Kenya built a reputation as a pioneer of financial inclusion through its early adoption of a mobile money system that enables people to transfer cash and make payments on cellphones without a bank account. Now, a proliferation of lenders are using the same technology to extend credit to the banked …
your ad hereThousands of Flags Honor the Fallen at Arlington National Cemetery
Thousands of flags wave proudly this weekend at tombstones in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, just outside Washington. For more than 60 years, the army’s ceremonial unit, known as the Old Guard, has been placing the flags at graves in the huge military cemetery in preparation for Memorial Day. The …
your ad hereThe Origins of the US Flag
To many Americans the Star-Spangled Banner, also known as Old Glory, is almost a religious icon. That hasn’t always been the case. Back in the late 1700s, during the American Revolutionary War, regiments of George Washington’s Continental Army used various flags to declare their independence from Great Britain. VOA’s Nikoleta …
your ad hereMessages to Graduates Touch on Strength, Integrity, Fearlessness, Courage
It is commencement season in America, when high school and university students gather for graduation ceremonies featuring advice from prominent Americans. This year, at a time of heightened political divisions in the country and accusations of “fake news,” many speakers are featuring political themes and talking about integrity. VOA’s Mariama …
your ad hereUsing Gene Therapy to Defeat Cancer, Hereditary Disease
Gene therapy could potentially allow doctors to cure some of the deadliest types of cancer and rare hereditary diseases with one injection. The FDA recently approved the use of three anti-cancer drugs, all based on genetically modified human cells. Scientists say up to 80 percent of all types of cancer …
your ad hereKhodorkovsky: Boycotting Russia World Cup a ‘Big Mistake’
Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former Russian oil tycoon-turned-Kremlin foe who spent a decade in prison and now lives in exile, says fellow Kremlin critics should not boycott the upcoming 2018 FIFA World Cup, slated to kick off June 14 in Russia. Russian aggression abroad, along with domestic human rights violations, has …
your ad hereScientists Find Opioids, Antibiotics in Puget Sound Mussels
Scientists who track pollution have discovered traces of antibiotics and the pain reliever oxycodone in some Puget Sound mussels. KIRO-TV reported this week that the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife obtained clean mussels from Penn Cove on Whidbey Island and put them in different areas to test for water …
your ad hereUS Conservationists Sue Trump Administration Over Migratory Bird Policy
A coalition of conservation groups sued the Trump administration on Thursday, accusing the government of slashing protections for migratory birds. At issue is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which the National Audubon Society and other plaintiffs say has been undermined. In the past, the act helped hold parties responsible for …
your ad here‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Goes Back to Beginning
“Star Wars” fans need wait no longer. Another “Star Wars” installment, this one a spinoff about Han Solo’s formative years as a pilot and a fighter, opens on IMAX movie screens the world over. “Solo: A Star Wars Story” also traces the beginnings of the friendship between Han Solo and …
your ad hereTop 5 Songs for Week Ending May 26
We’re connecting with the five most popular songs in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, for the week ending May 26, 2018. Surprise! We get a Hot Shot Debut in the No. 1 position. Three consecutive champion songs have opened at the top — something that hasn’t happened in …
your ad hereMarkets Disrupted as Italy’s Populists Negotiate Cabinet
Italy’s prime minister-designate, Giuseppe Conte, a political novice and obscure law professor accused of padding his resume, put the finishing touches to his cabinet lineup Friday. And initial reaction from financial markets was far from approving. Italian government bond prices slumped and the country’s ailing banks saw their stock prices …
your ad hereFBI: Foreign Hackers Have Compromised Home Router Devices
The FBI warned on Friday that foreign cybercriminals had compromised “hundreds of thousands” of home and small-office router devices around the world which direct traffic on the internet by forwarding data packets between computer networks. In a public service announcement, the FBI has discovered that the foreign cybercriminals used a …
your ad hereDischarged and Jobless: US Veterans Seek Change in Hiring Rules
Military veterans who were discharged for relatively minor offenses say they often can’t get jobs, and they hope a recent warning to employers by the state of Connecticut will change that. The state’s human rights commission told employers last month they could be breaking the law if they discriminate against …
your ad hereBroadcom’s Tan, CBS’s Moonves Among Highest-Paid CEOs
Here are the highest-paid CEOs for 2017, as calculated by The Associated Press and Equilar, an executive data firm. The AP’s compensation study covered 339 executives at S&P 500 companies who have served at least two full consecutive fiscal years at their respective companies, which filed proxy statements between January …
your ad hereHealth Experts: Ebola Patients Must Be Isolated
The World Health Organization (WHO) says people diagnosed with Ebola must be kept isolated to prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease. The WHO has updated the number of Ebola cases since the outbreak started in the Democratic Republic of Congo on May 8, confirming 31 of 52 probable …
your ad hereAmazon’s Alexa Accidentally Tapes, Shares Family Chat With Contact
A Portland, Oregon, family has learned what happens when Amazon.com Inc’s popular voice assistant Alexa is lost in translation. Amazon on Thursday described an “unlikely … string of events” that made Alexa send an audio recording of the family to one of their contacts randomly. The episode underscored how Alexa …
your ad hereChina Trade Dispute Creates Headaches for US Agriculture Industry
As tensions are easing over a potential trade war while negotiations between the U.S. and China continue, the uncertainty about tariffs and the eventual impact on the U.S. agricultural industry is taking a toll on U.S. farmers heading to the fields to plant this year’s crops. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh …
your ad hereWeinstein Surrenders to NY Police in Sex Assault Probe
Harvey Weinstein turned himself in to police Friday morning to face the first criminal charges to be filed against him after months of sexual abuse allegations from scores of women that destroyed his career and set off a national reckoning known as the #MeToo movement. Weinstein, 66, stepped from a …
your ad hereStrategic Messaging Aims to Combat Ebola in DRC
Two Ebola patients who fled a hospital quarantine area in the Democratic Republic of the Congo later attended a prayer meeting, potentially exposing at least 50 participants to the dangerous virus. The incident demonstrates the risks of limited public awareness of Ebola and how the virus spreads. So governments and …
your ad hereArtist Makes Art From Discarded Cosmetics
A British university student has created a range of watercolor paints made from discarded cosmetics. An example, she says, of how the so-called ‘circular economy’ can help improve the environment. It could also be a way for cosmetics companies and retailers to reduce waste and make more money. VOA’s Julie …
your ad hereChina Snaps up US Oil, Straining Capacity to Export It
The U.S. oil export infrastructure is straining to keep up as the country’s crude oil exports hit new highs and China snaps up more of it than ever before. U.S. crude production has surged to a record 10.7 million barrels a day, driven largely by growth from the Permian shale …
your ad hereHawaii Volcano Sends 3 Flows of Lava Into Ocean
Lava entered the ocean from a third flow Thursday, marking the third week of a Hawaii volcano eruption that has opened up nearly two dozen vents in rural communities, destroyed dozens of buildings and shot miles-high plumes of ash into the sky. Low lava fountains were erupting from a nearly …
your ad hereBrazil: Deal Reached to Suspend Crippling Trucker Strike
Brazil’s government said late Thursday that a deal had been reached with truckers to suspend a 4-day-old strike that caused fuel shortages, cut into food deliveries, backed up exports and threatened airline flights. Eliseu Padilha, chief of staff for President Michel Temer, told reporters in Brasilia that several unions that …
your ad hereDying Ebola Patients Flee to Congo Prayer Meeting
Two dying Ebola patients were spirited out of a Congo hospital by their relatives on motorcycles, then taken to a prayer meeting with 50 other people, potentially exposing them all to the deadly virus, a senior aid worker said Thursday. Both patients were vomiting and infectious and died hours after …
your ad hereJury: Samsung Owes Apple $539M for Copying iPhone
A jury has decided Samsung must pay Apple $539 million in damages for illegally copying some of the iPhone’s features to lure people into buying its competing products. The verdict reached Thursday is the latest twist in a legal battle that began in 2011. Apple contends Samsung wouldn’t have emerged …
your ad here