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* Since writing this piece on 26 December 2016, the AllAfrica Customer Service department finally responded to me on 5 January 2017. They have removed the article but have failed to clarify how they sourced my story and why someone else had been cited as the author. See below for more details. I was no less than appalled to see a story that I had so carefully crafted had been taken by you and your organisation without any reference to the real author.   My article ‘Destination Africa: Why producer Maame Adjei is championing African travel’ was published on the allafrica.com website on 18 September 2016 without my permission. I have no idea how you sourced this particular article as I had published it on my blog page on 12 September and sent the article to online publication ModernGhana, which printed it on 19 September.    In your version, my byline no longer materialises and instead it seems Owusu-Bediako has replaced me. After endless attempts to contact...

Sharing stories is a simple way all of us can disseminate knowledge, experiences and inspire others around us to aim high. That is why I started writing. Below are six initiatives created by ordinary Black men and women that are helping to shape our creative landscapes. Feel inspired to do the same and please share. Black Ballad aims to redress the media imbalance in the portrayal of Black women in the British media. British-Nigerian founders Tobi Oredein and Bola Awoniyi launched the website in 2014 and used the platform to explore topics linked to identity, perceptions of beauty and mental health - centring women at the forefront. They plan to take Black Ballad to a new level in March 2017 with the launch of a subscription-based online offering that provides a voice for Black women to take back power, lead debate and set the agenda. To learn more, check them out here .    Diversity Matters is an awareness platform launched by British-Ghanaian ...

For me, this striking image typifies just how pivotal we Black people have been in shaping the modern world. In a single shot, we see the depths to the subjugation and disrespect shown to men and boys from what is now modern-day Nigeria. These men were deemed to be no better than paper and used as such to communicate a festive message. How insulting! A 1923 Christmas picture of staff at the African Oil Nuts Company & Miller Brothers in Badagry, Nigeria © Image of Empire Birth of a nation It is a funny dichotomy. We have the source of mankind, born on African soil, shipped abroad or enslaved on their land; mentally and physically beaten to accept that they were nothing more than a commodity. And yet without our acquiescence, tenacity, and skill nothing that we value in terms of modern-day development would be here. Trump tells the world he wants to make America great again and the nostalgic hark back to 'Great' Britain all smack of a period when indus...

Living with sensitive skin from a young age spurred Catherine on to develop a range of vegan facial skin products called Kokoa which went live on 21 November. Although the British-Ghanaian founder is not vegan, she is a firm believer in many principles such as respecting the environment and animals that vegan communities both in the UK and abroad share. The Kokoa skincare brand was developed late in 2015, while Catherine was studying biomedical science at university. “I mixed and formulated various concoctions, finding that nothing worked better than the products made with natural ingredients,” she said. She then focussed her time trying and testing combinations to find a perfect formula, she said. “The results were outstanding, and what started off as a hobby evolved into a business idea: a completely natural cosmetics line. I believe nature holds the answer to beautiful skin, without the negative side effects of unnatural ingr...

This piece was updated at 15:00 on 5 December 2016 to include the response from the John Lewis press office (see final paragraph). The blog was originally published at 00:36 on 5 December 2016. There was a time – not too long ago - when the airing of the Coca Cola advert in the UK heralded the start of the Christmas season. But in my opinion, UK high street supermarket adverts are slowly but surely stealing Coke’s thunder. Anticipating what our retail chains are going to come out with annually has become a big talking point that even deserves column inches in our top newspapers. Young actress Summer is aged six, while Olayinka plays her father  © John Lewis  This year, the supermarkets did not disappoint. They provided us with liberal helpings of the stock Christmas ad ingredients: snow; Father Christmas; Turkey with all the trimmings, presents, the Christmas tree and animals – in recognition of the UK’s pet-loving culture. So when UK retailer...