Features

From grandmothers to gravediggers, the sudden, suffocating deaths of the coronavirus pandemic is affecting people in all sectors of South African society. Here’s one Cape Town family’s story of life after death. 

This database shows you where you can find safe family planning services near you. It’s verified two to four times a year by a dedicated team of data capturers and ‘secret shopper’ callers.

Strong winds, trees being cut down and drought drive sand to pile up and swallow the houses of the ancient seaside town Hobyo, Somalia. Will promises to green the desert save families who have been forced to move before?

In the wake of acid attacks, victims — often women — can feel hopeless. Now, women around the world are fighting back.

A vasectomy is a permanent form of contraception for men. During this surgical procedure, the tubes that take sperm from the testicles to the glands that make semen are cut — in about the time of a lunch break.

When a parent is diagnosed with a mental illness, the chances of emotional support are decreased and the risk of family discord is high.

When a primary school teacher in the Western Cape suspected that one of her pupils was being sexually abused, she did everything she could to help. Here’s what happened next.

Zackie Achmat was one of the most vociferous voices against former president Thabo Mbeki’s HIV denialism in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He now lives in downtown Cape Town and fights state capture — and broken trains.

Until now, the national and provincial health departments have not been able to say where services are provided. Here's how we found them.

Speaking more than one language could lead to better tests scores and even being a more empathetic person.

Linda-Gail Bekker says researching infectious diseases such as COVID-19 and HIV is like a colossal round of the murder mystery cluedo. Follow the story of the scientist with the purple pixie-cut from a farm in Zimbabwe to her inauguration as the first African president of the International Aids Society and beyond.

The International Planned Parenthood Federation’s digital campaign Treasure Your Pleasure is using an evidence-based sex-positive approach to educate young Africans about safe sex.

Korogocho is one of Nairobi’s most dangerous slums, where rape and robbery are common. Beatrice Nyariara is helping women aged 55 to 90 to fight back.

This country tested out a national health insurance. Find out what happened next.

South Africa’s top public health experts sat down to discuss the safety of e-cigarettes. The verdict? Stay away.

Bhojana Mathunywa was attacked by four men for bag of tobacco. Now, slowly but surely, this team of rural therapists is helping him recover the everyday skills he lost. (Dylan Bush, Bhekisisa)