Member states of the African Union

In Ethiopia, having eight children is not uncommon. To reduce birth rates, the government has enlisted the help of health workers and religious leaders. Their goal: change attitudes about what constitutes an “ideal” family.

While most of American attention in recent days has been focused on Libya, where four American diplomats died, the bigger trouble may be brewing in Egypt. People are protesting there too, and while no one is getting killed, the long-term effect of the chill on Egyptian-American relations may be startling.

As the rain and water in Mozambique becomes less predictable and less suited to subsistence farming, aid groups and the local government are trying to help some change the way they farm so they’re not so paralyzed by a flood or a drought. But there’s a lot of work to do.

Drought grips Horn of Africa region — which encompasses Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Eritrea — leaving millions at risk.

Inside of Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp, many Somali refugees are still in grave danger of starvation, but others are simply trying to live their lives.