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Cameroonian society remains divided between science and traditions on the practice of sexual intercourse during the breastfeeding period of the young child. If scientists keep saying that healthy intercourse is safe for breast milk, so for the child.

Finding no direct physiological link between the breasts and the vagina, they concluded that no child might fall ill or die because he suckled his mother’s milk while she regularly had intimate relations with her partner. Of course, we are talking regarding healthy relationships, where neither partner suffers from a viral disease such as hepatitis B and C and HIV-AIDS that can affect the mother’s milk and therefore the child.

>>> READ ALSO: Cameroon: 40,000 preventable child deaths each year through exclusive breastfeeding

This assertion is completely rejected by older people, who claim to have received these teachings from their parents in order to protect their families. For the majority of the defenders of this thesis, a child whom one “crosses” (breastfeeding when one has a dynamic and regular sex life) necessarily falls ill and must undergo traditional intensive care to be saved.

According to some, the situation would be more complex depending on whether it is a male or female child. The girls would, indeed, be a little more resistant. “I am from the Beti tribe and in our culture it is strictly forbidden for women to have sex while breastfeeding. Our parents taught us that sperm spoils the woman’s milk and puts the baby in danger,” said a lady we met near the Jamot hospital in Yaoundé.

>>> READ ALSO: Cameroon: for healthy children, return to the mother’s breast

Another abounds goes further: “I cannot count the number of children who died before my eyes because their mothers crossed them. With us Bassa, we do not joke with this story. It’s real.”

These declarations come to contradict the position of the specialists of modern medicine whose expertise nevertheless rests on knowledge acquired at school and through experience.

But in the end, it is the health of the child that counts. Nothing more.

As one of the most dynamic African economies, Ghana still arouses serious fears among foreign investors regarding the repayment of its debt. Their fears are all the more legitimate as the international rating agencies are unanimous on the risks of default of payment by the West African country.

After Moody’s (CAA1/High risk rating) last February and Standard & Poor’s (rating downgraded to CCC+/High risk) at the beginning of August, it is around Fitch Ratings to alert, on August 10, on the risk of payment default from Ghana. The US rating agency downgraded the country’s credit rating from “B-” to “CCC”, placing the country in the highly speculative category.

>>> READ ALSO: Four Africans among the 17 countries at high risk of default, according to Fitch Ratings

Clearly, Ghana is virtually unable to repay its debt service. Fitch justifies this downgrading of the country’s rating by “the deterioration of public finances, the significant drop in external liquidity and international reserves estimated at 7.6 billion dollars in June 2022, now covering only 2 months of imports of goods and services”.

Consequently, Accra will find it difficult to get out on the international debt market to borrow resources it needs to meet its financing needs. And in case it gets financing, it will be at very high interest rates. This means that the risk of non-payment is real. Moreover, last July, Fitch Ratings had already placed Ghana on its list of 17 countries in default of payment or at risk of being so. Three other African countries were included: Ethiopia, Tunisia and Zambia.

>>> READ ALSO: Debt. Default: Kenya on the list of five high-risk African countries

To get out of this situation, the Ghanaian leaders, who had for some time announced the end of requests from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), ended up asking once more for the support of the Breton Woods institution for the implementation of a plan safety. A loan agreement has recently been signed and funds might be released before the end of the year, in the event that the two parties agree on the reforms to be undertaken, which will provide a breath of fresh air to the economy. Ghanaian. This rescue plan should lead to a disbursement of 3 billion dollars.

The new IMF loan would make it possible to increase the country’s foreign exchange reserves, to meet debt service, which should reach 2.75 billion dollars for 2022 and 2.8 billion dollars in 2023, by allowing the countries to be able to exit on the international debt market. According to Fitch, as a result of this agreement, Ghana will be able to meet its debt obligations thanks to the IMF loan, a loan from the African Export-Import Bank, a syndicated loan from international commercial banks …

>>> READ ALSO: After the rating agencies, Morgan Stanley also argues that Tunisia is heading towards default

However, in the event that a definitive agreement with the IMF is not recorded, Ghana will be forced to dip into its already weak foreign exchange reserves to repay its debt service with enormous risks of payment for its imports of goods and services. .

Ghana is hard hit by the crisis with inflation currently around 28%, despite the interventions of the country’s central bank, which has raised its key rate several times to curb soaring prices. Ghana’s public debt currently stands at 84% of GDP, well above the 70% threshold set by ECOWAS.

His visit to Kigali comes a day following his talks in DR Congo which largely focused on Rwandan support for a rebel group operating in eastern DRC, largely documented by a UN report released in early August.

Arrived Wednesday evening in Kigali, the American diplomat should also discuss the human rights situation in Rwanda, regularly denounced by civil society and international NGOs.

«The failure to react to the appalling human rights record in Rwanda has only encouraged the country’s officials on the path of abuse, even beyond its borders.»said Lewis Mudge, director for Central Africa of the NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW), in a press release published on Monday.

The human rights NGO called on Antony Blinken to «to make it clear (in Kigali) that there would be consequences for government repression and abuses in Rwanda and beyond».

>>> READ ALSO: Africa: following the tour of the head of Russian diplomacy, Blinken and American diplomacy get under way

Rwandan opposition leader Victoire Ingabire echoed HRW in telling AFP that Bliken should «raise the issue of imprisoned journalists and politicians» for opposing the government of Paul Kagame.

«Blinken must ask our government to open political space for all those who want to actively participate in political life»underlined Victoire Ingabire who herself spent six years in prison for “terrorism”.

The US Secretary of State should also raise the case of Paul Rusesabagina, the hero of “Hotel Rwanda” who has been serving a 25-year prison sentence since last year and has permanent resident status in the United States.

This African tour by Antony Blinken comes a few days following a parallel tour by his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, who passed through Congo, Uganda, Egypt and Ethiopia.

In his speech, the Malian Minister of Defense Sadio Camara, one of the strong men of the regime, praised the «win-win partnership with the Russian Federation» during an official ceremony in the presence of Russian diplomats and Assimi Goïta, president of the transition.

The colonels, who took power by force in August 2020 in this country in the midst of security turmoil, have decided to separate from the old French ally engaged militarily once morest the jihadists since 2013 and to vigorously relaunch cooperation with Russia.

Russia had already delivered several combat helicopters and weapons in March. Mali has welcomed in large numbers what the junta presents as Russian instructors.

>>> READ ALSO: Mali: Bamako received new combat helicopters and Russian radars

France and its partners denounce for their part the use of the junta to the services of the private Russian security company Wagner, the decried actions. The junta denies and speaks of a former partnership with the Russian army.

Russia had admitted in May a presence of Wagner in Mali «on a commercial basis».

«I must say that today’s ceremony is historic, as much by the nature, the quality as by the volume of what you are giving us, of which we will only present a part here, the rest being of course engaged in operation at the time of this ceremony»a dit Camara.

>>> READ ALSO: How Russia Emerged As Africa’s Main Arms Supplier

«We are consolidating our reconnaissance and attack capability with L39 and Sukhoi 25 fighter planes, which are added to the Super Tucano and other aircraft already in use. As well as the MI24P type attack helicopters, which are added to the MI 35 and the MI24 already delivered»he added.

No information has been made public regarding the conditions for acquiring the equipment.

Mali has been in turmoil since 2012.