September 14
South Africa: Marriages of Inconvenience - the Fraught Politics of Coalitions
The popularity of the African National Congress (ANC), which has governed South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994, has slipped in successive elections from its high of over… Read more »
September 13
Zimbabwe: How Zimbabwean Artist Kudzanai Chiurai Has Reinvented the Idea of a Library
Zimbabwe born artist Kudzanai Chiurai is a phenomenon. He is one of the most challenging and inventive figures in contemporary African art. From large scale photos of fictional… Read more »
September 08
Lesotho: Virtual Exhibition Breathes Life Into Lesotho's Musical Tradition and Clay Art
The start of the news broadcast on Radio Lesotho is signalled by an unforgettable vibrating sound, rather harsh, as if made by a large bird. This is the lesiba, a musical bow. The… Read more »
Nigeria: Tribute to Yusuf Grillo - Nigerian Art Activist, Scholar and Bridge Builder
Nigerian contemporary visual artist and scholar Yusuf Grillo died on 23 August 2021, aged 87 years. Art scholar Sule James explains Grillo's influence and impact on art on the… Read more »
September 02
South Africa: Shack Dwellers Show How Grassroots Democracy Is Done - New Book
Many of the recent debates about democracy in South Africa point to the danger of growing authoritarianism or stress how the country's colonial and apartheid past continues to… Read more »
September 01
South Africa: Book Predicts ANC's Last Decade of Political Dominance
The declining political dominance of South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) has increasingly attracted scholarly attention since 2009. Political analyst Ralph… Read more »
August 29
South Africa: The First-Ever Dictionary of South Africa's Kaaps Language Has Launched - Why It Matters
It's been in existence since the 1500s but the Kaaps language, synonymous with Cape Town in South Africa, has never had a dictionary until now. The Trilingual Dictionary of Kaaps… Read more »
August 23
Africa: Africa's Oldest Dance Festival Evolves to Overcome the Pandemic
Now in its 23rd year, JOMBA! is a contemporary dance festival housed at the University of KwaZulu-Natal's Centre for Creative Arts, one of five festivals run by the Durban-based… Read more »
August 19
Nigeria: Big Brother Naija - Why Nigerians Are Obsessed With the Reality TV Show
Within the last five years, the Big Brother Naija reality TV show has become Nigeria's most watched offering on television. Featuring a diverse mix of housemates drawn from across… Read more »
South Africa: Sindiwe Magona's Devastating, Uplifting Story of South African Women
Reading South African author Sindiwe Magona's latest novel When the Village Sleeps reminded me of my time researching and teaching in the country's Eastern Cape province a decade… Read more »
August 17
South Africa: How a Film Is Fighting the Erasure of South African Activist Dulcie September
Film impact involves designing and implementing strategies to ensure a social justice film reaches the right audience so it has the best chance to bring about the desired change.… Read more »
Nigeria: Why Nollywood Is Obsessed With Remakes of Classic Movies
Since the record-breaking success of Ramsey Nouah's 2019 sequel to the Nollywood classic, Living in Bondage, the Nigerian film industry has been overtaken by a frenzy of remakes… Read more »
August 11
Nigeria: Nigeria Has Democracy but Not Development. How to Fix It
After struggling for 39 years to develop a fertile ground for democratic governance, Nigeria had its turning point in May 1999 when it became the world's fourth largest democracy.… Read more »
August 05
South Africa: How Communists Have Shaped South Africa's History Over 100 Years
Until recently, just living to a 100 was an achievement worth celebrating for itself. In England new centenarians receive a special card from their queen. Perhaps the same… Read more »
August 04
Nigeria: Hustler Literature Sheds Light On the World of Internet Fraud in Nigeria
Hustler narratives have emerged as a genre in world literature since the mid 1960s. It is an expansive genre, but deals broadly with the shortcomings of any given political economy… Read more »
August 02
Nigeria: Germany Is Returning Nigeria's Looted Benin Bronzes - Why It's Not Nearly Enough
After years of pressure, Germany recently announced that an agreement had been reached to return hundreds of priceless artefacts and artworks that had been looted from Nigeria in… Read more »
July 28
South Africa: The Story of an African Children's Book That Explains the Science of Skin Colour
Skin We Are In is a landmark South African book for children (and grown-ups) on the subject of skin colour. Published in 2018, it was co-authored by an artist and a scientist, both… Read more »
July 24
Zimbabwe: Building an Art Gallery in the Midst of War in Zimbabwe
After being disenchanted with his work as a detective inspector in Rhodesia's British South Africa Police, Derek Huggins quit his job and in 1975 decided to open an art gallery.… Read more »
July 20
Lesotho: The Spirit, Life and Art of Tsepo Tshola, Pastor of South African Pop
I grieve to start this way. No sooner had I struggled to find some means to say my goodbyes to Mabi Thobejane and Steve Kekana, than South African music lost singer and composer… Read more »
July 18
Nigeria: Ola Rotimi - the Enduring Influence of a Nigerian Theatre Giant
Twenty years after his death, the Nigerian dramatist Ola Rotimi is attracting renewed interest. San Diego State University hosted a webinar in April 2021 where the affection and… Read more »
July 16
Lesotho: The Village Pope Has Passed - Remembering Tsepo Tshola, Lesotho's Musical Giant
"It's the love of what I'm doing that's kept me in the business," declared singer and composer Tsepo Tshola, who passed away in Lesotho on July 15, aged 68. Read more »
July 14
Sierra Leone: How Performing Arts is Used to Map Out Gender Violence in Sierra Leone
It's been more than two years since Sierra Leone declared a state of emergency over sexual and gender-based violence. The declaration followed a public outcry over a spate of high… Read more »
July 12
Nigeria: Adichie and Emezi - Ignore the Noise, Pay Attention to the Conversation
The recent media furore surrounding the "feud" between the celebrated Nigeria-born African diaspora writers Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Akwaeke Emezi conflates issues too easily. Read more »
July 09
South Africa: Mzilikazi Khumalo - a Stellar Zulu, African, Pan African and Cosmopolitan Composer
A composer of great stature, Professor James Stephen Mzilikazi Khumalo (1932-2021) stands out for his contribution to South African arts and culture. He was a distinguished… Read more »
July 08
South Africa: Steve Kekana - an 80s South African Pop Star, and Much More
Steve Kekana was one of South Africa's most popular singers in the 1980s era of soul and disco. But he was many other things besides - he was a law teacher, talk radio host and a… Read more »
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