May 17, 2023
Sudan: Sudan - The Quiet Scramble to Broker the Peace
The Horn's geopolitics are increasingly shaped by rich Gulf hegemons who view the region as a theatre for their competing interests. Read more »
Sudan: Sudan's Catastrophe - a Long History of Failed Responses to Structural and Direct Violence
Debating Ideas aims to reflect the values and editorial ethos of the African Arguments book series, publishing engaged, often radical, scholarship, original and activist writing… Read more »
May 16, 2023
Namibia: Drag Night Namibia - 'What We Are Doing Here Today Is Massive'
Amid momentous legal victories and disappointing let-downs, Namibia's queer community and activists celebrate a radical joy. Read more »
May 15, 2023
Senegal: Gatsa-Gatsa - Ousmane Sonko and the Politics of Retaliation
Sonko's legal problems, which appear engineered to frustrate his presidential bid, could well push the country back into the street. Read more »
Sudan: As the Generals Fight, Who's Playing Chess With the Old Islamists?
The clash between Burhan and Hemedti was inevitable. In the mediation scramble, nobody can afford to side with Bashir's Islamists. Read more »
Africa: Presidential Term Limits and the Power of Precedent
Incumbents' appetites for third-term runs may be waning, but they still carry hugely disruptive political legacies. Read more »
May 11, 2023
Burundi: 'The President Has Crossed the Rubicon - There's No Turning Back'
In the wake of the arrest and detention of former PM Alain Guillaume Bunyoni, political observers weigh the consequences. Read more »
May 09, 2023
Mozambique: The Return to Cabo Delgado - Gas, War, and the Emergence of Total Land
While TotalEnergies remains coy about restarting the $20bn gas project, Mozambicans are coming home in the conspicuous absence of the state. Read more »
Botswana: Botswana Has Always Driven a Hard Bargain With De Beers
Botswana is not following a trend of African state negotiating more aggressively with corporations. It has long set this trend. Read more »
May 05, 2023
Sudan: Revolutionary Reflections, Amid a Raging War
If the popular revolution of 2019 was badly undermined by its rejection of representative politics, how can it be revived? Read more »
May 04, 2023
Tanzania: 'They Wish We Didn't Exist' - Tanzania School Goers Speak of Transport Woes
In the daily sharp-elbowed jostle to board daladalas, school students find themselves at the back of the queue. Read more »
May 03, 2023
Ethiopia: Five Reasons to Be Concerned About Gene-Edited Teff
A US research centre has created a new variety of teff, raising unanswered questions over its safety, ownership, and climate implications. Read more »
May 02, 2023
Congo-Kinshasa: Lines Through the Lake - Why the Congo-Rwanda Border Can't Be Redrawn
Long-standing cultural affinities of Rwandophones in the Great Lakes may appear to bolster Kigali's historical claims to parts of eastern Congo, but it's more complicated than it… Read more »
April 27, 2023
Africa: Farmworkers Feel Heat As SA Wine Industry Eyes Climate Change
As vineyards strategise to keep the famous export flowing, farmworkers - seven of whom died recently of heat stroke - fear more extreme conditions. Read more »
April 25, 2023
Africa: Is the World Bank Really Going Green?
The Bank invests billions in fossil fuels, including through various opaque channels. Unless this changes, its public soul-searching will count for little. Read more »
Botswana: Why Is Botswana Rethinking Its Deal With De Beers?
Christened 'Debswana', its 50-year-old mining pact with de Beers is showing signs of strain - for some rather unexpected reasons. Read more »
Rwanda: Rwanda, Too, Needs to Make Amends
Rwanda accuses Congo-Kinshasa of being unable to put its house in order; it, too, must deal with the question of its 245,000 refugees. Read more »
Somalia: Somalia's Crucible of State-Making
For thirty years the Somali peninsula has been a crucible of experiments in contemporary state formation, a fascinating opportunity to observe and test political-economic theory.… Read more »
April 24, 2023
South Africa: The Risk of Extreme Wildfires Around Cape Town Has Nearly Doubled
Our study suggests climate change has significantly increased the likelihood of extreme wildfires. But there are ways to mitigate the risks. Read more »
April 20, 2023
Africa: 'He Laid Out the Earth for All Living Creatures' - Islam's Lessons for Climate
Islamic teachings are full of invocations to Muslims to revere nature, reject over-consumption, and live within planetary boundaries. Read more »
Africa: Scientists Urge Museveni to Respect LGBTI Rights
Dear President Museveni, Read more »
April 19, 2023
Sudan: What Will Happen in Sudan?
The current crisis exposes the motives of the men with guns. It requires, paradoxically, the intervention of a distracted international community that has done little to support a… Read more »
Africa: Why ZANU-PF Still Can't Dance to Chimurenga Music
ZANU-PF's aversion to protest music only confirms the lyrical power of a line of artists from Marley and Mapfumo to Winky D. Read more »
April 15, 2023
Africa: Inclusion and Innovation Key to African Media Sustainability
Forced to adapt to the political establishment, and financially beset by Big Data, what is the future of Africa's media? Read more »
Liberia: Is Liberia Heading Towards an Electoral Crisis?
A much-criticised census and a cash-strapped electoral commission are the biggest signs that the October elections could be bungled. Read more »