Chukwuma Soludo: Learning the wrong lessons of development

by Chukwuma Charles Soludo An important lesson of development is that countries which made it had bold, innovative thinkers as policymakers — those I describe as entrepreneurial policymakers with high execution capacity. One of the asymmetries of globalisation is that whereas productive assets (highly skilled labour and capital) are mobile across boundaries, it is still... Read More

.US, africa, Charles Soludo, China, development, Indonesia, japan, malaysia, nigeria, Oil, singapore, south korea, WTO

June 10, 2013

Sam Nda-Isaiah: Jonathan should start working and stop clapping for himself

by Sam Nda-Isaiah Nigerians cannot clap for the president because, as the late Chief MKO Abiola would have put it, “you cannot clap with one hand.” Many Nigerians have lost their limbs or their shirts or both under President Jonathan. President Jonathan’s mid-term report in which he scored himself A+ is still causing outrage across the... Read More

Audu Ogbeh, boko haram, China, development, Goodluck Jonathan, mko Abiola, nigeria, PDP, Sam Nda-Isaiah, singapore, togo, transportation, united states

June 7, 2013

Wow, what was he thinking? French president, Hollande mistakenly calls Japan ‘China’

French President Francois Hollande has made an embarrassing slip of the tongue, speaking in French at a news conference in Tokyo. Referring to the Algerian hostage crisis in January, in which 10 Japanese people were killed, he said he had expressed “the condolences of the French people to the Chinese people”. He did not correct... Read More

China, French President Francois Hollande, japan

June 5, 2013

No mercy: Female thief caught by shop owner gets humiliated with a hair shave (PHOTOS, WATCH)

When Chinese shopkeeper Lu Sun saw a shoplifter shoving clothes into her bag she decided she’d teach her a lesson. In an unusual example of vigilante justice, the retailer, whose store had been hit by a spate of thefts over the previous two weeks, pinned shoplifter Li Wu to the ground, took a pair of... Read More

China, hair, Li Wu, Lu Sun, scissors, shoplifter, Wenzhou

May 31, 2013

“I only charge pregnancy fees”: Woman sells 4 of her newborn children to support her family

A blind Chinese woman has admitted to selling four of her new-born children to support her family because her husband can’t hold down a steady job. Between 2005 and 2012 Du Xiurong, from Shibei Village in Mianyang, south-west China’s Sichuan Province, sold four of her new newborn babies – three girls and one boy. In... Read More

Blind, China, pregnancy, unemployment, woman

May 28, 2013

Teenager jumps from third-floor window after discovering her boyfriend is married (PHOTOS)

A Chinese teenager who jumped from a third-floor window in a suicide bid after learning that her boyfriend is married was saved by a giant pillow. The 19-year-old Chinese woman threatened to launch herself from the building after discovering her partner had a wife and a ten year old child. She clambered out onto a... Read More

China, chinese, Province, teenager, Zhejiang

May 28, 2013

DISTURBING: Baby rescued from toilet pipe after being flushed away by parents (PHOTOS)

Firefighters in eastern China have rescued an abandoned newborn baby boy lodged in a sewage pipe directly beneath a toilet commode, state television reported, in a case which has sparked anger on social media sites. There are frequent reports in Chinese media of babies being abandoned, often shortly after birth, a problem attributed variously to... Read More

abandoned newborn baby, China, Firefighters, parents, sewage pipe, Zhejiang

May 12, 2013

Think your boss is bad? Company forces employees to crawl on their knees in public (WATCH)

You thought your boss was bad? He’s probably a nice guy compared to the boss of this cosmetics company in Chongqing, China, who recently forced his employees to crawl on their hands and feet in the city’s busy commercial district, in front of hundreds of onlookers. The controversial event took place on May 2nd, and... Read More

China, cosmetics company in Chongqing, mean boss, odd news

April 30, 2013

Idiare Atimomo: Apple’s next growth curve may be in Africa

by Idiare Atimomo Apple Co. has identified opportunities for investment growth in China and is acting on this, but I remain puzzled as to why… a similar focus on the African market is not forthcoming. The business news circuit has been buzzing with Apple Co’s very unique position: decent revenue growth in the last 2... Read More

africa, Apple, Blackberry, China, Idiare Atimomo, marketing, nigeria, Palo Alto, Samsung, smartphone

April 30, 2013

Opinion: Why Chinese couples are divorcing before buying a home

by Chengcheng Jiang As an emerging middle class accumulates wealth, more and more young families are finding that they have limited options to make good use of their money. Long queues of happy couples waiting to get married might be a common sight in Las Vegas. But lines of happily married couples waiting to get divorced? Only... Read More

Chengcheng Jiang, China, divorce, homes, Marriage, one child policy

April 29, 2013

Cheta Nwanze: The revolution we need (Y! FrontPage)

When the population is deeply divided along ethnic or religious lines, the revolution quickly degenerates into anarchy. Revolution? I think not. I have been hearing increasing murmurs by young people saying that a “revolution” is the only way to change Nigeria. The most common definition of a revolution is “an overthrow (usually violent), and thorough... Read More

benue, Cheta Nwanze, China, Cuba, France, nigeria, Russia, tiv, Y! Frontpage

April 4, 2013

He got them: Chinese news media reports Richard Branson’s April Fools’ joke as fact

CCTV had reported that Branson’s Virgin Atlantic airline would start flying the first-ever glass-bottomed planes between London and Scotland Photo: www.virgin.com China’s huge state broadcaster, CCTV, ran it as odd – but real – news. The broadcaster reported it a day later on the nightly news programme “World Express,” where Chinese internet users quickly spotted the gaffe... Read More

April Fool, China, Joke, virgin

March 29, 2013

15-year-old brain damaged by tick bite during school trip to China awarded $41.7 million

CHRIS RYAN/GETTY IMAGES A federal jury in Bridgeport ruled in favor of Cara Munn, who is now 20. A Conneticut student left brain damaged and unable to speak after being bitten by a tick on a class trip to China was awarded $41.7 million in compensation. Cara Munn was 15 when, in the summer of... Read More

brain, China, Conn., damaged, tick

March 24, 2013

Sexy! David Beckham lifts shirt up to reveal tattoo… Guess what it means? (PHOTOS)

David Beckham suffered an embarrassing slip-upon Saturday so what better way to distract attention away from his blunder than by showing off his toned torso. The 37-year-old footballer flashed his abdominal muscles to reveal a tattoo while talking to students at Peking University on Sunday. David lifted up his shirt to show off the design,... Read More

China, david beckham, football, Peking University, shirt, Tattoo

March 23, 2013

Great fall of China: David Beckham slips and lands on his ‘beck-side’ (LOOK)

He is so famous for taking the perfect free kick that he has had a film and a musical made about his talent. However, David Beckham was left feeling rather embarrassed as he slipped over and landed on his Beck-side while demonstrating his sublime technique. The 37-year-old dropped to the ground in front of a... Read More

China, david beckham, free kick

March 15, 2013

Xi Jinping is the new President of China

by Rachel Ogbu Xi Jinping is set to be leader of China for 10 years, his new position as President ends the leadership transition since November last year when he was appointed General Secretary of China’s Communist Party. At the National People’s Congress meeting in Beijing, Xi Jinping, 59 was declared the new leader of... Read More

China, President of China, Xi Jinping

March 7, 2013

Horrible: Man steals car with baby, strangles it to death and buries it in snow (PICTURED)

by Rachel Ogbu A woman allegedly had a heart attack after she was told her baby was strangled to death by the thief who stole her car. Zhou Xijun, 48, stole the car in the north-eastern Jilin province of Chinese after the baby’s parents had left the child alone for 10 minutes with the car doors... Read More

car thief, China, crime, stangles baby, Zhou Xijun

March 1, 2013

Terrible: Couple fling themselves off bridge in China in suicide pact (PHOTOS)

This is the moment a newspaper photographer trying to take a snap of heavy fog that had blanketed a bridge captured a couple’s suicide leap. The photographer had been standing on a viewing platform ready to take a snap of the fog shrouded bridge across the Wuhan Yangtze River in Wuhan, at Hubei province in... Read More

China, suicide, Wuhan, Wuhan Yangtze River

February 27, 2013

Unbridled rage: Chinese official trashes airport after missing flight ‘because he stopped to get breakfast’ (WATCH)

Hilarious video emerged today of a Chinese Communist official trashing an airport boarding gate in a rage after missing his flight. Yan Linkun and his wife were caught on CCTV trying to board at Changshui International Airport when they are reportedly told the plane had already left. Mr Yan initially reacts by pushing violently at... Read More

Airline, Basil Fawlty, China, departure, official

January 30, 2013

Finally, some consideration: New designated wider parking spaces reserved for women (WATCH)

(Scroll down for video) Finally women are getting their own wider and easier to park parking spaces in Germany and China. Are women worse drivers than men? It depends on who you ask. The mayor of a small German town and a few parking garages in China believe that women are worse drivers than men.... Read More

China, parking, spaces, wider, woman

January 27, 2013

Stow away kitty: Cat from China found in California after sneaking aboard a ship (PHOTO)

Ni Hao was adopted Thursday by Kathleen Shaver and Harvey Hettick of Redondo Beach. The couple have two other cats. “We’re happy to give him a home after his ordeal, and we hope that his story brings light to all the animals in shelters that need homes,” Shaver said. “He’s earned some vacation.” Ni Hao,... Read More

cat, China, Harvey Hettick, Kathleen Shaver, Ni Hao

January 22, 2013

Nigerians spend top dollars in London, shopping till they drop (WATCH)

by Isi Esene Disregard the widely held notion of widespread suffering and poverty in Africa, retailers in the United Kingdom are experiencing a new side of Africans, albeit Nigerians, like never before. Just trailing behind big spenders, China, and a few other countries in the middle east, Nigeria has emerged as one of the top... Read More

China, cnn, London, nigeria, Omoyemi Akerele, retailers, Selfridges, Style House Files, uk

January 15, 2013

Phones-for-farmers: “I will not be distracted” – Agric minister vows to pursue policy

by Isi Esene The minister of Agriculture, Akinwunmi Adesina, has insisted that there is no going back on the proposed purchase of cellphones for farmers in a bid to enhance their performance. Adesina said this yesterday while addressing newsmen in Abuja following widespread criticism of the said policy. He explained that the ministry does not... Read More

agriculture, Akinwunmi Adesina, Cellphones, China, famine, Fertilizer, FG, flood, GES, nigeria

January 12, 2013

Bad news for China: Country’s one-child policy has created a generation of “risk averse” children less likely to be enterpreneurs

SYDNEY: China’s one-child policy has created a generation which is less trusting, more risk-averse and perhaps less likely to become entrepreneurs, according to new Australian research. Published in the journal Science, the study of more than 400 Beijing residents who were born around the time the controversial population policy was first introduced could have implications... Read More

averse, children, China, risk

January 6, 2013

Opinion: The N60bn questions Reno Omokri and his principals must answer

by Kikiowo Ileowo The idea of importing phones from other countries is nothing short of exporting thousands of jobs and income to those economies, whereas, we could create those jobs here to add to our national GDP growth. In his controversial style of using social media, Reno Omokri- the Special Assistant to the President on... Read More

agriculture, Akinwumi Adesina, China, Excess Crude Account, Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri

December 23, 2012

For real! Fishermen catch a Porsche in China – See Photos

The ocean is full of surprises, and some Chinese fishermen got a huge one when they found a Porsche in their nets. The Cayenne SUV – which sells from around $110,000 here – was landed while the crew was recently fishing off the Coast of Beihai. The Cayenne was covered in seaweed and barnacles, with its... Read More

Beihai, China, Fishermen, Porsche

December 18, 2012

Drama as Chinese woman jumps into river to protest govt’s sale of family home – See Photos

A desperate woman threw herself 50ft into a river after claiming government planners stole her home. She kept rescuers at bay in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China, for two hours as she clung on to the side of the bridge before letting go of the railings and plunging into the Zhujiang river. The woman, named as... Read More

China, Lia Sun, Zhujiang river

December 11, 2012

China to invest N146bn in Nigeria’s power sector

China is to invest N146.466 billion ($927 million) in Nigeria’s power sector, in a move designed to boost the nation’s power situation. China will through its Export-Import Bank provide 75 per cent of required funds to build a 700 mega watt hydro power station on the Northern Zungeru River, while Nigeria will provide the remaining... Read More

Bauchi, China, China National Electrical Equipment Corporation, kano, Power, Power sector, Sinohydro Corporation, Zainab Kuchi

December 4, 2012

No fooling around: China holds first ever masturbation ‘Wankathon’ in honour of World Aids Day

by Rachel Ogbu To mark World Aids Day, organizers of China’s first World AIDS Day Masturbation Contest celebrated HIV risk-free sexual freedom with three hours of wanking. 10 male participants wearing masks hid their genitals in orange buckets to compete and later revealed the contents for measurement. Thankfully, there was no full-frontal nudity but to... Read More

'Wankathon', China, masturbation, safe sex, sexual freedom, world aids day

November 29, 2012

Unthinkable? Here are 4 ways the Internet could crash on all of us

The Internet goes down? It could happen. Think it’s bad when Twitter and Instagram go down? Neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author David Eagleman says there is something that’s probably worse. Like the internet going down. Everywhere. Eagleman says there are four possible scenarios that could actually cause such a disaster. 1. Space weather... Read More

China, David Eagleman, facebook, Internet, twitter., Web