Africa: Coup Contagion? a Rash of African Power Grabs Suggests Copycats Are Taking Note of Others' Success

In a scene that has become familiar across parts of Africa of late, a group of armed men in military garb appeared on state TV on Dec. 7, 2025, to announce that they had suspended… Read more »

Zimbabwe: The Price of Going Home - Christmas Boxes and the Final Return From South Africa to Zimbabwe

Each December, long-distance buses, minibus taxis and private cars stream northwards from South Africa as Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second biggest city, prepares for its annual ritual:… Read more »

Kenya: Managing Conflict Between Baboons and People - What's Worked - and What Hasn't

Conflict between humans and baboons can tear communities apart. Shirley C. Strum has studied wild olive baboons in Kenya for more than 50 years. In that time she's come to… 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 »

South Africa: Bloemfontein, South Africa - How to Turn Clear Skies, a Planetarium and an Observatory Into a Tourist Attraction

Astro-tourism is a niche form of tourism where visitors explore the night sky through stargazing events, guided tours, educational presentations and digital astronomy experiences.… Read more »

Africa: Family Time - How to Survive - and Even Thrive - Over the Holidays

At the end of the year, many families reunite to enjoy time together. These times can be happy, yet sometimes they reveal tensions, unsatisfied needs and difficult relationships.… Read more »

South Africa: Food Waste in South Africa Is Dumped in Landfills - Study Weighs Up Healthier and More Sustainable Options

Every year, millions of tonnes of food end up in South Africa's landfills. This is a wasted resource that deepens environmental damage, worsens food insecurity and costs the… 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 »

Nigeria: Nigeria's Economy Has Improved but Ordinary People Still Feel the Pinch - Economist Offers Some Solutions

Nigerians have been waiting anxiously for the economy to "turn a corner", following economic reform initiatives undertaken by President Bola Tinubu in 2023. These included removing… Read more »

Africa: Early Shoppers - How African Consumers Set Global Trade Trends in the 1800s

A dynamic new "consumer class" emerging from Africa is attracting international attention. With the prospect of rising incomes and a young population, international consulting… Read more »

Africa: Coups in Africa - How Democratic Failings Help Shape Military Takeovers - Study

Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea and Gabon have all suffered regime change in the last five years, led by men in military uniform. Read more »

Senegal: Thiaroye Massacre - Report On the French Killing of Senegalese Troops in 1944 Exposes a Painful History

The Thiaroye camp near Dakar was a Senegalese army barracks housing African soldiers called "tirailleurs sénégalais" (Senegalese riflemen). It welcomed men returning… 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 »

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 »

Lesotho: Fossil Science Owes a Debt to Indigenous Knowledge - Lesotho Missionary's Notes Tell the Story

For over a century, the scientific literature has credited western missionaries with "discovering" fossils in Lesotho, the small, mountainous country surrounded by South Africa. 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 »

Guinea Bissau: Guinea-Bissau Coup - Election Uncertainty Has Triggered Military Takeovers Before

Guinea-Bissau has had nine attempted coups and five successful ones since its independence in September 1973. Salah Ben Hammou, a researcher with a focus on the politics of… Read more »

Africa: Africa's Power Grabs Are Rising - the AU's Mixed Response Is Making Things Worse

Hardly a month goes by without news of another unconstitutional change of government on the African continent. Read more »

Africa: Telling People to Use Antibiotics Responsibly Isn't Enough. What Will Work Instead

Antimicrobial resistance is projected to cause up to 10 million deaths each year by 2050, making it one of the most pressing global health challenges of this century. In 2021, an… Read more »

Nigeria: Terror Threat in Nigeria - What the Killing of a General Tells Us About the Fight Against ISWAP

The killing of Nigeria's Brigadier General Musa Uba, in mid-November 2025, by the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, risks boosting the morale of insurgents while… Read more »

Africa: South Africa and Pakistan - Countries Brought to Their Knees By Elite Capture and Economic Paralysis

In the ongoing quest to understand South Africa's political and economic stagnation, it may be helpful to look at other postcolonial states that have travelled further along the… Read more »

Africa: South Africa's Water, Energy and Food Crisis - Why Fixing One Means Fixing Them All

South Africa faces serious water, energy and food problems. Drought, overuse and ageing infrastructure strain water supplies. Coal-fired electricity is not sustainable in the long… Read more »

Nigeria: Nigeria Has Jailed Biafra Separatist Leader Nnamdi Kanu - Why It Risks Backfiring

The terrorism conviction and life sentence handed down by the Federal High Court in Abuja on Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, brings an end to a ten-year… Read more »

Africa: South Africa's G20 Presidency Is Over - What Did It Achieve for Climate and Clean Energy in Africa?

South Africa opened its G20 presidency with an ambitious message for a world divided by conflict and economic strain: solidarity, equality and sustainability. The Johannesburg G20… Read more »

Djibouti: Djibouti's Democracy Takes Another Knock As Ageing President Engineers Yet Another Term

Djibouti's president, Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, pushed through constitutional changes removing presidential age limits in October 2025. The changes enable him to remain in power… Read more »