Nigerian school collapses after rain

Eleven children were crushed to death and seven were seriously wounded on Wednesday when a school building collapsed in the northern Nigerian city of Kano. Witnesses said 10 of the dead were girls between five and 11 years old. They were in class when the mud-walled Islamiya School in Kano's ancient Muslim district crumbled after a heavy overnight downpour.

Kano and other neighbouring states in the arid extreme north of Nigeria have been pounded by unusually heavy rains in the past month.

Ghana looks to musical future

A leading Ghana politician has called for a more a holistic system of education for Ghana's children, with specific emphasis on creative talents. Maxwell Kofi Jumah, Kumasi metropolitan chief executive, was presenting a set of brass-band musical instruments to local schools. He hoped the instruments would be used to promote indigenous music in an exportable way. "Some of the children might one day grow up to be musical giants like Miles Davis, Kenny G or Michael Jackson."