Waist Beads African Beauty 

Waist beads and bead making are surrounded by history and splendor in African art, music, and literature. Ileke or Jigida Yoruba African waist beads symbolize body sculpting, sexuality, and femininity.

Waist Bead tradition of Southwest Nigeria, Benin, Togo Yoruba Tribes

Beads are among the most exciting symbols in Yoruba African culture. The colors and sizes, and the significance of the materials chosen for the waist are subjective; the person making the waist beads symbolizes their perception, experience, feelings, beliefs, desires, and influence.

Traditionally unmarried women of the Yoruba tribe wear an ileke, also known as waist beads or waist chains. Waist beads are romantic and fashionable and attract attention to the waist by making the waist appear slimmer and bringing out the curves of the hips. 

Waist beads were and still are worn for seduction. For some, the beads possess intimate appeal and can provoke desire in men.

Weight Management and Waist Beads.

Some women use waist beads to watch their weight; when it is tight on them, they will know they are gaining weight. Unlike clothing, the strings do not stretch; they break or roll up the waist with increased girth. So in the absence of scales as a weight measurement, tight waist beads indicate weight gain.

Modern-day America and Britain have modified the use of waist beads, growing an entire industry around tying a string around your waist to get killer abs.

Sculpting your waistline by using waist beads coupled with regular exercise will help your stomach muscles work harder, so graduating from a larger string of waist beads to a smaller string is seen as a badge of honor.

Using waist beads is designed to remind you to suck your stomach in, contract your muscles then breathe out slightly; repeating this step throughout the day is known as a vacuum exercise. 

Bone Waist Beads.

By tradition, waist beads were made of natural materials such as bone beads, shells, stone, or clay beads; however, modern times have seen waist beads produced from synthetic materials like glass and plastic. 

Bone was one of the first things used in Africa for decoration before the discovery of precious gems and metals. Most contemporary bone beads are made from the neck and backbones of birds and fish or cut into fine shapes using cow, sheep, goat, camel bones, and antlers, ivory, and teeth.

Using the sharp edge of a stone, early African ancestors carved bone into a variety of shapes for jewelry beads. Each bone bead had a story or meaning behind the design, and depending on the material used, the waist beads are a sign of peace, regrowth and tranquility of life and purity. Bone jewelry is still used in Africa today crafted by Artisan and painted with lacquer for the piece to last a lifetime.

However, before bone can be carved into a waist bead it must first be processed. Processing raw bone is a simple process if you are using small bones such as bird, fish, or even snake vertebrae. The first step to processing raw bones is to clean with soapy water and scrub with a stiff brush after removing all the meat gristle and ligaments.

The bones are boiled in an acid bath until the marrow is extracted and you are left with dry non-greasy bones. After this step is completed, the bones are rinsed thoroughly and dried in the Sun for days. Modern processing bones uses chemicals that makes the bones last longer and the process less grisly.

If you are using ancient bone processing techniques or modern bone processing techniques in the end the bones are carved into the shapes for beads that are strung together and used by women in Southwest Nigeria, Benin, Togo and the Yoruba tribes as waist beads.

Clay Waist Beads.

Clay is found all over Africa and the making of clay beads from the soil of the African continent is common in ancient times and modern times in Africa. Gathering the right soil type to make clay beads is an important first step. African people who have made clay beads for generations can recognize good clay for the bead-making process. 

Another good type of clay to use is clay from termite hills as the glue from the saliva of termites makes the clay quite strong and helps bind the clay to form beads. Clay is work by hand, shaped and fashioned into the desired shape freehand by pinching coiling and rolling the clay into small waist beads. After drying, the beads are placed outside around a pile of wood and carefully baked outside around the fire for many hours; this is a kiln in its most natural state.

Clay is made by mixing dry clay with water in clay mixer. Clay straight from the ground in Africa is not like the clay you buy from a ceramic clay store or hobby supplier. It contains unwanted materials such as rocks and twigs and needs to be processed to remove before working into clay beads. A screening removes stones, roots, and other larger particles. Before firing, the beads are decorated by impressing or carving of the bead; sometimes the design is religious or sometimes just decorative.

Waist Beads are Intimate Private Jewelry.

It is considered distasteful when waist beads are shown in public. In many cultures, the waist beads symbolized a young woman’s purity and were only to be taken off by her husband on their wedding night. Most waist beads are worn under clothing and are a private affair.

Unlike today's purity rings, waist beads are not shown in public. Purity rings are the exact opposite when it comes to modesty than waist beads; purity rings are a sign to the community as a commitment to purity, a promise to stay sexually pure until marriage.

Waist beads in African culture have a conservative meaning when you are wearing waist beads and they show you might get a funny look from someone because the showing of waist beads is not acceptable. 

Many people in modern-day Africa may not have the same feelings as their ancient ancestors regarding modesty and waist beads; waist beads are seen as more of a decoration than a statement about intimacy and privacy.

Weight control and beauty, many waist beads are handmade versatile, functional African art.

Why the Sea Is Salty | African Folktale Meets Science

Unbelievable but true—this African tall tale carries a hint of science. Many folktales exaggerate life lessons, yet the story of Why the Sea Is Salty holds a surprising truth about ocean salt and the cycle of water on Earth.

The Folktale of Queen Fuma and the Magic Millstones

Queen Fuma ruled the sea, but her greed drove her to steal two magic millstones from her brother, Prince Noka, ruler of lakes and rivers. These were no ordinary stones—they could grind out anything their owner desired.

But Queen Fuma did not know how to use them. Frustrated, she wept: “If only I could move the stones, I would make my people rich and happy.”

Two mysterious women appeared, offering help. They touched the stones and they began to grind—gold, rest, and happiness poured out. Fuma, dazzled by the gold, demanded more and more until the helpers grew weary. When the queen refused to let them rest, the stones began to grind warriors instead of wealth. The warriors rose and destroyed Queen Fuma’s kingdom.

One survivor, seeking power, took the stones aboard a ship, forcing a woman to keep grinding. “Rest? No!” he shouted. “Grind salt, if you can grind nothing else!”

She obeyed until the ship sank beneath the waves—and the stones sank too, still grinding salt to this day. That is why the sea is salty.

Science Behind the Folklore

This African folktale captures a real scientific truth: seawater is salty because of minerals and salts washed from the land into the ocean. Over millions of years, rivers have carried dissolved sodium, chloride, and other ions from rocks and soils to the sea. When water evaporates, the salts remain—just like Queen Fuma’s eternal millstones grinding beneath the waves.

In a way, the folktale mirrors the hydrological and geochemical cycles—where nature, time, and chemistry shape Earth’s salty seas.

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Algerian jelbana stew tajine with artichokes and green peas is a classic African Algerian stew recipe. Traditional Algerian jelbana is slow cooked in a tajine, but you can make this North African recipe using your stew pot.

Learn to make Algerian Jelbana Artichokes and Green Peas Tajine Recipe and discover facts about Africa's largest country Algeria.

Algerian Jelbana Artichokes and Green Peas Tajine Recipe

Ingredients

4 skinless chicken thighs

2 cups frozen green peas

1 small can artichoke hearts

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 medium tomatoes, diced

2 medium white potatoes, diced

1 cup frozen baby carrots

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

2 whole bay leaves

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 minced garlic cloves 2 cups water

Directions

Mix spices into a small bowl then add all ingredients into a large lidded stew pot. Simmer 30 minutes until vegetables are tender. Serve with homemade bread.

Classic African Algerian stew recipe

About Algeria location and climate

 Algeria is mostly high plateau and desert located in Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, situated between Morocco and Tunisia and is slightly less than 3.5 times the size the US state of Texas. The climate is arid to semiarid; mild, wet winters with hot, dry summers along coast; drier with cold winters and hot summers on high plateau. Algeria’s mountainous areas subject to severe earthquakes; mudslides and floods in rainy season; drought; it is the largest country in Africa but 80% desert. Canyons and caves are located in the southern Hoggar Mountains and in the barren Tassili n'Ajjer area in the southeast of the country contains numerous examples of prehistoric art - rock paintings and carvings depicting human activities and wild and domestic animals that date to the African Humid Period, roughly 11,000 to 5,000 years ago, when the region was completely vegetated.

On the people of Algeria

The massive majority of the population in Algeria is found in the extreme northern part of the country along the Mediterranean Coast with Arab-Berber 99% and European less than 1% ethnic groups. The population is around 45 million Muslims with languages spoken Arabic (official), French (lingua franca), Berber or Tamazight (official); dialects include Kabyle Berber (Taqbaylit), Shawiya Berber (Tacawit), Mzab Berber, Tuareg Berber (Tamahaq). Major urban areas are 2.694 million living in the capital of Algiers and  881,000 living in the city of Oran.

A brief note regarding the Algerian economy

Hydrocarbons have long been the backbone of the Algerian economy, accounting for roughly 30% of GDP, 60% of budget revenues, and nearly 95% of export earnings. Algeria has the 10th-largest reserves of natural gas in the world - including the 3rd-largest reserves of shale gas - and is the 6th-largest gas exporter. It ranks 16th in proven oil reserves. The main export partners are Italy 17.4%, Spain 13%, France 11.9%, US 9.4%, Brazil 6.2%, and the Netherlands 5.5%.

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Africans of Chinese descent on Kenya’s Pate Island have Chinese roots with ancient links to Chinese sea explorers and shipwrecks. Mwamaka Sharifu, from Lamu Island off of Kenya's coast is a descendant of Chinese sailors traveling with Chinese explorer Zheng He in the Ming Dynasty.

Kenya’s Pate Island and Chinese sailors

Pate Island Family

The Kenyan coast was a major crossroad in the spice and slave trading routes of the 15th century. Chinese Ming dynasty Admiral Zheng He, on his fourth voyage, left China in 1413 arriving off the coast of Kenya’s Pate Island in 1418. 

Admiral Zheng He, the Ming Dynasty court eunuch whose fleet of 300 ships and 28,000 sailors were the biggest the world had ever known. His ships were said to have been four times bigger than those of Columbus and his seafaring travels were greater than any explorer before him.

Pate Island is located in the Indian Ocean close to the northern coast of Kenya and is the largest island in the Lamu Archipelago. According to Kenyan folklore, Chinese sailors who survived the shipwreck swam ashore and were allowed to stay on the Island after killing a python that had been troubling a village.

 

Pate Villages' dressmaker's shop

The Chinese Ming sailors married and had children with the native African women, converted them to Islam and created a community of African-Chinese whose descendants still live on the Island of Pate.

Kenya’s Pate Island Chinese tradition has ancient links to Africa. On Pate there is an ancient graveyard made out of coral, they are the graves of the Chinese sailors, which died in the shipwreck.  

The graves are the same as Chinese Ming dynasty tombs, complete with half-moon domes and terraced entries. In 2010 Chinese government sent archeologists to the Kenyan coast on a $3-million, three-year mission to dig for artifacts.

China Girl Mwamaka Sharifu

African China Girl

Pate Island China Girl named Mwamaka Sharifu is hailed as the most famous descendent of the shipwrecked Chinese sailors. Mwamaka was rewarded with a scholarship in 2005 to a Chinese university, where she is studying traditional Chinese medicine. 

Sharifu said she admires Zheng's courage and adventurous spirit. "I was born as brave as my ancestors," she said. "It is rare for girls in my Muslim village to go so far to study, to such a big and different country." 

Sharifu went on to say "Beijing is a big city," Sharifu added. "But Taicang city will always be a special place for me as it is said it is where my ancestors came from. Located in East China's Jiangsu Province, Taicang is where Zheng set sail for Africa.

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South African fruit sauce has a strange name, blatjang but is an easy dried fruit recipe to make. Blatjang is a thick sauce fruit sauce that contains fruits, vinegar, sugar, and spices and is used as a condiment.

Apricot Raisin Blatjang is a traditional South African fruit sauce recipe made from apricots, onion, garlic, and raisins. Make and share this simple fruit sauce blatjang recipe with love from South Africa.

South African Blatjang Apricot Raisin Fruit Sauce

Ingredients
1/3 cup malt vinegar
1 cup dried chopped apricots
1 cup seedless golden raisins
¼ cup finely chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons dried onions
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Soak apricots and raisins in 3 cups of water inside a large bowl for 2 hours. Add all ingredients including soaking water to a large pot and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring constantly. Slowly pour into jars. Allow cooling on the counter.


How to dry fruits to make Blatjang

Drying is one of the oldest methods of food preservation. It is still used widely to preserve foods for home consumption and for sale. Dried fruits are one of the most popular products made by small-scale processors.

Drying removes the water from foods so that the growth of microorganisms is inhibited. It also reduces the weight and bulk of foods which cuts down on transport and storage costs. Sun drying is the simplest and cheapest method of drying. To make higher quality products, processors use an artificial dryer.

There are several types of dryers available. Just follow the manufacturer's directions. To obtain maximum yields of top-quality dried products, all fruit should be ripe and free from bruising. Any rotten or bruised fruit should be thrown away.

Other dried fruits to use to make South African Blatjang

Fruits that are good to use for making savory blatjang fruit sauce include dried mangoes, papaya, tamarind, soursop, pineapples, and guava. Substitute equal amounts of dried apricots for the dried fruits.

Guava
Guava is an excellent source of vitamin C. There are innumerable recipes for utilizing guavas in pies, cakes, puddings, sauce, ice cream, jam, butter, marmalade, chutney, relish, nectars, blatjang, and other recipes. Fresh mature guavas can be utilized as a source of pectin, yielding somewhat more and higher quality pectin than ripe fruits.

Mango
Like many other tropical fruits, during thermal processing mangoes undergo chemical changes in terms of their nutritional and organoleptic properties, mainly flavor. It is therefore important to employ procedures that will not affect such thermolabile compounds to a significant degree, like freezing or carefully performed thermal techniques, even at a home-processing level. Mangoes may be processed into different products, such as puree, frozen pulp, nectar, concentrated and frozen pulp and in a high-sugar pulp preparation known as "ate". Mango pulp may also be dehydrated to produce bars. Mango slices in syrup or in the dehydrated form are also consumed. The mango fruit is also excellent when pickled and eaten fresh.

Papaya
In addition to being widely consumed as fresh fruit, papayas have many uses. Like other tropical fruits, papayas are prepared and preserved according to different methods. Nectars or juices may be produced by using papaya puree, which either alone or in combination with different-flavored fruits makes a very tasty product. Papaya pulp is also a very popular product. Try papaya seed tea for your next recipe adventure.

Tamarind
This species belongs to the leguminosae family, and every part of the tamarind tree, namely the wood, bark, leaves, and fruits, may be used in many different ways. Tamarind has been utilized as medicine since ancient times, for its pulp can combat scurvy and has laxative properties, while its leaves have diuretic properties. However, the tamarind is mostly used as food. The seeds, the soft leaves, and the flowers of fully grown trees are utilized in salads and to make soups. Unripe and tender husks are used as a seasoning in boiled rice, fish, and meats. The pulp obtained from ripe fruit is an agro-industrial product of considerable economic value in many parts of the world. The pulp of the fruit is slightly difficult to extract due to its low water content and because it is sticky. To remove it, the fruit is normally subjected to a steam bath for several hours.

Soursop
These fruits are rapidly perishable and must be hand-harvested when completely ripe, to prevent them from falling from the tree branches and bruising. The ripe fruit is washed with chlorinated water to remove the soil and minimize the presence of bacteria. Once it is washed, the fruit is peeled and the pits are removed by hand, for there is no current alternative to this procedure. Soursop is consumed as a dessert, although they are mostly used in the form of frozen pulp in foods like ice cream and syrups, and in drinks.

Pineapples
Pineapples are the second harvest of importance after bananas, contributing to over 20 % of the world's production of tropical fruits. Pineapple is a member of the Bromiliaceae family, Anana genus, and Sativa species. The flesh of larger fruits is cut up in various ways and eaten fresh, as dessert, in salads, compotes, and otherwise, or cooked in pies, cakes, puddings, or as a garnish on ham, or made into sauces or preserves.

Apricot Raisin Blatjang Recipe

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If you think, cooking dry beans is an all-day process here is a fast way to make them.

This best ever pot of dry beans recipe shows that you can play with seasonings and ingredients and make plain old dry beans delicious beans.

Cooking dry beans is no more trouble than filling a pot of water, adding a pinch of baking soda and letting your pot of best ever African beans simmer blissfully on the back of the stove for 90 minutes.

Serves 5
Total time from start to finish 90 minutes

Best Pot of African Beans Ever

Ingredients
½ cup dry black-eyed peas
2 large tomatoes, diced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 hot pepper, diced
¼ cup coconut cream
½ cinnamon stick
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt, more as needed
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 cups vegetable broth


Directions 

Add all ingredients into a lidded large stew pot, mix well. Simmer covered on medium low for 90 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, if desired. Remove cinnamon stick. Serve over rice. 

African Toothbrush Trees and Natural Toothpaste

Toothbrushes and toothpaste are not the only way to clean and whiten teeth. Across Africa, people have long used natural teeth cleaning sticks from trees like the neem, miswak, and abotesima. These African toothbrush trees fight bacteria, whiten teeth, and freshen breath — without the chemicals found in commercial toothpaste. Learn more about African medicinal trees and their uses.

Nature’s toothbrush — in Africa, that can mean keeping a twig in your mouth all day long

Traditional Teeth Cleaning in Africa

While many people in industrialized countries use factory-made toothbrushes, most of the world’s population — especially indigenous cultures in Africa — still rely on old-world techniques to keep their teeth clean.

In many regions, people chew twigs from the abotesima tree, gum tree, Kola-nut tree, or the neem tree instead of buying costly toothbrushes that must be replaced often. These toothbrush trees are known by hundreds of names, including siwak, miswak, margosa, datun, and kangeta.

Did You Know? The World Health Organization recommends chewing sticks like neem and miswak as affordable, effective tools for oral hygiene where modern toothpaste is costly.

How Teeth Cleaning Twigs Work

In Africa, people often walk around with a small twig in their mouth, chewing or scrubbing their teeth as they go about their day. These sticks fray into fine strands that act like natural floss, cleaning between teeth while their antiseptic properties fight bacteria better than some chemical-based whitening toothpastes.

Oral hygiene depends more on diet than on cleaning tools. Processed sugar, flour, rice, and junk food damage teeth and overall health. For natural care, traditional chewing sticks are an effective alternative — even upscale health stores in the United States now sell them as eco-friendly dental care.

Learn more about traditional African herbal remedies and African health traditions still used today.

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Look into African Dambe Fight Club Rules

Learn about African Dambe, Hausa Communities, Africa Fight Club Rules, National Sport Africa, and Nigerian culture.

Traditionally among the Hausa communities, Dambe fight clubs are a national sport centuries old and very popular.

Dambe is a mixed martial arts boxing tradition that has been a part of Nigerian culture for centuries.

Within the African Hausa social structure, individuals are classified as either being commoners or chiefs, depending on which profession they hold and the amount of wealth they possess.  Among the common class of Hausa communities, Dambe fight clubs are a national sport centuries old and very popular.

African Dambe Fight Club Rules

Ready to fight

Fights last for three rounds, the competitors’ goal to knock down their opponent using kicks and punches. Quickness is important in Dambe, and like with many striking arts, a good reach is a big advantage.  The fighters’ stronger hands are wrapped in a rope (today some fighter wear boxing gloves) that in ancient times could even be dipped in resin and shards of broken glass.  The use of glass and resin are no longer allowed however, Dambe used to include an element of wrestling, known as Kokawa, but modern fighting utilizes punching and kicking.

Giving his opponent the evil eye

Dambe emphasizes the use of the rear hand or strong hand for striking. The lead hand is known as a shield and is not used much for actually punching. Instead, the lead hand is used to blog, grab, or hold, and generally is held open, palm facing the opponent. 

Therefore, punches in Dambe that are used often include the right straight or left straight, for southpaws. Dambe fighters can also kick with both legs.

There are no official weight classes, though fighters are normally matched up with someone of a similar size. 

Fights last three rounds through these rounds are not timed the end of the fight is happens when one of the fighters or an official calls a stop to it, or when someone is knocked down. Knocking someone down in Dambe is known as killing.

Many Dambe Fight Clubs use charms for luck and protection to win fights

Spectators are a key part of the Dambe fighting event by creating an electric atmosphere by chanting and singing support or taunts to the fighters. 

Other traditions include the use of amulets for supernatural protection, with some fighters wrapping them to their spear hand, while some of the fighting groups also ceremonially shower fighter with money after matches.

Dambe Fight Club

Nigeria has a total population of over 175 million people and nearly 27 million are the Hausa, 1/3 of all Hausa live in the north and northwest regions of Nigeria, an area known as Hausaland. The Hausa culture is strongly linked to Islam.

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Attiéké is a traditional Côte d'Ivoire African dish made from fermented ground cassava roots that Ivorians love to eat. The most popular recipe, attiéké poisson grille, fried fish prepared with sliced a tomato and onion salad is a Côte d'Ivoire national dish.

Explore more African recipes, ingredients, and culinary heritage in the African Cuisine Hub .

Homemade attiéké looks like couscous and prepared correctly takes two days to make from scratch. Making it involves peeling and grating cassava to make a paste that is mixed with a small portion of already fermented paste. The mixture is left to sit for a day or two and ferment. The paste is then dried in the sun and steamed serving.

Fried Fish Attiéké Poisson Grille

Chic African Culture

Côte d'Ivoire in Africa attiéké (pronounced atchekay) recipe has traveled far beyond the country’s borders to become a well-loved food in the African diaspora and beyond.

Ingredients

1 large white fish 

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 medium onions, sliced thin

Côte d'Ivoire African Fried Fish Attiéké Poisson Grille

1/8 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup water

Directions

In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, sauté about 10 minutes until soft. Add spices and water, stir and bring to a boil. Add fish, reduce heat and simmer uncovered 10 minutes.

Instant Attiéké Recipe

Ingredients

1 pound of dry or frozen Attiéké

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup water

Salt to taste

Directions

Moisten attiéké with water and steam 20 minutes. When tender, transfer attiéké to a bowl; add salt and vegetable oil and mix with a fork, so that the grains do not stick.

Attiéké Side Salad

Ingredients

2 large fresh tomato chopped

1 medium white onions diced

1 large cucumber peeled and chopped

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

Mix chopped vegetables and sprinkle with lemon juice.

Put the Attiéké dish together:

Serve fish with onion sauce over attiéké and with a side salad.

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Shea butter is a staple of African skin care, cooking and medicine for a millennia.

Shea butter comes from an African nut shea tree and is used in cosmetics, cooking and medicine. For centuries the shea tree and the butter produced from its fruit have been central to the lives of rural communities mainly women in Mali and other west African countries. Mali has one of the largest areas of trees in the so-called shea belt.

Shea nuts used to produce shea nut butter

Shea butter comes from the nuts of karité trees that grow in the Sahel region extending from West to East Africa, from Guinea and Senegal to Uganda and South Sudan.

The women continue to harvest the fruit by hand from wild trees which grow in abundance across Mali’s red earth. The nuts are extracted, boiled, dried and shelled by groups of women and girls working together. They are then crushed, roasted and ground into a paste to make the butter. This physically demanding process has changed little since the late 18th century.

For centuries shea butter has been referred to as women’s gold because of its rich golden color and because it provides employment, medicinal benefits and nutrition for millions of women across Africa. The sector employs an estimated 3 million women across West Africa, generates between USD 90 million and USD 200 million a year from exports and promotes economic activity in communities

Nut collectors are usually women and children engaged solely in the collection of shea nuts. They collect nuts from fields or buy them from farmers and resell them to women’s groups or to secondary nut sellers. The shea nuts butter has traditionally been used for cooking and as a cosmetic product particularly in skin creams and soaps.

Nut collectors and transformers collect nuts and also participate in the transformation of the nuts into butter. Women often keep some of the butter for their households to eat. These groups sell their butter and derivative products at local markets, or to national or international traders. Individuals who profit most from the shea industry are the managers of the organizations, who earn three times more than the average woman worker.

Shea butter is also used in food products such as chocolates. Confect-ioners use it as a cocoa butter equivalent to give chocolates a higher melting point and a smoother texture. The butter is used in popular chocolate bars.

The Burkina Faso shea sector contributes to 23.8 percent of women received an income solely from shea; 6.5 percent supplemented their income from agriculture, 30.3 percent from small-scale business and 30.8 percent from handmade or nonindustrial work.

Shea is an important non-timber forest product in Burkina Faso because of its medicinal properties, nutritional uses and income-generating potential. It contributes to export earnings it is the third most exported product creates income for women, especially in rural areas, and shea butter groups enable women to acquire new skills, receive support from other women and promote women’s agency and collective action.

Shea activities provide incomes for women mainly but few for men: they range from the collection of nuts, to making raw shea butter for consumption and treating shea butter for creams, pomades and cosmetics. Shea butter is Burkina Faso’s third most important export product after cotton and livestock products, and for this reason it has an important socio-cultural role and is also a critical element in the national economy.

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Home › Explore Africa › African Sports

African Olympic Power: Top 10 Countries with the Most Gold Medals

From Kenya's dominant distance runners to South Africa's swimming champions, African nations have consistently punched above their weight at the Summer Olympics. Discover which countries lead the continent in gold medal achievements through the 2020 Tokyo Games.

Gold Olympic Medals Africa — Symbols of African Excellence

Africa's Olympic Journey

Africa’s Olympic story began in 1904, and ever since, the continent has produced some of the most inspiring athletes in the world. From the first African medalists to the Refugee Olympic Team of 2016, Africa’s contribution to the Olympic movement continues to grow each Games.

Top Ten African Olympic Nations (Through 2020 Tokyo Games)

African Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Kenya	35	42	36	113
South Africa	27	33	29	89
Ethiopia	23	12	23	58
Egypt	8	11	19	38
Morocco	7	5	12	24
Algeria	5	4	8	17
Nigeria	3	11	13	27
Tunisia	5	3	7	15
Zimbabwe	3	4	1	8
Cameroon	3	1	2	6

📊 Updated through the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — next update coming soon after the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

Tirunesh Dibaba, Ethiopian long-distance legend with three Olympic gold medals

Notable African Olympic Achievements

Kenya’s Distance Running Dynasty

Kenya leads African nations with 35 gold medals, primarily in middle and long-distance running. Icons like Kipchoge Keino, David Rudisha, and Eliud Kipchoge have shaped Kenya’s Olympic story of endurance and excellence.

South Africa’s Diverse Excellence

South Africa has excelled across multiple sports — swimming, athletics, rugby, and rowing. Gold medalists like Penny Heyns and Wayde van Niekerk reflect the nation’s deep sporting diversity.

Ethiopia’s Endurance Legacy

Ethiopia’s 23 gold medals showcase the power of endurance. Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele, and Tirunesh Dibaba dominate the 5,000m, 10,000m, and marathon events with unmatched grace and grit.

Looking Ahead: Paris 2024 and Beyond

African nations continue to produce world-class talent in athletics, swimming, boxing, and beyond. Stars like Joshua Cheptegei (Uganda) and Hugues Fabrice Zango (Burkina Faso) are already shaping the future of the continent’s Olympic success.

Historic Moments: The Refugee Olympic Team

The 2016 Rio Games saw the first-ever Refugee Olympic Team, including athletes from South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Ethiopia. Their participation symbolized resilience, courage, and hope for displaced people worldwide.

Yolande Mabika, judoka from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Refugee Olympic Team member at Rio 2016

“Being a refugee doesn't mean you are not a human being. I want to show the world that refugees can do anything.”

Kenya’s Olympic Medal History by Games

Olympic Games	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
Tokyo 2020	4	4	2	10
Rio 2016	6	6	1	13
London 2012	2	4	5	11
Beijing 2008	6	4	4	14
Athens 2004	1	4	2	7
Sydney 2000	2	3	2	7
Atlanta 1996	1	4	3	8
Barcelona 1992	2	4	2	8
Seoul 1988	5	2	2	9
Los Angeles 1984	1	0	2	3
Moscow 1980	Boycotted	-	-	-
Montreal 1976	Boycotted	-	-	-
Munich 1972	2	3	4	9
Mexico 1968	3	4	2	9
Tokyo 1964	0	0	1	1

Stats current through the Tokyo 2020 Games. Updates will be added after the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Explore more about African sports achievements in our African Sports Hub and follow emerging stars heading into the next Olympic cycle.

Collecting Water in Africa: Reality, Challenges, and Hope

In Africa, collecting water can be dangerous and exhausting. Imagine: you grab two large jerry cans, fill them with water, and walk four miles through woods and over hills in the blazing sun. Now imagine doing this every single day just so your family has water to drink, cook, and bathe.

In many African cities and villages, people may spend six hours traveling just to find clean water. It sounds extreme — but for roughly 1 in 7 Africans, this is daily life. Women, wives, daughters, mothers, and sisters often wake up before sunrise to begin the trek while it’s still cool.

They keep walking at 8 a.m., 9 a.m., and beyond until they reach a river or a functioning pump. Each full jerry can weighs around 40 pounds. The return journey is slow, hot, and back-breaking — often made while risking harassment or assault. The average distance women in Africa walk for water is about 3.7 miles (6 km) every day.

A jerry can was originally designed for fuel, but in much of the world it’s now a lifeline for carrying water. Imagine hauling 80 pounds of water uphill over rocks or through areas affected by conflict — with no guarantee the water will be safe.

Water sources can fail if pumps aren’t maintained.

Why Clean Water Is Still So Hard to Access

Across Africa, more than 400 million people live without safe drinking water. Those who can afford it often buy water from private tanker trucks, spending up to $50 a month.

Key obstacles include:

• Lack of skilled personnel to maintain pumps and systems
• Water scarcity and pollution in some regions
• Weak institutions and infrastructure
• Limited financing for water projects

“Inadequate financing is the single most important factor affecting the continent’s fresh water delivery abilities,” explains Peter Akari, Chief Water Policy Officer at the African Water Facility (African Development Bank).

In rural areas, wells and pumps may be installed but later fail because there’s no long-term maintenance plan or budget. Building a pump isn’t enough — keeping it working matters most.

Infrastructure often fails because of unpaid bills, illegal connections, and aging pipes.

For example, Ghana’s public water utility once served half the country but could not sustain operations due to unpaid bills, illegal hookups, and old, leaking pipes. In South Africa, about 19% of rural residents lack reliable water, and two-thirds have no basic sanitation. Over a quarter of schools and nearly half of clinics have no water access.

Women and girls often walk hours every day for clean water.

Ethiopia shows the challenge clearly: despite having rivers and groundwater, 83% of rural Ethiopians still lack safe water, and nearly 80% have no sanitation. Water scarcity and poor infrastructure trap families in unsafe conditions, reducing health, education, and economic opportunity.

Did You Know? Africa is rich in lakes, rivers, wetlands, and groundwater — yet only about 4% of its available freshwater is currently used effectively.

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Together, awareness can spark change. Share this to help everyone understand what collecting water really means for millions of African families.