What do Audre Lorde, Pamela Anderson and Florence Nightingale all have in common? They all began writing diaries as young girls and remained seasoned diarists later in life. But what purpose does keeping a diary as a teenager serve? And what can reflecting on the intimate accounts our younger selves wrote, tell us about who we are today and the changing world around us?

Ifedayo Agoro is a Nigerian entrepreneur who began writing a diary at the age of eleven. The habit began after she got into trouble at school, and wrote her mother a letter to explain what had happened. As punishment, her mother asked Ifedayo to pen a letter every week in a diary, and Ifedayo documented life as a young girl in the Shogunle neighbourhood of Lagos. This punishment soon became a joy and in 2015 Ifedayo wrote an anonymous online diary called Diary Of A Naija Girl. Five years later, she put her name to the diary and it now has 740,000 followers on Instagram.

Sophie Duker is a British comedian and writer. She is currently touring Europe with her stand-up show, But Daddy I Love Her, inspired by the concept of delusion. Sophie began writing an online diary at the age of 14, capturing matters of emotional significance such as her parent’s divorce, her father moving from the UK and her first encounter with grief. These profound milestones are interwoven with the everyday highs and lows of being a British teenager: crushes on the Harry Potter cast and encounters with school bullies.

Produced by Elena Angelides and Jane Thurlow

Image: (L) Ifedayo Agoro credit Buklaw Photography. (R) Sophie Duker credit Sarah Harry-Isaacs.)

Egypt's environment ministry says the attack occurred in "deep waters outside of the designated swimming area".

Pictures of revellers from the Calabar Carnival marking Christmas in the southern Nigeria.

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Nigeria says Niger's accusations are "baseless" and "false".

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BBC Sport Africa reviews the continent's top moments in 2024, including historic achievements at the Olympics, Paralympics and the Tour de France.

For years repairing watches was a booming business, but a Kaduna horologist now has time on his hands.

Sakkara, Egypt, 2,630BC. A man stands atop a structure of dizzying height as the final block grinds into place. For Imhotep, it is the culmination of his life’s work: a mountain made by man. He checks the joint while his workers wait in silence. Then, he gives a barely perceptible nod. It is done.

Imhotep’s pyramid is the first, but more will come. Bigger pyramids, more beautiful pyramids, tombs filled with treasure, chambers inscribed with complex, sacred writings.

But what motivated these ancient people to toil for decades over their vast monuments? What purpose did the structures serve? And what mysteries might still remain inside?

This is a Short History of Pyramids.

Written by Jo Furniss. With thanks to Salima Ikram, Professor of Egyptology at the American University of Cairo.

Olympic 200m Letsile Tebogo provided inspiration to help Botswana's Ross Branch win a historic World Rally-Raid Championship title this year.

A biodiversity hotspot has become the stomping ground of poachers.

South Africa has the largest population of canned lions in the world - these are lions born in captivity and bred for trophy hunting. People can pay (usually tens of thousands of dollars) to hunt and shoot the animals. Now the government has said it will ban it, but hasn’t said when, or what will happen to the lions.

Breeders argue it is better that hunters shoot a captive-bred lion than further endanger the wild populations, but conservationists and animal welfare groups dispute this, saying wild populations of lions are in decline and that the lion farms are creating a market for canned lion hunts and encouraging the hunting of wild lions too.

BBC Africa’s Danai Nesta Kupemba explains what canned hunting is and why campaigners want to end the practice. We discuss the ethical considerations and why lion bones are sought after. Stephanie Klarmann, from Blood Lions, which campaigns to bring an end to the commercial captive breeding of lions, tells us why they disagree with it.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Julia Ross-Roy, William Lee Adams and Benita Barden Video journalist: Beatrice Guzzardi Editor: Rosanna La Falce

The prisoners took advantage of ongoing political unrest triggered by disputed poll results, police say.

Venâncio Mondlane has rejected his electoral defeat, as unrest spreads in the southern African state.

Interpol has issued a yellow notice for two boys being held in Egypt by their father.

Famine has spread to five areas in the war-hit country, a UN-backed group says.

Once associated with South African gangsters, spinning has transcended its origins and become a source of hope and entertainment for working class people.

French Prime Minister François Bayrou believes dozens of people died after the cyclone hit the territory, rather than thousands.