June 30
Kenya: Violence Is the Language of the Kenyan State - 5 Strategies It Uses to Control Citizens
Since the early 2000s, Kenya has come up with legislative changes and thrown a tremendous amount of funding at a range of reforms to improve the relationship between police and… Read more »
June 28
Kenya: Kenya Unrest - the Deep Economic Roots That Brought Gen-Z Onto the Streets
The generation of Kenyans born between 1997 and 2012 - the Gen-Zs - have borne the brunt of the country's slow economic growth. If a country has slow economic growth, it typically… Read more »
Kenya: Hotbed of Corruption - Kenya's Elite Have Captured the State - Unrest Is Inevitable
A strong undercurrent driving the unprecedented anti-tax protests in Kenya is outrage over theft of public resources coupled with the extravagant lifestyles of public servants. Read more »
June 27
Ethiopia: Lucy, Discovered 50 Years Ago in Ethiopia, Stood Just 3.5 Feet Tall
In 1974, on a survey in Hadar in the remote badlands of Ethiopia, U.S. paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson and graduate student Tom Gray found a piece of an elbow joint jutting… Read more »
Kenya: Kenyan Police Use Excessive Force Because They're Serving Political Elites, Not the Public - Policy Analyst
Public protests in Kenya have often been criminalised, leading to brutal police crackdowns. This played out in recent protests against the cost of living in Kenya, and amid an… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya's Protests Happened in Every Major Urban Centre - Why These Spaces Are Explosive
Kenya has a long history of protests. Mass protests took place during the colonial period and continued in the post-independence era. Read more »
June 26
Kenya: Ruto Pulling the Finance Bill Is Unlikely to Satisfy Angry Young Protesters - Here's Why
In a move that shocked observers, Kenya's President William Ruto announced on 26 June he was withdrawing his government's highly controversial finance bill. This followed two days… Read more »
Kenya: Kenyan Police and Protests - Researchers On a Violent, Corrupt Security Force That's Beyond Reform
Kenya's police are being criticised for their violent response to protests over the past week against government proposals to raise US$2.7 billion in additional taxes. Read more »
June 25
East Africa: Lake Victoria - Why So Many Fishers Are Dying and What Can Be Done About It
Small-scale fishers on Lake Victoria (Africa's largest freshwater lake, shared by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) are drowning. Safety issues such as storms, a lack of available life… Read more »
June 24
Kenya: Kenyan Protesters Have Taken to the Streets in Their Thousands - What the Law Says About Their Rights
Across Kenya, thousands of mostly young citizens are protesting against tax proposals tabled by President William Ruto's administration in its annual budget legislation. Using… Read more »
Rwanda: Rwanda's Military Support to Other Countries Is Part of a Strategy to Boost Its Reputation
Rwanda is one of Africa's geographically smallest countries. However, its foreign policy, whose hallmark is military diplomacy, has attracted international attention. Read more »
June 22
Kenya: Kenyan Protesters Driving Change From Screens to the Streets
Nationwide demonstrations have erupted in Kenya over a controversial tax bill. The Finance Bill 2024, initially presented to parliament in May, has sparked discontent with an… Read more »
June 21
Kenya: Khat in Kenya - Why Efforts to Ban This Popular Stimulant Are Unlikely to Work
Khat - the stimulant leaves and twigs of the plant Catha edulis - seemed to have secure legal status in Kenya despite being illegal elsewhere. It had been declared an official cash… Read more »
June 19
Somalia: Somalia Army Vs Al-Shabaab - As African Union Troops Leave, Which Is the Stronger Military Force?
The African Union (AU) has gradually reduced its troop numbers in Somalia since late 2017, from a peak of over 22,000 to about 14,000 today. Another 4,000 AU peacekeepers are… Read more »
June 17
Mauritius: Mauritius' Next Growth Phase - a New Plan Is Needed As the Tax Haven Era Fades
Mauritians will head to the polls by November 2024 and politicians are considering the economic direction of the island country. Read more »
June 12
Sudan: Sudan Food Emergency - Local Researcher Unpacks Scale of the Disaster and What Action Is Needed
The UN recently warned of the risk of famine in Sudan. The war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has killed civilians and devastated livelihoods on a… Read more »
June 06
Madagascar: Baobab Trees All Come From Madagascar - New Study Reveals That Their Seeds and Seedlings Floated to Mainland Africa and All the Way to Australia
There are eight species of baobab in the world, and they have a surprising distribution. Six are found in Madagascar, an island in the Indian Ocean; one is found on the continent… Read more »
Kenya: Between Witchcraft and Terrorism - How Social Fears in Coastal Kenya Impact Religious Expression
Kenya's coastal region has, since about 2011, grappled with terrorist attacks carried out by the Somalia-based Islamic terrorist organisation Al-Shabaab. Read more »
May 30
Sudan: As War Rages in Sudan, Community Resistance Groups Sustain Life
In this episode of Don't Call Me Resilient, Nisrin Elamin, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and African Studies at the University of Toronto, paints a grim picture of life in… Read more »
May 28
Sudan: Iran's Intervention in Sudan's Civil War Advances Its Geopolitical Goals - but Not Without Risks
Iran's role in funding and arming proxy groups in the Middle East has been well documented and has gotten extra attention since the Hamas-led attack in Israel in October 2023.… Read more »
May 29
Tanzania: Tanzania's Dams - Flood Risk Depends On How They're Planned and Operated
The Rufiji River, which drains into Tanzania's south-east coast, experienced a major wave of flooding in April 2024. The flooding caused tragic loss of life and affected at least… Read more »
May 26
East Africa: Horn of Africa Droughts - How a Network of Groundwater Bores Could Help - Study
The Horn of Africa recently suffered its worst drought in almost half a century, and its sixth failed rainfall season in a row. Read more »
Uganda: Men Still Dominate Uganda's Party Politics - Women's Participation Is Mostly Cosmetic
Electoral gender quotas in Uganda - first introduced in 1989 - have increased women's numbers in Uganda's parliament to 34%. Today there are 189 women out of 557 members of… Read more »
May 22
Tanzania: Tanganyika and Zanzibar - Tanzania's 60-Year-Old Union May Need a Restructure
On 26 April 2024, Tanzania celebrated 60 years of the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar. The union, which created the present-day United Republic of Tanzania, stands out among… Read more »
Kenya: Kenyan President Will Receive White House Praise Over Troops-to-Haiti Move
Kenyan President William Ruto will attend a rare U.S. state reception for an African leader on May 23, 2024 - but much of the chat will be about a third country: Haiti. Read more »