Less than two percent of Africa’s population has been vaccinated against Covid-19. Could homegrown vaccines be the solution? If so, why isn’t it happening? Is it an issue with patents and intellectual property rights? Is big pharma standing in the way? Or is it simply about money and profits? Things are beginning to happen. Last month a consortium was set up with the aim of opening an mRNA technology transfer hub in South Africa. If they succeed it will be the first regional mRNA vaccine manufacturing production facility in Africa.  In this edition of Business Daily, Tamasin Ford hears from Marie-Paule Kieny, the chair of the Governance Board of the Medicines Patent Pool, Toyin Abiodun from the Tony Blair Global Institute for Change, based in Rwanda, and from Petro Terblanche, the Managing Director of Afrigen, the South African biotech company where the first African vaccines will hopefully be produced. (Producer: Joshua Thorpe) (Image: Health workers prepare a dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine during a mass vaccination campaign against the Covid-19, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Credit: Getty Images.)

Why isn't Africa producing vaccines?

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As modest fashion week starts in Istanbul, we look at the growth of this area of the fashion industry. Long considered a faith-based choice, it is gaining in popularity, proven by the modest-friendly options that many leading brands now offer.   We hear the thoughts of retailers and designers on why more women are choosing to dress modestly. And content creator Maha Gondal explains how she's bringing her take on modest fashion to her thousands of followers.  Plus we look at what can go wrong when brands try to cash in on what they see as a lucrative market.  Presented and produced by Megan Lawton (Image: Woman wearing a maxi dress with long sleeves, standing in front of a wall covered with foliage. Credit: Getty Images)

Modest fashion: Inside a $300bn industry

What happens when your favourite movies and TV shows fall off streaming sites?  We find out why, speaking to industry insiders, and those preserving our film and TV titles.  Plus, we speak to a US-based writer whose programme has disappeared to find out what the impact is on creators when their work no longer exists online. (Image: Man watching TV next to a dog. Credit: Getty Images) Presented and produced by Matt Lines

When films disappear

Earlier this year, on International Women's Day, the Irish electorate was asked to vote in two referendums on changing Ireland's constitution regarding family and care.  One of those questions was whether they wished to remove a reference to the role of women in the home, which some view as being out-of-step with modern Irish society.  A lot has changed since the constitution was written in 1937. Ireland is now among the highest-ranking countries in Europe for gender equality. However, in both referendums, voters rejected the bid for constitutional change.  In this programme, Leanna Byrne travels back to her home city of Dublin to explore Ireland's story when it comes to women, the family and work; speaking to Irish women about their experiences over the decades to now.  (Image: From left to right Niamh O'Reilly, Lorraine Lally and Rena Maycock, who spoke to the BBC World Service in Dublin in March 2024.)  Presented and produced by Leanna Byrne

Where is 'a woman's place' in Ireland today?

More of us are searching for cheaper and efficient ways to power and heat our homes.  As energy prices remain high, what about taking matters into your own hands and putting solar panels on your roof, or putting a small wind turbine in your garden?   Produced and presented by Rick Kelsey (Image: A wind turbine on a roof of a house in Amsterdam. Credit: Getty Images)

Should I put a wind turbine on my roof?

It’s estimated that 90% of traded goods travel over the oceans. But for the seafarers who make that happen, it’s not always an easy process. 
 
Thousands of incidents of corruption within the industry have been reported to the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network, who in this episode, tell Ruth Alexander what they’re doing to help the problem. 
 
Seafarers can often be put in an impossible position, and one former captain tells us how he was arrested at gunpoint after refusing to hand over a carton of cigarettes to officials. (Picture: A bird's eye view of a container ship at sea. Credit: Getty Images) Presenter: Ruth Alexander
Producer: Izzy Greenfield

Why isn't Africa producing vaccines?

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