@__TomCollins

Award-winning journalist covering West Africa @Telegraph, @thetimes, @guardian, @AfricanBizMag, @AJEnglish and others | Dakar via Nairobi, London, Paris |

 Dakar, Senegal
Joined October 2016
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109Media
NEW: As Ivory Coast cracks down on child labor at the local level in the cocoa industry, the country grapples with drawing the line between abuse and family chores, reports @__TomCollins. newlinesmag.com/reportage/iv…

Ivory Coast’s Crackdown on Child Labor Clashes With the Realities of Cocoa Farming

The country must deal with poverty and tradition on family-run smallholdings as it seeks to end exploitation

newlinesmag.com
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Benin's cotton industry contributes around 40% to its GDP and 80% of exports. With a new industrial park, the country aims to generate approximately $11.6bn in revenues, by transforming locally grown cotton into world-class clothing. @__TomCollins reports african.business/2023/04/res…
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Private debt is surging in Africa as an alternative form of finance. My latest for @AfricanBizMag african.business/2023/03/fin…
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Latest reporting on Burkina for @TelegraphWorld telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2…

‘I would be happy if the Russians came’ – Burkina Faso eyes Kremlin aid

Despite French assistance, Burkina Faso is struggling to contain Islamist insurgency linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group

telegraph.co.uk
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Senegal is on track for "big growth in 2023 and 2024" due to the development of the two oil and gas projects, says @Markbohlund senior credit analyst at REDDIntelligence. Reporting by @__TomCollins. african.business/2023/02/tra…
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My reporting on Sierra Leone's psychiatric hospital where until 2018 patients were chained to the walls. It has undergone a dramatic refurbishment with help from US charity @PIH, but still the only mental health facility for a population of 8.1m people. theguardian.com/global-devel…

‘Patients were chained to walls and beds’: Freetown’s psychiatric hospital released from the past

The Sierra Leone capital’s colonial-era asylum has modernised, offering psychotherapy, yoga and basketball as well as drugs – and has thrown away its shackles

theguardian.com
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Does anyone have any recommendations for economists/analysts who can talk about Senegal's predicted 8% GDP growth this year?
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Child beggars are common in Senegal. Often they are talibés - boys forced to beg while living at Islamic schools. We found 30 runaway talibés who all claimed to have beaten and abused at the hands of their masters. With photos from @Sam_Bradpiece telegraph.co.uk/global-healt…

The religious schools making millions out of child begging

Some 200,000 children live in daaras in the Senegal capital. Human rights groups claim some of these schools are little more than a racket

telegraph.co.uk
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This was a grim story to work on with @__TomCollins. Senegal is home to hundreds of thousands of young talibés - students who attend islamic schools known as daaras. Many of them are forced to beg and suffer horrific abuse. telegraph.co.uk/global-healt…

The religious schools making millions out of child begging

Some 200,000 children live in daaras in the Senegal capital. Human rights groups claim some of these schools are little more than a racket

telegraph.co.uk
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Ivory Coast authorities laid bare how they are still battling multi-million dollar chocolate companies to improve wages for poor cocoa farmers. My latest for @AJEnglish aljazeera.com/features/2022/…

Ivory Coast battles chocolate companies to improve farmers’ lives

Ivory Coast is the world’s top cocoa-producing country but receives just 4% of the $100bn chocolate industry's profits.

aljazeera.com
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In 2018, #SierraLeone's President Bio, introduced bold reforms to revolutionise the country's education sector. @__TomCollins sat down with @PresidentBio to talk about his education drive and if it would help him win next year's polls. theafricareport.com/268342/s…
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My reporting from Sierra Leone which is facing a teenage pregnancy and abortion “epidemic,” according to medical professionals. telegraph.co.uk/global-healt…

Teenage girls turn to rat poison as unsafe abortion ‘epidemic’ spirals

Abortion is illegal in Sierra Leone, forcing women to abort unwanted pregnancies via dangerous practices. The consequences can be fatal

telegraph.co.uk
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Teenage girls are turning to rat poison as an unsafe abortion ‘epidemic’ spirals. @__TomCollins reports – free to read ⬇️ telegraph.co.uk/global-healt… @Telegraph

Teenage girls turn to rat poison as unsafe abortion ‘epidemic’ spirals

Abortion is illegal in Sierra Leone, forcing women to abort unwanted pregnancies via dangerous practices. The consequences can be fatal

telegraph.co.uk
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I want the world to know about Emma 💜 Cancer may have taken her, but she never let any illness define her This is the story of our final few months together. One day, I promise, I will tell the rest, and I'll get to Antarctica for our honeymoon too 🐧❄️ inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/…

I want the world to know about my wife Emma, who died from cancer at 31

Let your loved ones in, it's ok to be afraid - and hold on to your sense of humour: the lessons I learned from my late wife's battle with cancer

inews.co.uk
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We had pitched a story on Dakar Fashion Week, but then our editors at @guardian asked us to take a different tack, and look at Senegal’s local tailoring scene — coincidentally something I’ve been dying to write about for years theguardian.com/global-devel…

Dressing Dakar: a fashion city from artisan tailoring to haute couture

Senegal’s capital has a labyrinth of backstreet workshops where makers cut and sew, and its annual fashion week attracts design talent from across Africa

theguardian.com
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“Secure #digital identities represent the cornerstone of e-government and a pre-requisite for the delivery of many services to citizens” A conversation with @jamesgclaude07 in @AfricanBizMag / @__TomCollins globalvoicegroup.com/news-ar…
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My scoop about Senegal's football academy, Diambars, training some the country's best players: three of whom are in the squad for tonight's game. thetimes.co.uk/article/hi-te…
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Sierra Leone is spending 22% of its national budget on education. I spoke to @PresidentBio to find out if it will work. My latest for @guardian theguardian.com/global-devel…

Sierra Leone’s president defends large education budget as ‘necessary risk’

Julius Maada Bio says 22% allocation of total government funding is needed to ensure all children can go to school

theguardian.com
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Sierra Leonean lawmakers have passed legislation to introduce a gender quota in parliament -- a major campaign promise by the president -- following years of delays and false starts news.yahoo.com/sierra-leone-…
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Heavy rains that could be linked to climate change have flooded Senegal's famous Pink Lake with possibly toxic water, washing away nearly a quarter of a million dollars worth of artisanally-mined salt and devastating the local tourism industry. (@AFP) rfi.fr/en/science-environmen…

Floods wash away salt industry and tourism at Senegal's 'Pink Lake'

Maguette Ndiour stands on the edge of Senegal's Lake Retba, famous for its pink-hued waters, and points to a mound of salt slowly being shovelled into bags by men toiling under the hot midday sun.

rfi.fr
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