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Heritage: Nduduzo Makhathini, the South African pianist, composer and educator, brings his Zulu culture to bear on his new album uNomkhubulwane. Photo: Arthur Dlamini

A close listen: Jazz pro, healer and scholar stuns with depth of meaning and musicality

South African pianist and composer Nduduzo Makhathini’s latest album, uNomkhubulwane, is a masterpiece of transcendent spiritual jazz that draws on his Zulu cultural heritage and…

(Mladen ANTONOV / AFP) (Photo by MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP via Getty Images)

Plastic waste is a planetary crisis

A United Nations meeting in Kenya is a step towards developing a legally binding global treaty that will decisively tackle plastic pollution

As the coronavirus spreads, governments and professionals are forced to ask a more fundamental question: “Is assisted reproduction an essential service?”

Are surrogate and IVF babies ‘essential’ in a pandemic?

Now is the time to examine how reproductive health in South Africa is riddled by inequities based on race and class

It’s important to put all the bad news in perspective, said Hans Rosling in his book Factfulness.

Seven charts that show the world is actually becoming a better place

A look at key data shows that the world is much better off today than ever before in history

Much like the burden of infertility, the responsibility of treatment is known to fall disproportionately on women, says the writer (Phanie)

Human egg providers are changing the way we think

South Africa is a popular destination for an ‘egg safari’, and women travel abroad to donate eggs

Lest we forget: A wall at the memorial site of the former Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau

Why it could cost less than R120 per year to save a life

Maternal deaths in developing regions would fall by 73% if all women had access to contraception and maternal healthcare, shows new research.

Reproductive medicine specialist Dr Lawrence Gobetz says unnecessary procedures may compromise your chances of falling pregnant.

Should government health schemes pay for infertility treatment?

"Women are blamed for infertility when, in fact, as we know from research, it is quite often on the man’s side.”

Zuma also delivered what appeared to be a veiled threat to the current ANC leadership

Donor sperm and eggs: How much should a child know?

The Law Reform Commission is examining the rights of donor-conceived children to learn their donors’ identity, but what would a new system look like?

Video/Podcast

Infertility and tradition: ‘Society thinks having children is your womanhood’

We speak to a young, black woman who is infertile about the stigma she faces in her community.

Sorry man, Julius, but your mass reproduction plan is pretty kak

Rebecca Davis reveals to Malema that white people are giant pandas in the bedroom, so there’s no need for a plan which would seriously suck for women.

The theme for World Health Day is ‘healthy beginnings, hopeful futures’ and aims to encourage governments to take actions to reduce mothers’ deaths during pregnancy and childbirth.

New study holds hope for obese women to fall pregnant

Researchers have identified some of the reasons obese women struggle to conceive, and warn that their babies are likely to become overweight.

Women are at the bottom of the pile when policies are designed without them. Photo: File

Fracking chemicals ‘may affect fertility’

Researchers in the US have found that many of the 750 or so chemicals used in fracking are associated with fertility and developmental problems.

‘My eggs use Zimmer frames’

Men are from Mars. Women are from Venus. Infertility is from the Moon.

In-vitro fertilisation.

The brave new world of the egg trade

South Africa has long been a destination for fertility tourists. Now agencies are recruiting SA women to fuel India’s burgeoning surrogacy business.

The Androcryos sperm bank in Parktown

Seeding the future: On being a sperm donor in Johannesburg

There’s a market for the life that lies in your loins. Billy Rivers considers a donation.

Hope for parents with HIV

Only a few clinics in South Africa offer fertility treatment to HIV-positive couples.

Lab-grown sperm raise hope for male infertility

Scientists have grown sperm in the laboratory in a landmark study that could help preserve cancer patients’ fertility.

Doing babies the Danish way

Doing babies the Danish way

<b>Jessica McCallin</b> wanted to have a child on her own using donated sperm. But it’s not that easy in Britain.

The heretical idea of making people

The heretical idea of making people

The award of the Nobel prize, when it came in October 2010, was long overdue.

Antioxidants may help with fertility problems

Couples who struggle to have a baby may be more likely to conceive if the man takes antioxidants, scientists say.