Ghana: Critical Mineral Mining Faces Risks If Local Communities Aren't Consulted Enough - the Case of Lithium in Ghana

Clean technologies depend on critical minerals such as lithium and cobalt. Over 65% of the world's cobalt is mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nearly 40% of the world's… Read more »

Tanzania: Young Tanzanians Are Fed Up With Not Getting a Slice of the Economic Action - Research

When young Tanzanians poured into the streets on 29 October 2025, most observers saw an election protest. Protests in Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza and other cities were met with… Read more »

West Africa: Ecowas Without the Sahel States - How the Split Is Testing Free Movement and Regional Legitimacy

New governments in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso formally left the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) a year ago, having created the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).… Read more »

Uganda: Kizza Besigye - the Firebrand Who Has Shaped Opposition Politics in Uganda

Uganda's Kizza Besigye has been described as possibly the most arrested man in Africa. Besigye was once President Yoweri Museveni's ally, and personal physician. He broke ranks… Read more »

Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone's Harsh New Laws to Protect Women and Girls Are Causing Harm in the Wrong Places

In the decades after Sierra Leone's civil war (1991-2002), there was pressure on the west African country to demonstrate progress on gender equality. Laws were passed to fight… Read more »

South Africa: Mediation Can Speed Up Justice in South Africa - Legal Scholar Makes the Case

Communities in South Africa continue to be fractured by service delivery failures, crime and gang-related violence. The impact is felt by families and communities, and in schools,… Read more »

Ethiopia: How to Get Away With Mass Murder - 4 Tactics Ethiopia Used to Hide Tigray Atrocities From the World

The Tigray region in Ethiopia's north has endured one of the world's deadliest armed conflicts of the 21st century. Between 2020 and 2022, as many as 800,000 people were killed… Read more »

Nigeria: Why the U.S. Can Destroy Terrorist Camps in Nigeria, but Not Terrorism - Security Scholar

US military airstrikes on Islamic State-linked militants in north-western Nigeria on Christmas Day 2025 attracted global attention. The focus was on the international legal… Read more »

Sudan: Sudan's Latest Peace Plan - What's in It and Does It Stand a Chance?

US president Donald Trump's advisor on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos, announced in February 2026 that Washington and three Middle East states - Saudi Arabia, Egypt and… Read more »

Kenya: Banning Rafiki Was Unlawful - Why New Court Ruling Is an Important Moment for African Film

The film Rafiki is a charming love story that plays out in urban Kenya. It follows two teenage girls whose close friendship slowly turns into first love. Directed by rising… Read more »

Africa: Rafiki Unbanned On Appeal - Why It's an Important Moment for African Film

The film Rafiki is a charming love story that plays out in urban Kenya. It follows two teenage girls whose close friendship slowly turns into first love. Directed by rising… Read more »

Nigeria: Crime-Fighting in Lagos - Community Watch Groups Are the Preferred Choice for Residents, but They Carry Risks

Criminal activities have developed into a security crisis in Nigeria. Alongside the responses of security agencies such as the police and military, there has been a huge local… Read more »

Somalia: Israel's Recognition of Somaliland - the Strategic Calculations At Play

Somaliland is not internationally recognised as a sovereign state, though it declared independence from Somalia in 1991. A territory becomes a sovereign state when its independence… Read more »

Kenya: Kenya's 'Night Running' - How a Rural Ritual With Links to Witchcraft Became an Urban Staple

In parts of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, it is not uncommon to hear of individuals who run naked at night. They cause trouble and instil fear in the neighbourhood. They throw stones… Read more »

Africa: The Politics of the Hyper-Polluting Private Transport Used By the World's Super-Rich Is Hotting Up

While millions of people make the effort to sort their recycling, buy fewer clothes and generally make greener choices, the world's wealthiest can emit the same amount of carbon as… Read more »

Africa: Great Apes Are Humans' Closest Relatives, but Many Are Endangered By Illegal Trading. Here's What Needs to Be Done

Great apes are humans' closest relatives in the animal kingdom. As much as 98.8% of their DNA is shared, but while the number of humans living on the planet is increasing fast,… Read more »

Tanzania: Autocracies in Transition - in 2025, Cameroon and Tanzania Rulers Clung to Power - but Look More Vulnerable Than Ever

Autocratic leaders in Africa like their numbers to be in the high 90s, it appears. Read more »

Botswana: Marriage and Migration - What Happens When Men Return to the Family Home in Botswana

The history of labour migration in Botswana can be linked to the discovery of gold and diamonds in South Africa in the late 19th century. South Africa needed cheap labour, and men… Read more »

Africa: Internet Shutdowns Are Increasing Dramatically in Africa - a New Book Explains Why

Between 2016 and 2024 there were 193 internet shutdowns imposed in 41 African countries. This form of social control is a growing trend in the continent, according to a new open… Read more »

Uganda: Uganda Election - Museveni Will Win, but the Landscape Has Changed Since His Last Victory

On the eve of Uganda's 2021 presidential election, it was clear that regardless of how Ugandans voted, the incumbent, Yoweri Museveni, would most likely be declared the winner.… Read more »

West Africa: Kidnapping for Ransom in the Sahel - Analysis of 24 Years of Data Shows a New Trend

Kidnapping for ransom has a long history in the west African Sahel. In 1979, a rebel group led by Chad's future president Hissène Habré kidnapped a French… Read more »

Africa: The History of the Zambezi River Is a Tale of Culture, Conquest and Commerce

The Zambezi is Africa's fourth longest river, flowing through six countries: Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, where it becomes the largest river to flow… Read more »

Congo-Kinshasa: Roger Lumbala Is Accused of Horrific War Crimes in DR Congo - Can His Trial in France Bring Justice?

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been called "the worst place on earth to be a woman" and "the rape capital of the world". A 2014 survey estimated that 22% of women and… Read more »

South Africa: South Africa Declared Gender-Based Violence a National Disaster. but How Will Frontline Workers Be Kept Safe?

Social workers are often the first to arrive at scenes of gender-based violence and femicide. They often enter unsafe homes without backup or protective equipment. As one told me: Read more »

Benin: Benin's Failed Coup - Three Factors Behind the Takeover Attempt

Military elements attempted to topple Benin's government in early December 2025. However, unlike other coups across the Sahel and west Africa since 2020, this bid triggered a… Read more »