Artificial intelligence is developing at a rapid rate and is transforming many aspects of life in Africa.

Between 1960 and 1966, France carried out 17 nuclear tests in the Algerian Sahara.

High levels of radioactivity, and a failure to safely dispose of nuclear waste, have left a dangerous legacy.

Dan Hardoon speaks to Abdelkrim Touhami, who was just a teenager when the French authorities announced a nuclear test near his home.

A Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Dummies at the nuclear testing site in the Algerian Sahara. Credit: Getty Images)

Malik Afegbua's images of elderly models have blown up on Instagram, but they are not what they seem.

In the 1960s, popes rarely left the Vatican City. So it was a major event when Pope Paul VI accepted an invitation to visit Uganda in 1969.

Hugh Costello talks to Mobina Jaffer, whose Ismaili Muslim family played an enthusiastic role in welcoming the Pope to the family’s hotel.

A Whistledown production for BBC World Service.

(Photo: Pope Paul VI meets President of Uganda Apollo Milton Obote. Credit: Getty Images)

AI and robotics are leading to significant healthcare advances in South Africa.

After sustaining life-changing injuries from an IED explosion in Afghanistan, Billy was assisted by an injured veterans charity who specialise in using motorsport to help with the rehabilitation process. Some years later, it’s time to give something back to that charity. Billy, Titch and John are heading to the stunning landscape of Morocco to assist with a 1,100km desert expedition for 20 injured and sick veterans. Their role is to prepare and maintain the buggies and bikes that the veterans will be riding and help lead the group over the arduous desert route.

But before they head off, Titch, who can never resist a freebie, has saved a dilapidated piece of nautical history from the skip - a 1950s microsized sailboat called a SailFish, which was rather unkindly known in its day as the ‘ironing board of the sea’. With some TLC, Titch restores the craft to its former glory – in time for a wager with Billy, who has bet that Titch can’t master the skills necessary to sail the tiny boat around Brownsea Island. Despite being ex Special Boat Service, sailing microyachts was never part of the job description, and Titch finds himself out of his depth. But with the loser having to run across the Twin Sails Bridge, naked Titch pulls out all the stops to try to win the wager.

A first-hand account of how Sudanese civilian protesters first brought down a military regime in 1964. The protests began after a student was shot and killed by police during a confrontation at the prestigious University of Khartoum. Demonstrations and a nationwide general strike followed which forced the military to hand over power. Alex Last hears from historian Professor Abdullahi Ibrahim who was a prominent member of the Student's Union at Khartoum University at the time.

Photo: People celebrate the fall of the military regime in Khartoum, November 1964 (Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)

Authorities, who held the robot for 10 days, feared that it may have been hiding covert spy tools.

He's got rock star fans and two sold-out shows to his name, but Kojo Marfo prefers life's simple joys.

Cashew nuts are Guinea-Bissau's biggest export crop but times are tough for farmers.

Under the slogan 'kefaya' which means 'enough' in Arabic, in 2004 Egyptians began protesting in Cairo against the rule of President Hosni Mubarak. The months of demonstrations took place several years before the Arab Spring swept through the region and they drew many people onto the streets for the first time in their lives. Paul Moss hears from Ahmed Ezzat one of a generation of young Egyptians radicalised by the Kefaya movement.

Photo: Standoff between Egyptian riot police and demonstrators demanding an end to the rule of President Hosni Mubarak. May 2005. Credit: AFP via Getty Images.

In March 1960, the South African police opened fire on a crowd of demonstrators in the township of Sharpeville, killing 69 people and injuring nearly 200 more. The massacre outraged black South Africans, leading to a radicalisation of anti-apartheid organisations such as the ANC and a ruthless crackdown on dissent by the whites-only government. Simon Watts hears the memories of Nyakane Tsolo, who organised the demonstration in Sharpeville, and Ian Berry, a photographer whose pictures of the killings caused an international outcry.

PHOTO: The crowd fleeing from the police at Sharpeville in 1960 (Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

Will there ever be equality in machine learning technology or will our cultural biases continue to be reflected in algorithms? Dr. Sandra Wachter from the Oxford Internet Institute argues in her latest research that data bias is unavoidable because of the current bias within western culture. How we now try and negate that bias in AI is critical if we are ever to ensure that this technology meets current legislation like EU non-discrimination law. She’s on the programme to discuss how we make real progress in AI equality.

This research has come from the Oxford Internet Institute, whose Incoming Director is also on the show – Professor Victoria Nash tells us of her plans in the new role.

EdTech in Malawi A programme which allows seven year olds to have three lessons a week on ipads in Malawi is narrowing the learning gap between girls and boys. With an average class size of around 60 pupils with one teacher, young girls are often left behind and drop out of formal education, but with this individual approach many more are staying on in school. The programme is so successful it is now being rolled out to hundreds of schools, with the hope of going nationwide. Director for Education, Youth and Sports Lucia Chidalengwa of Education, Youth and Sports in Malawi’s Ntcheu district explains why this approach is so successful.

Online learning via your games console With COVID cases rising in many countries and some regions even facing a third wave of the pandemic, many children around the world will continue to learn remotely – but what if there is no computer or laptop for them to use at home? How about converting a games console into an online school workstation? Reporter Chris Berrow shows you how to do it by powering up his games console and getting online to learn.

(Image: Getty images:)

The programme is presented by Gareth Mitchell with expert commentary from Bill Thompson.

Studio Manager: Giles Aspen Producers: Emil Petrie and Ania Lichtarowicz

When Dr Henry Chakava became Kenya's first African book editor in 1972, there were virtually no books or educational material published in African languages, even in Kiswahili. He made it his priority to translate work by African authors into African languages, he also commissioned original work in several of Kenya's many languages, and published hundreds of textbooks. A champion of cultural diversity across East Africa, Dr Chakava tells Rebecca Kesby why he devoted his life to preserving and enriching the region's languages, and why he believes even more must be done to make sure they survive and thrive in the future.

(Photo: Dr Henry Chakava. From his private collection)

The 5th Pan-African Congress was held in Manchester in 1945 to shape the post-war struggle against colonialism and racial discrimination. Prominent black activists, intellectuals and trade union leaders from around the world attended the meeting - among them Kwame Nkrumah and Jomo Kenyatta, the future leaders of independent Ghana and Kenya. We delve into the archive to hear from one of the delegates, the late ANC activist and writer Peter Abrahams, and we speak to the historian Prof Hakim Adi from Chichester University about the significance of the meeting.

Photo: The 5th Pan African Congress, 1945 (Manchester Libraries)

One of the leading figures in Nigeria's fight for democracy was Margaret Ekpo, a feminist politician and trades union leader. After Nigerian independence in 1960, Ekpo became an MP and a hero to a generation of Nigerians - men and women. Rebecca Kesby tells the story of her life.

PHOTO: Margaret Ekpo in London in August 1953 (ANL/Shutterstock)

A flightless bird, the dodo became extinct just decades after being discovered on the uninhabited island of Mauritius by European sailors. Because dodos couldn't fly they, and their eggs, were eaten by explorers and the cats and rats that came with them on board their ships. By the late 1600s there were none left. Simon Watts charts the demise and subsequent popularisation of the dodo.

Image: An engraving of a dodo. Credit: Science Photo Library.

After Apartheid all South Africans, regardless of race, were finally able to vote for the first time in April 1994. Organising the elections was a huge logistical challenge, white supremacists staged terror attacks to try to sabotage the vote and violent clashes between rival political groups threatened to disrupt voting day. Rev Frank Chikane was on the Independent Electoral Commission, the body charged with running the elections, and he explained to Rebecca Kesby how much stress, and joy there was the day all South Africans finally got democracy.

(Photo: Nelson Mandela, leader of the ANC (African National Congress) and presidential candidate, voting in the 1994 general election in South Africa. Copyright: BBC)

Lyse Doucet travels to Liberia to talk to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first elected female head of state in Africa.

This five-part series features in-depth interviews with remarkable women about the relationship between women and democracy, on the 100th anniversary of the first time British women won the vote. Lyse travels across the globe, meeting women from Iceland, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland and Saudi Arabia to discover that the victory of 1918 in Britain has continued to resonate through the century. She hears reflections from some of the world's most influential women's rights activists, including former presidents, and shares her own experiences in reporting from some of the most troubled regions.

Producer: Ben Carter Researcher: Louise Byrne.