For 30 Years Every Chinese Foreign Minister Visits Africa First.

The Biden administration has noticeably increased its focus on Africa. In December, it hosted a US-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, DC. In January, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, visited Senegal, Zambia, and South Africa. Earlier this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Ethiopia and Niger. Now, Vice President Harris is in the midst of a trip to Ghana, Zambia, and Tanzania. All of this is welcome news.

The fact that China’s new foreign minister, Qin Gang, took his first overseas trip as foreign minister to Africa in January (visiting Ethiopia, Gabon, Angola, Benin, and Egypt) isn’t really news...only because over the last thirty years, every Chinese foreign minister has begun his year with a trip to the continent. During that time, China’s commitment to the rapidly growing and resource-rich continent has been punctuated by countless transactions and investments—most notably in infrastructure and extractive projects.

Dictator Daniel Ortega Makes Public Easter Processions Illegal in Nicaragua.

Nearly half of all Nicaraguans are Catholic, and according to the LatinoBarometer, the Catholic Church itself is the single most trusted institution in the country.

Over the years, members of the Church—including priests and bishops—have spoken out on behalf of the poor in Nicaragua. In fact, when Ortega first gained power in the 1980s, a number of priests broke with official Vatican policy and supported his rise. But in recent years, as the Ortega regime has amassed and consolidated more and more power, and used it to squelch political dissent and crack down on human rights and civil liberties, the Church has increasingly spoken out against Ortega’s repressive policies.

Africa’s Median Age Is about 19. The Median Age of Its Leaders Is about 63.

Africa has the world’s youngest population. According to the CIA World Factbook, the top 10 countries with the lowest median age are in Africa. Niger’s median age is 14.8, and in Uganda, the second youngest, it’s 15.7. Excluding island nations like the Seychelles and North African nations like Tunisia and Algeria, no African country save South Africa falls outside the world’s 150 youngest populations.

However, the average age of African leaders stands in stark contrast to that of the citizens they represent. The three main candidates in Nigeria’s recent presidential elections were 76, 70, and 61 years old. The declared winner is more than 50 years older than his average constituent.

Approximately 70 Percent of All Maternal Deaths Occur in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target for maternal health is to lower the number of global maternal deaths to less than 70 per 100,000 per live births by 2030. Recent trends suggest there’s a long way to go if the world is going to come anywhere near meeting that goal.

In 2016, according to UN data, there were 309,000 reported maternal deaths worldwide. But by 2020, there was only a slight improvement—down to an estimated 287,000.