Niger’s Issoufou Alfaga Abdoulrazak won his country’s second Olympic medal on Saturday as he clinched silver in the men’s over-80 kilogram taekwondo competition, boosting the number of medals won by African fighters at Rio to five in a sport typically dominated by Asian countries.

Read more: http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN10W03S

“I want to win for Africa,” said Abdoulrazak, whose medal is only the second for Niger after a 1972 boxing bronze.

See more info about Abdoulrazak here.

Académie Bilingue Cornerstone is looking to raise money to expand its schools in Niger, particularly in villages where there are no schools.

From the founder, Amina P. Alio, PhD:

It is said that a good education is the foundation for a positive future for all children.  Unfortunately, for many children in Niger this is not a reality.  Niger was designated the poorest country in 2015, with over 90% of the population lives below the poverty line.  Many families cannot afford school fees and supplies for their children.  The number of schools is insufficient and existing classrooms are overcrowded.  As a result, only 25% to 35% of the population in Niger can read and write, with women and girls having the lowest literacy rates.

Our mission is to move Niger forward – one school, one child at a time – through the establishment of schools that offer quality education, the powerful key that will unlock the doors to the future.

Friends of Niger does not endorse any particular religion, but we do strongly support education at all levels, and we encourage you to read up about ABC Schools and other organizations, and consider helping them help improve education in Niger.

Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger), World Humanitarian Summit (Istanbul, 2016), Member States and Stakeholders Announcements

http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/watch/mahamadou-issoufou-niger-world-humanitarian-summit-istanbul-2016-member-states-and-stakeholders-announcements/4907482981001

From March 11 – 18, 2016 the American Film Institute will be hosting the 12th annual New African Film Festival This year,  twenty films from fifteen different countries will be shown, including a very special screening from Niger.

Descriptions of these films can be found on the AFI website, but all are meant to celebrate the unique cultures of Africa. Featured this year is the Nigerien RAIN THE COLOR BLUE WITH A LITTLE RED IN IT, a musical drama that tackles the ambitious goal of borrowing the stylistic musings of Prince’s 1984 classic PURPLE RAIN. Featuring stunning musical performances from Mdou, the film tells the universal story of a rock star trying to overcome jealous competitors, family conflicts, the trials of love, and even his own hubris. This one-night event plays on Friday, March 18, at 7:15 PM.

Trailer for RAIN THE COLOR BLUE WITH A LITTLE RED IN IT / AKOUNAK TEDALAT TAHA TAZOUGHAI

The screening will take place at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in downtown Silver Spring, starting on Friday, March 11 at 5:00 with the Ethiopian film LAMB. Tickets will be $13 for adults (with special rates for seniors and children), and can be purchased either online here, or in-person at the AFI Silver box office.

Where: American Film Institute (AFI) Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland

When: March 11 – 18, 2016

Link: New African Film Festival

Friday, February 19 at 6:30 PM at the NYC Seminar and Conference Center, 71 West 23rd Street (6^th Ave & 23^rd Street)

Economic Prosperity, Human Rights, and the Role of Free and Fair Elections – Case Studies Haiti and Niger

A country’s economic development depends on its institutions: its system of government, property rights, land tenure, civil service, and justice. The Inter-Parliamentary Union notes that “In any State the authority of the government can only derive from the will of the people as expressed in genuine, free and fair elections held at regular intervals on the basis of universal, equal and secret suffrage”. What are causes, consequences, and lessons of a breakdown in the electoral system?

Elections are scheduled in Haiti and Niger in the very near future but the campaigns are far from free and fair. In this seminar Dr. Gladys Melo-Pinzon reviews the situation in Niger, and Kim Ives considers the case of Haiti.

Dr. Gladys Melo-Pinzon is the Senegal / Niger Country Specialist of Amnesty USA (AIUSA), the Amnesty International’s Section in the US and part of the global movement of people fighting injustice and promoting human rights.

Kim Ives is a journalist, broadcaster, documentary filmmaker, and an editor with Haiti Liberte.

The Friends of Niger board would like to send out the following message from Glen Blumhorst, the president of our National Peace Corps Association,

http://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/2015/12/when-our-peace-corps-values-matter-most/

He talks about being deeply disturbed by the recent chorus of negative and aggressive speech targeting Muslims and refugees in our countries. He urges us to reach out, in large ways and small, to Muslims, refugees and other minorities in our communities.

Now is the time for us to rededicate ourselves to this third goal of the Peace Corps, to commit ourselves to education and constructive dialogue – to the open hand of America, rather than the closed fist.

A great reminder for the new year. Thank you and best wishes for 2016!

A small company led by Jehiel Oliver in Anacostia, D. C., is bringing small, versatile “Smart Tractors” to Nigera and Niger

He devised a business in which farmers send a text to Hello Tractor’s U.S.-based dispatchers, who locate the nearest GPS-embedded Smart Tractor and ping the service provider. The tractors typically arrive within three days.

Read about how this new tractor and business model are bringing increased efficiency to the farmlands.

Sowing self-sufficiency in Africa with Anacostia-based ‘Hello Tractor’

Hello Tractor Website