Season 23

As rich nations celebrate the success of their Covid vaccination programmes, most people in Africa haven’t even received one life-saving injection. As variants of the virus emerge from unvaccinated populations, Seyi Rhodes visits South Sudan to investigate the reasons behind vaccine inequality. Poor of non-existent distribution of the vaccine is only one problem as Rhodes meets many people convinced by claims that vaccines are deadly. As anti-vaxx sentiment grows amid a stalling rollout, Rhodes meets a pro-vaxx preacher in a refugee camp with a David-versus-Goliath task.

With the pandemic leaving many Thais cash-strapped and jobless, huge numbers of farmers and traders alike have turned to crypto to boost their fortunes. Though cryptocurrency is volatile, prone to scammers and market manipulation, Thailand remains a crypto-friendly nation, keen to harness new blockchain innovations in a new technological era. Jonathan Miller travels to north-eastern Thailand to meet a rice farmer who’s trading crypto using a smartphone, solar panel and online tutorials. However, in Bangkok, a man who made and lost nearly a million US dollars represents the downside to crypto.

Ashionye Ogene travels to the bustling market of Kantamanto, in Ghana’s capital city Accra, to meet the traders struggling to sell the clothes the UK no longer wants. In 2019, roughly 63 million kilograms of clothes were imported into Ghana from the UK to 30,000 traders, who relied on good-quality second-hand clothes to make a living. However, what isn’t sold is going to waste and contributing to an environmental catastrophe. Mountains of waste exist on the outskirts of the city, much of which can take up to 200 years to decompose, with excess waste spilling over into the city’s slums.

Ecuador's murder rate soars as a lethal and bloody battle between drug cartels rages

Krishnan Guru-Murthy reports from St Louis, Missouri, highlighting a drugs epidemic that has killed more people than Covid and is disproportionately affecting black people. Opioid painkiller fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and much cheaper to buy. Its devastating effects are being felt across the US, but particularly in rust belt middle-America towns like St Louis, which not only has one of the highest murder rates in the States, but last year also saw 436 overdose deaths. Guru-Murthy meets residents trying to dull the pain of their life with fentanyl, learning that many of the city’s addicts are homeless or prostitutes.

Fatima Manji meets the policewomen taking on Pakistan's gender violence epidemic

The city of Houston is at the centre of a sex trafficking crackdown. There are more reported cases of child sex trafficking there than any other city in the United States. Across its state of Texas it's estimated at least 80,000 children and young people have been forced into the industry in recent years, usually by people they know. Reporter Yousra Elbagir tracks the heart-breaking search of one mother looking for her daughter, who was trafficked into prostitution when she was just 15. She also follows the private detective and armed bounty hunters trying to rescue teenagers from Houston's seedy underworld.

Sumo wrestling is a centuries-old tradition that has its roots in the Shinto religion. Its top wrestlers hold God-like status. All aspiring wrestlers must first be recruited by a stable, where professional sumos eat, sleep and train. However, life inside a stable is shrouded in secrecy. Reporter Sahar Zand heads to Japan to examine the darker side of sumo, from health issues to claims of bullying and concerns of head injuries.

Events taking place in Guatemala, where a silent crisis of abuse and child pregnancies is robbing a generation of their youth. Reporter Anja Popp discovers that girls in rural districts are particularly vulnerable, with no phone signal and no neighbours. She follows one dedicated case worker trying to reverse deep-rooted attitudes towards women in a country still reeling from the legacy of a brutal civil war.

A report on Gaza's underground art scene, within which young Gazans are trying to express themselves in the face of an Israeli blockade. As Jonathan Miller discovers, simple pleasures - such as going to the cinema or putting on a play - can be a risky endeavour. Nineteen-year-old singer and actress Rahaf, is just one person whose career has been forced underground, running the gauntlet of Gaza's morality police.

How, in Kenya, tensions over food are getting deadly as the Horn of Africa suffers its worst drought in 40 years. Reporter Seyi Rhodes travels the length of the country following herdsmen, farmers, and poachers - all competing with each other to survive on a shrinking supply of fertile land. In Turkana, Seyi discovers a dystopian scene, where grasslands have turned to dust and it is impossible to grow the land or raise cattle. For many poaching has become a necessity, placing the inhabitants of Tsava National Park, one of the world's biggest game reserves, at risk.

Guillermo Galdos reports on a psychedelic drug derived from toad venom, being sold in Mexico as a possible cure for mental illness and drug addiction. Galdos meets meets controversial doctor Gerry Sandoval, who demonstrates how he catches toads and extracts their venom as he claims the popularity of the natural drug has now made it more valuable than gold on the black market. Concerns are now mounting around the safety and sustainability of the unregulated drug, amid fears of negative long-term effects.