World Tour: Kenyans oppose a nuclear plant

NICK EICHER, HOST: Next up on the World and Everything in It, WORLD Tour with our reporter in Africa, Onize Oduah.

SOUND: [Protest music]

ONIZE ODUAH: Today’s global roundup kicks off in Kenya’s coastal Kilifi County … where protesters opposed plans for the country’s first nuclear plant.

Kenyan authorities are trying to reduce the country’s dependence on hydroelectric and fossil fuels by 2034.

But many of the residents earn a living from fishing and ecotourism.

Timothy Nyawa is one of the concerned fishermen who has worked in the waters for 20 years.

AUDIO: [Speaking Swahili]

He says here that he fears a nuclear plant could destroy fish breeding sites. Residents are also wary of how authorities will handle displacing some residents and compensating landowners.

Kenya’s Nuclear Power and Energy Agency has insisted the plant will not harm residents or their livelihoods. Authorities plan to begin construction on the plant in three years … and it could start operating by 2034.

AUDIO: [Protest chants]

Argentina protest — Heading now to Argentina, student protesters have returned to the streets after lawmakers failed to pass a public university funding increase. The president opposed the measure—insisting that universities must comply with budget restrictions.

So when a bill arrived at his desk…seeking to increase the salaries of university teachers and other staff over rising inflation, President Javier Milei vetoed it. Lawmakers narrowly upheld his veto in a vote last week.

Valentina Grispo is a 20-year-old student who attended the protest.

AUDIO: [Speaking Spanish]

She says here that the budget tightening doesn’t seem necessary when the majority of the youth depend on public universities.

Authorities at the University of Buenos Aires say staff salaries have lost 40 percent of their purchasing power this year alone due to inflation.

The budget restrictions are part of President Milei’s ongoing austerity measures focused on reducing public spending … which have also brought changes to the health and pension sectors.

SOUND: [Street noise]

Nobel prize reaction — In Japan, many welcome this year’s Nobel Peace Prize award given to a grassroots group advocating for a nuclear weapons ban.

Members of Nihon Hidankyo include survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear explosions. Both bombs together killed about 214,000 people … triggering Japan’s surrender and the end of World War II.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it awarded the group for using eyewitness accounts to demonstrate why nuclear weapons should never be used again.

Susumu Ogawa is an 84-year-old in Hiroshima. The bomb killed his mother, aunt, and grandparents.

AUDIO: [Speaking Japanese]

He says the peace award feels like they were finally rewarded. Japan still has more than 106,000 atomic bomb survivors.

SOUND: [Crowd noise]

Berlin Festival of Lights — And finally, we end on the streets of Berlin, Germany, where thousands of people filled the streets to see the Festival of Lights.

The annual fall festival celebrates freedom and the fall of the Berlin Wall. It features light displays on some of the most famous buildings across Berlin. This year marked the 20th anniversary of lighting up the capital.

Philipp Böhm is a 40-year-old Berlin resident.

AUDIO: [Speaking German]

He says he attended the event with his entire family … calling it one of the few activities families can enjoy together.

The 10-day festival ended on Sunday.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Oduah in Abuja, Nigeria.

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