights and offers free legal services for poor women.
Cases of Guinea worm fell by 50% last year
Just 27 human cases of the debilitating worm were reported in 2020, primarily in Ethiopia and Chad. That is a dramatic drop from 3.5 million cases 35 years ago, according to the Carter Center. The organization set up by former US President Jimmy Carter leads international eradication campaigns.
The former president said he hopes he livesto see the disease eradicated. The only other disease that has been fully eradicated was smallpox.
A community-based approach has been praised in its efforts for making the illness less pervasive. Where cases still popped up, community members came together to treat local ponds and provide safe drinking water.
"The end is in sight," said Carter Center's Guinea worm eradication program director Adam Weiss. "But we also have to be mindful that more research, more investment in the communities, is required to overcome some of the last-mile challenges."
Austria develops 'lollipop' COVID tests for children
Austria has come up with a COVID-19 test for children which is far less invasive and frightening than the long nose swab.
A test that looks like a small lollipop has been distributed to some kindergartens in the country. Kids will suck on the end for 90 seconds before the test is placed in a container. It takes 15 minutes to see the results from there.
Alas, the test does not come in any flavor. But it is far more comfortable for kids, especially as kindergartens prepare to re-open in the country.
South Africa to end captive lion breeding, bone trade
South Africa said Sunday that it would end its captive lion breeding industry, in a move that would effectively end the world's legal lion bone trade.
Conservationists said that lions were kept in unhealthy and unethical conditions due to the industry. The new policy prohibits keeping and breeding lions in captivity, and using any parts of captive lions for commercial reasons.
South Africa has anywhere between 8,000 and 12,000 lions in captivity according to various government and wildlife organizations. Some are kept on places with "canned hunting" where lions are kept in captivity but in small enclosures to make it easier for hunters to kill them. The new provision will end that activity as well.
"If your mandate was that you want to shoot a lion in an easy way, with not so much effort, then South Africa was your number one destination," said Neil Greenwood of the International Fund for Animal Welfare.