Business Daily

The physical infrastructure of the United States is crumbling and businesses there are feeling the effects. So why is this bill that aims to restore roads, bridges and communications facing such a treacherous political road ahead? Successive Presidents have tried and failed to get something done about it. Now President Biden is having a go. A farmer in Mississippi tells Will Bain about the impact poor roads have on his business. He also hears from Emily Feenstra from the American Society of Civil Engineers who outlines just how bad the situation is and from the former Democratic Governor of Pennsylvania Ed Rendell who now co-chairs the infrastructure think-tank Building America's Future. (Picture credit: Getty Images)

The founders of German biotechnology company BioNTech were researching how to fight cancers using messenger RNA, "the unloved cousin of DNA", when covid-19 first appeared and they realised mRNA could be used to make a vaccine for the disease. Financial Times journalist Joe Miller has been following the company since just before the pandemic and tells Rebecca Kesby how they created the first covid-19 vaccine. Could mRNA help cure other diseases and improve vaccine access to low income countries? We ask Oksana Pyzik of the UCL School of Pharmacy. And how might the technology change the whole pharmaceutical industry? We hear from Dr Richard Torbett, CEO of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.Producer: Benjie Guy(Picture: a collection of mRNA covid vaccines. Credit: Getty Images.)

Tourism in Africa, even before the pandemic, was still not bringing in as many visitor dollars as it might. But, from stargazing trips to plans for a brand-new museum of evolution, we hear from the people changing perceptions around holidays in sub-Saharan Africa. Safari tours aren't going away, but the industry is changing and that's good news for Africa's underperforming tourism sector. Vivienne Nunis hears from Susan Murabana, CEO of The Travelling Telescope under the stars just outside Nairobi, Dr. Muchazondida Mkono, a Zimbabwean academic and lecturer in tourism at the University of Queensland Business School, and from famous Kenyan paleoanthropologist Richard Leakey.(Image credit: Supoj Buranaprapapong, Getty Images.)

Is corporate social responsibility, so called "greenwashing", really changing carbon emitting businesses or just making it look that way? Canadian businessman Tariq Fancy used to work as Blackrock's Chief Investment Officer for sustainable investing. He tells Ed Butler why he thinks CSR isn't a good enough tool to achieve a net zero economy.(Picture: Two climate activists from Extinction Rebellion talk to each other outside the Bank of England during a protest. Credit: Getty Images.).

In this edition of Business Weekly, we look at why one of the poorest countries in Latin America, El Salvador, decided to make Bitcoin legal tender. We also find out what happened when the cryptocurrency crashed on the first day it was rolled out. We hear about the devastating economic effect of covid in Kenya as it rolls out further curfew restrictions. Also, in a few weeks’ time, the matriarch of European politics, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, will step down. We hear what issues are playing on the minds of German voters as they get ready to head to the polls. And for years Lamu, Kenya’s ancient trading port, has been in decline. But government hopes the opening of a vast, new facility means it can be a commercial superstar once more. Plus, the chief executive of Babbel, Arne Schepker tells us why the company is listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and whether lockdowns have impacted on people’s desire to learn languages. Business Weekly is presented by Lucy Burton and produced by Matthew Davies.

The UK's suffering a huge shortage of lorry drivers, but where have 100,000 drivers gone? The shortage is now having an impact on everything from chicken in restaurants, to mattresses in furniture shops, fuel at pumps and even beer in pubs. So what's going on? We hear from drivers, driving trainers, retailers and the wholesale industry and what's causing the shortfall and what can be done to solve it. Picture credit: Getty Images

Lamu, once a bustling gateway to the Indian Ocean, has seen its fortunes decline in recent decades, not least because of its position near the border with Somalia, and the threat from militants. But earlier this year a new deep sea port was opened, which, the Kenyan government hopes, will make Lamu a commercial superstar once more. Vivienne Nunis takes a tour of the port with Dolly Okanga from Kenya Ports Authority. We also speak to Famao Shukry about a special kind of sea turtle in the area, and from Atwaa Salim from the Lamu Marine Conservation trust, who explains why the area’s mangroves are so significant to the economy and the environment. Picture: Dolly Okanga from the Kenyan Ports Authority. Credit: Vivienne Nunis / BBC

AI will be the defining development of the 21st century and in the next two decades it is set to transform our lives. Kai Fu Lee, a former CEO of Google China and AI pioneer tells us that the technology will revolutionise health and education and has the power to create great wealth but it also has a dark side. AI he says, can pose huge risks like when used in autonomous weapons. Kai Fu Lee believes that we are now at a turning point, and is urging society to wake up to the benefits and the existential threats. (Image: Kai Fu Lee, Image credit: Getty Images)

During coronavirus, while case numbers have seemed relatively low, there’s been a huge economic impact on many Kenyans. We hear from the BBC’s Michael Kaloki about the particular challenges of the Kibera slum, from single mother and Kibera resident Josephine, who Business Daily has heard from several times since the start of the pandemic. We also hear how reverse migration has meant that some Kenyans have returned to rural areas. Chris Macoloo the Africa director for the international development organisation World Neighbors explains.(Photo: Kibera resident Josephine. Credit: Vivienne Nunis / BBC)

On Business Weekly, we hear from the World Meteorological Organisation which has been tracking weather-related disasters for the last 50 years. We look at the economic and human cost of extreme weather - and ask if anything, really, can be done to protect ourselves against it. Covid has claimed yet more victims in India as the economic hardship brought by the coronavirus sees a rise in the number of child brides forced into marriage. We hear from a young girl who resisted her family’s attempt to marry her off to an older man. Plus, filming for the latest Mission Impossible film has been put on hold multiple times over the last 18 months thanks to coronavirus cases on set as well as covid restrictions. But now, Paramount Pictures is suing its insurance company, saying the resulting pay-out doesn’t begin to cover its losses. And as more of us head back to the office, whatever will we wear? Business Weekly is produced by Matthew Davies and presented by Lucy Burton.

When are reviews real and when are they fake? We'll be asking a range of guests whether it's ok to be paid to do a review and how online sites can detect fraudulent write ups. We’ll also hear why negative feedback can be good for a business in the long run. Elizabeth Hotson speaks to James Kay, head of corporate communications at Tripadvisor, Carolyn Jameson, chief trust officer at Trustpilot and Michael Hanney, founder of Review Solicitors. We also hear from restaurant pr Hugh Richard Wright and Alison Edgar, author of 'The art of getting what you want.' Plus, Cynthia Giles from Cut Throat Marketing explains why negative reviews aren't necessarily bad for business. Presenter: Elizabeth Hotson Producer: Sarah Treanor(Picture: A mouth and comment symbols. Credit: Getty Images)

Why did one of the world's best-known porn provider platforms, OnlyFans, decide to ban porn? The controversial site has become a global phenomenon over the last five years, but its decision to outlaw adult content got everyone talking. It appeared to bow to pressure from financial services companies and anti-porn groups. Then it changed its mind. We look at the pressures the company is under and also at the business logic of internet porn. We speak to content creators Jessica Starling and Alana Evans, President of APAG; Mike Stabile, Director of Public Affairs at the Free Speech Coalition and Alexander Konrad from Forbes. BBC reporter Noel Titherage talks us through his investigation of the site. (Image: OnlyFans logo; Image credit: Getty Images)

How did one of the world's biggest sporting brands end up in such a financial mess? FC Barcelona's collapse, from European Champions League winning juggernaut, to unable to register its players under salary cap rules took less than a decade. So how did it take so little time for one of football's giants to fall so hard? We explore that with club members and supporters, as well as the Financial Times journalist Simon Kuper, the author of a new book about Barcelona; Barca, the Inside story of the world's greatest football club.Picture credit: Getty Images

Closed schools and economic hardship due to Coronavirus are seeing more young girls married off. We’ll hear from a young girl who managed to resist her family’s attempts to marry her to an older man. But many other young girls are not so lucky. Anindit Roy Chowdhury of Save The Children India estimates tens of thousands of such marriages may have already taken place during the pandemic, often with illegal dowries being exchanged for the young girls. Dr. Kriti Bharti, a leading activist for children’s rights, the peculiar economics of Indian marriages, along with some surprise consequences of the pandemic, gives parents a strong incentive to marry their girls off young, even in secret. And economist Dr. Monika Chaudhary reflects how this crisis highlights the longer-running tragedy of how the economic system India denies girls the chance of proper schooling.(Image credit: Getty Images.)

Many of us are preparing go back into the office but after more than a year of working from home for a lot of people, have we forgotten how to dress professionally? Or are we chomping at the bit to put on the armour that is traditional office wear? Or it time to entirely rethink the whole concept of office dress codes? Presenter, Elizabeth Hotson strolls down London's Saville Row to meet tailor Richard Anderson and stylist Lizzie Edwards gives some us tips on how to dress to impress. Deirdre Clemente, a historian who specializes in clothing and fashion at the University of Nevada tells us why March 2020 marked a huge shift in sartorial expectations and photographer Victoria Rose describes how her approach to fashion shifted during the pandemic. Plus Vivienne Nunis and Anastasia Wanjiru in Nairobi, Kenya explore shifting norms in workplace clothing. (Picture of a suit fitting via Getty Images) Producer: Elizabeth Hotson

While the eyes of the world are on Afghanistan and the US withdrawal, the American Vice President is trying to generate some headlines of her own during a charm offensive in South East Asia. We’ll hear what she’s been saying and what she hopes to achieve. Zambia has a new president and he’s made some big promises. Can he afford to keep them? And do you feel like time is just running away from you? Or perhaps it has slowed down to an unrelenting crawl? We’ll hear how our brains interpret time - and what we can do to make it work better for us. Business Weekly is produced by Clare Williamson and presented by Lucy Burton.

Nobel laureate Richard Thaler talks about why his and Cass Sunstein's 'nudge' theory needs a re-boot.

Gaisu fled the Taliban when she was 18. Now she's fleeing again. Speaking to the BBC's Tamasin Ford, Gaisu recounts being engaged to the son of a local warlord at age 6, fleeing to the United States at 18, and then returning as a civil servant after the Taliban were toppled. She recounts her time as the only female journalist at a local radio station as a teenager, how she butted heads with the Taliban and how her mother inspired her to be a feminist from a young age. We'll also hear how in the post-Taliban era Gaisu worked to get more women into public and government roles. And she tells Tamasin how she feels now, seeing the country come fully under Taliban rule once again, and women once again disappearing into the margins of society.(Image credit: A woman in Afghanistan in 1996. Image credit: Getty Images.)

Finding a place to live in Nigeria’s big cities. Finding somewhere to live can be stressful wherever you are in the world. But in Lagos, Africa’s fastest growing city, add in sexism, tribalism and stumping up more than a year’s worth of rent in advance. Are these practices making it an impossible place to live and what is being done to try and change the situation? Tamasin Ford speaks to Stephanie Chizoba Odili and Chiamaka Okafor who both, as single women, had problems finding a place to rent. She also speaks to Uchenna Idoko, the Executive Director of the Centre for Gender Economics in Lagos. She says Nigeria's patriarchal structure dictates how marriage is viewed as the single most important social custom, awarding women both respect and status - and that it has to change. And Ugo Okoro is the co-founder of Muster, a housing app that allows people to rent out their rooms in Lagos, Abuja and Kalabah. He says they are working hard to change the narrative by eliminating prejudice, sexism and tribalism so ther

The economy of Afghanistan is collapsing as remittances and foreign aid dry up. As the militant Taliban consolidate their control over the country, it's unclear whether they will be capable, or even interested, in propping up the economy to prevent further humanitarian crises. Today on Business Daily, we're looking at how the economics of life under the Taliban. Professor Jonathan Goodhand of SOAS University of London, explains how the Taliban managed to generate revenues over the years since the US invasion, from local taxation on commodities, as well as support from sympathetic parties outside the country. Ian Hannan, a British mining engineer, says the Taliban has also benefitted enormously from mining in recent years. Now, the big question is whether they will be able to manage the country's entire economy, and Vanda Felbab-Brown of the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C. thinks Afghanistan cannot survive without the aid it has relied on for decades.Producer: Frey Lindsay(Image: Taliban militants in