March 20
South Africa: Fink Haysom Fought Tirelessly for Justice and Reconciliation - in South Africa and On the Global Stage
The preamble of the South African constitution of 1996 starts as follows: Read more »
South Africa: Diana Ferrus - the South African Poet Whose Words Reclaimed History
South African poet, storyteller, publisher, editor and activist Diana Ferrus (1953-2026) received a provincial funeral when she passed on 30 January. Read more »
Senegal: Senegal Stripped of Title - Afcon Ruling Is Lawful, but It Puts CAF's Reputation At Risk
The appeals board of African football's ruling body, the Confederation of African Football (Caf), on 17 March overturned the outcome of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon)… 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 »
Namibia: Namibia - the History of a Country Shaped From a Rich and Traumatic Past
Namibia might not be well known in many parts of the world. But the arid southern African country has an extraordinary history. Read more »
South Africa: Zanele Muholi - Queer South African Visual Activist Cements Their Global Influence
South African visual activist Zanele Muholi's celebrated work centres the lives and experiences of Black lesbians and trans people. For more than two decades Muholi has used… Read more »
Lesotho: The Lesotho Highlands Water Project Is 40 Years Old and Going Strong - but History Weighs On Its Successes
Big projects bring big hopes and big dreams. They also bring big disappointment when they don't deliver on all the promises. Even when the projects work as they are supposed to. Read more »
South Africa: A Water Solution for Drought-Prone South Africa - We Designed Systems to Replenish Aquifers Simply and Cheaply in Five Towns
South Africa is the 30th driest country in the world. Over 400 towns, especially in the western and central parts of the country, rely on water from aquifers that they pump out of… Read more »
March 18
Nigeria: Family Planning Helps Prevent HIV From Spreading - Why Are Many Nigerians Not Using Contraception?
Unintended pregnancies are more common in sub-Saharan Africa than the world average: up to 91 out of 1,000 pregnancies compared to 64 in 1,000. Read more »
Africa: Mining Companies and Land Rights in South Africa - How Environmentalists Have Used the Law to Defend Communities
Environmental activists in South Africa have been waging legal battles against the state and mining companies for years. This is often on the grounds that communities haven't been… Read more »
Africa: Climate Change Could Pose a Major Risk to Cassava in Africa - Study Sets Out What Can Be Done Now
Cassava is a starchy, tuberous root, introduced to sub-Saharan Africa by Portuguese traders centuries ago. It is a nutrition lifeboat for over 800 million people worldwide. Read more »
Ethiopia: Ethiopia's National Dialogue Was Meant to Heal the Nation, but Divisions Are Deepening
Ethiopia launched a national dialogue process in 2022 to address deep political divisions and help steer the country towards stability. Read more »
March 17
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone's Digital ID Push - How Local Brokers Help Citizens Gain Legal Identity
An estimated 542 million Africans lack identity cards and potentially face statelessness. Without a legal identity, they can be excluded from basic human rights like education,… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa Will Run Out of Industrial Gas By 2028 and 70,000 Jobs Could Be Lost - Why Government Fixes Are Lacking
South Africa is about to have a gas supply crisis. Read more »
Madagascar: Tourist Visits to Madagascar Help Conserve Some Forests, but Others Suffer - Study Suggests What to Do
Madagascar is one of the world's biodiversity hotspots. The island country is well known for its diverse and endangered range of wildlife. This includes over 100 species of lemurs… Read more »
March 16
Africa: Sea Levels Around Africa Are Rising Faster Than the Global Average - What's Behind This Alarming Trend
For over three decades, satellites orbiting Earth have measured the height of the ocean surface with remarkable precision. These measurements are crucial because changes in ocean… Read more »
Africa: Climate Finance Has Failed Africa Twice Over - How to Fix It
The effects of climate change are no longer a future risk for Africa. They are a present crisis. Read more »
Africa: Mental Health Laws Ignore Traditional Care in Africa - Insights From 5 Countries
When Idoko, a 23-year-old man living in rural Benue State, north central Nigeria, began hearing voices, withdrawing from family and speaking incoherently, his family's first call… Read more »
Senegal: Senegal's Crisis - Why Debt Restructuring May Be the Least Bad Option
Senegal is facing a serious debt crisis. The IMF estimated the country's debt at 132% of GDP at the end of 2024. Debt servicing costs are projected at 5.5 trillion CFA francs… Read more »
Kenya: Do Dads of Disabled Children Do Enough? Kenya Study Points to Misunderstood Ways of Caring
A child's success at school doesn't depend only on teachers and classrooms. Studies show that when parents engage with schools - by attending meetings, supporting learning at home… Read more »
Africa: Paleontologists Uncover a New Spinosaurus Species By Following a Clue From a Decades-Old Book Into the Sahara Desert
My fixation on a small, desolate locale in the heart of the Sahara Desert started with a single line buried in a 630-page tome in French about the rocks of the central Sahara:… Read more »
March 15
Africa: Electric Vehicles Could Soon Be Cheaper Than Petrol Cars in Africa - If Financing Barriers Fall
The cost of electric vehicles (EVs) has long looked like a barrier to adoption in Africa. Most researchers didn't expect battery power to become affordable enough to replace petrol… Read more »
South Africa: Memory Is Not to Be Trusted - a South African Memoir Traces the Search for a Family Secret
South African-born literary scholar Dennis Walder recently published an evocative life story called Amid the Alien Corn: A Son's Memoir. In it, he tracks how, even as a child, he… Read more »
Nigeria: Human Traffickers Are Using Football Dreams to Lure Young Ghanaian Men to Nigeria - How to Stop It?
For a young man growing up in Ghana or Nigeria, few dreams burn brighter than becoming a professional footballer. Icons like Michael Essien (Ghana), Jay-Jay Okocha (Nigeria) and… Read more »
March 13
Mauritius: Why the Chagos Islands Deal Is Delayed - and Mauritius Is Threatening to Sue the UK
More than a year ago, the UK agreed to grant Mauritius sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, which Britain has governed as the British Indian Ocean Territory since 1965. But the… Read more »
