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Next Tuesday Kenyans head to the polls. The election shouldn’t be seen solely as a ruthless contest between leaders in pursuit of power. In fact, ordinary citizens also have skin in the game, argue Justin Willis, Nic Cheeseman and Gabrielle Lynch. The election outcome will have implications beyond Kenya’s borders, particularly for its most fragile neighbour Somalia, writes
Stephanie Carver while Sarah Logan explains why, as both Kenya and
Rwanda both head to the polls, it’s important to remember how important elections are to strengthening democracy across the continent.
Up to 70 million people around the world are affected by a range of eye diseases, known as secondary glaucoma, that can lead to loss of vision and even blindness. The diseases are caused by exfoliation syndrome which has baffled scientists for decades. A new genetics study highlights how the value of studying the genetic differences between different populations could help unpack the problem, write Susan Williams and Michèle Ramsay.
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Despite their scepticism, Kenyan voters come out in large numbers to cast their ballots.
EPA/Dai Kurokawa
Justin Willis, Durham University; Gabrielle Lynch, University of Warwick; Nic Cheeseman, University of Birmingham
Kenya's history of electoral problems is interwoven with a political drama which pits one dynasty against another in a rivalry that goes back more than 50 years.
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Politics + Society
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Stephanie Carver, Monash University
It's unclear exactly when Kenya's next president will begin the process of withdrawing troops from Somalia. If it's too rushed, the move might destabilise the region.
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Sarah Logan, International Growth Centre
With frequent irregularities, it's easy to become cynical about elections in Africa. But polls are an essential component of the continent's growing democracy.
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Steven Friedman, University of Johannesburg
What South Africa's opposition parties want Parliament and the courts to do would damage the country's democracy.
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Health + Medicine
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Susan Williams, University of the Witwatersrand; Michèle Ramsay, University of the Witwatersrand
There is value in including different populations in genetic research studies as has been shown in a study on exfoliation syndrome, which leads to glaucoma.
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From our international editions
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Joyce Harper, UCL; Helen O'Neill, UCL
Two researchers are impressed with a pioneering study showing that it may be both safe and effective to edit out diseases in human embryos.
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Jessica Berg, Case Western Reserve University
The news may have come as a surprise, but it probably shouldn't have. A bioethics expert walks through how big a deal this announcement is – and what we should be considering now.
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Ken Chitwood, University of Florida
There have been several attacks on Shia mosques in several parts of the world. At its heart is the centuries'-old sectarian Shia-Sunni divide.
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