April 08
Africa: Global Trade in Wild Birds Is Poorly Monitored - the Risks to Wildlife, Ecosystems and Human Health
Birds have, for centuries, been captured from the wild to be kept in cages - valued for their looks, songs and ability to imitate sounds. Data compiled by the Convention on… Read more »
Africa: Credit and Credibility - Rating Agency Errors Come With a Cost
The rating agency S&P Global's Africa Credit Rating Trends 2025 reviews the past year's rating activities and analyses the continent's prospects for 2026. It is an important… Read more »
April 07
South Africa: South African Court Orders Eskom to Disclose R70 Billion Coal and Diesel Contracts - Why the Ruling Matters
South Africa's Supreme Court of Appeal recently ruled that the country's state-owned electricity utility Eskom must disclose its contracts with coal and diesel suppliers. This is a… Read more »
Africa: Planting Trees to Remove Carbon Can Harm the Environment - or Protect It - Study Highlights Trade-Offs
Global efforts to limit climate change require deep cuts to carbon emissions. However, global emissions are still growing. Currently, we emit roughly 42 billion tonnes of carbon… Read more »
April 06
Nigeria: Nigeria Imports 70% of Its Medicines - Why Local Manufacturing Doesn't Meet Demand
Nigeria imports at least 70% of its medicines. This is striking for a country of over 230 million people and at least 120 active pharmaceutical manufacturers. Read more »
Kenya: Kenya's Counties Get Budgets to Undo Inequality - How It's Helped Households
Kenya devolved power and public spending to 47 counties in 2013. This was in line with a global trend in which governments were pushing power and resources down to local levels in… Read more »
April 01
Africa: Iran War - What African Countries Can Do to Get Through the Crisis and Emerge in a Better Place
By Easter 2026 it was still not clear when - or how - the war initiated by Israel and the US against Iran would end. But what was already clear was that it would harm Africa in a… Read more »
March 31
Kenya: Kenya's New Infrastructure Fund Is Long Overdue - but Design Flaws Could Limit Its Impact
Kenya is laying the ground for an infrastructure fund which will raise money for new projects - such as roads, energy and ports - through public-private partnerships, privatisation… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa's Meerkat Telescope Is Mapping Previously Invisible Spaces Between Galaxies - and It's Found 60 New Cosmic Structures
Astronomers are uncovering previously hidden structures within some of the universe's largest objects, known as galaxy clusters. Using the powerful MeerKAT radio telescope in South… Read more »
March 30
South Africa: Economic Policy in South Africa Neglects Informal Traders - 5 Focus Areas to Support the Sector
The informal economy is responsible for a large share of economic output across the continent. Yet economic policy is almost always designed for the formal economy and overlooks… Read more »
Africa: Africa's Electric Motorbike Future Can Be Built Locally and Powered By Solar - Our 6,000km Ride Shows What's Possible
Across much of Africa, motorcycles are not leisure vehicles. They are workhorses. They carry commuters, schoolchildren, goods, medicines and deliveries. For millions of people,… Read more »
March 29
Africa: AI-Driven Border Surveillance Is Spreading Across West Africa. What This Means for Migrants' Rights
West Africa as a region has long had one of the most mobile populations in the world. Since 1979, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) has allowed citizens of its… Read more »
Africa: Development Finance in Africa - Economist Explains How Private Savings Could Be Unlocked
Africa holds abundant private savings, but much of it remains informal. As a result, its contribution to development financing is limited. Read more »
March 26
Africa: Could This Energy Crisis Be Worse for the Global Economy Than Covid?
Despite reports of negotiations between the US and the Iranian regime, the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed to most oil tankers, with only a small number of vessels… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa's Power Utility Eskom Wants to Cut Electricity to Municipalities That Haven't Paid - Households May Pay the Price
South Africa's state-owned electricity provider, Eskom, announced in early March 2026 that it would cut off the power to 14 municipalities that collectively owe it more than R110… Read more »
Nigeria: Makemation - a Nollywood Movie That Shows AI in Action in Africa
A new feature film, Makemation, is an African coming-of-age story set in a time of artificial intelligence (AI). Read more »
March 25
Africa: Heatwaves Will Be Worst for Rural Parts of Africa - New Model Shows Tens of Millions Face Dangerous Warming By 2100
Ask people where heatwaves hit hardest and most will probably say cities, which trap heat in concrete and metal and generate warmth from traffic and industry. Read more »
Congo-Kinshasa: Mini-Grids Can Supply Electricity, but What About Demand? a Private DR Congo Project Shows How It Can Work
More than 560 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live without electricity. About 384 million live in countries classified by the World Bank as conflict-affected, where poverty,… Read more »
Africa: A Connection to Nature Fuels Well-Being Worldwide, According to a Study of 38,000 People
When life feels overwhelming, many people instinctively turn to nature. A walk in a park. Sitting by the ocean. Watching a sunset. Is this just a pleasant feeling, or is there… Read more »
March 22
Africa: A Million New Spacex Satellites Will Destroy the Night Sky - for Everyone On Earth
More than 10,000 Starlink satellites currently orbit the Earth. We see them crawling across dark skies, no matter how remote our location, and streaking through images from… Read more »
March 24
Africa: Africa Needs to Fight for a Better Deal On World Trade Rules - It Should Lead the Charge On These 3 Priorities At This Week's WTO Meeting
African countries face many trade barriers today. Wealthier countries subsidise their farmers, making African agricultural exports less competitive. Global trade rules promise… Read more »
March 23
South Africa: Bad Rural Roads in South Africa Aren't Just a Technical Problem - They Block People's Rights - Report
In many rural parts of South Africa, getting to a hospital, school or workplace depends on the condition of a gravel road. When that road collapses during rain or potholes make it… Read more »
Africa: Why Africa Needs a Green Bank to Fund Climate Action and Build Its Own Renewable Technology
Climate change is a profound challenge to the livelihoods of many people in African countries who have contributed so little to its cause. More frequent extreme weather events… Read more »
March 22
South Africa: South Africa's Gig Economy Workers Set to Get More Protection Under Planned Labour Law Reforms
South Africa's minister of employment and labour has published a sweeping set of proposed amendments to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the Employment Equity Act and the… Read more »
March 19
Africa: Oil Price Surge Is Hurting African Economies - Scholars in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa Take Stock
The attacks by the US and Israel on Iran, which started on 28 February 2026, upended key supply chains, driving oil prices above US$100 a barrel. The spike followed Iran's closure… Read more »
