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Global stories from the BBC’s 40 Language Services, with Faranak Amidi

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services.

Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services

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The Fifth Floor: The Gambia's Political Earthquake

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Adama Barrow, Gambia's President-elect gesturing to the crowd in Kololi, Gambia on 2nd December

09/12/2016 GMT

The Gambia's Political Earthquake

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, The Gambia's Political Earthquake

BBC Africa's Umaru Fofana takes us behind the scenes in Gambia's historic elections

Gambia's surprise election result; Guyana's outmoded dress code; Dastangoi storytelling; Bogota's political  bus fare saga; Egypt's sweet tooth; and women on Wiki

BBC Africa's Umaru Fofana is just back from reporting on the elections in the Gambia and the surprise defeat of the president of 22 years, Yahya Jammeh. He shares the stories that could not be told during the voting, and describes one of the biggest upheavals he has seen in African politics.

Guyana's Outdated Dress Codes  
In Guyana, where the temperature rarely falls below 30 Celsius, many public and government buildings enforce strict dress codes. Even the president has called the rules "archaic" and "backward". The Fifth Floor's Carinya Sharples describes her daily dress dilemmas. 

Dastangoi
Shumaila Khan of BBC Urdu has been investigating Dastangoi, a popular form of storytelling between the 16th and 19th Centuries. It is currently enjoying a revival in Shumaila's hometown, Karachi in Pakistan.

Bus Fares and Politics in Bogota 
The ex-mayor of Bogota, Gustavo Petro, a former left-wing rebel who lowered bus fares whilst in power, has been fined US$70 million for the consequent loss of income for the city. Rafael Abuchaibe of BBC Monitoring explains the politics behind the story.

Egypt's Sugar Craving 
These are hard times for sweet-loving Egyptians, with sugar shortages and price rises. This weekend sees the celebration of Moulid an-Nabi, the Prophet's birthday, when lots of sweets are traditionally consumed. What's the impact of the sugar crisis, and why do Egyptians have such a sweet tooth? Questions for Angy Ghannam at BBC Monitoring in Cairo.

Wiki Edit-a-thon 
Wikipedia is the internet's largest reference library, but women are under-represented, both as the subjects and authors of articles. In response, the BBC's language services embarked on an edit-a-thon to improve the balance. The Fifth Floor finds out about the women who are getting a long overdue write-up.   

(Photo: Adama Barrow, Gambia's President-elect, gesturing to the crowd in Kololi, The Gambia. Credit: Joe Sinclair/AFP/Getty Images.

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