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Nurture not nature? How young women can learn to better wield economic power | Heather Stewart

30 August 2026 at 17:52

Project in Zambia shows how teaching young women to negotiate better can have a long-term impact on their prospects

Women making their way in patriarchal societies down the ages have always had to wield their meagre economic power deftly. New evidence from a fascinating research project in Zambia suggests that’s a skill that can be learned.

A team of female US academics have been gathering data for more than a decade, which shows that teaching young women to negotiate better can have a long-term impact on their prospects.

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© Photograph: MBI/Alamy

© Photograph: MBI/Alamy

© Photograph: MBI/Alamy

A look at the devastating impact of USAID cuts in rural Afghanistan

It's been 18 months since the Trump administration made cuts to foreign aid. One of the countries hardest-hit is Afghanistan. The five years since the U.S. withdrawal have been grim for the people there, and Refugees International attributes over 160 deaths during the last 18 months to cuts in aid. Special correspondent Leila Molana-Allen and videographer Eric O'Connor report.

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