Regions / Africa

Could the sudden cancellation of US aid give the continent the push it needs to develop home-grown systems to address its challenges? By Obiora Ikoku.

Cheap, deadly, and out of control: new report exposes the civilian toll of drone warfare as foreign-made weapons flood African skies, by Paula Lacey.

Can South Africa ever fully shake off the shackles of apartheid? Conrad Landin asks whether the country’s historic genocide case against Israel could lead to a reckoning at home.

Abdoulie Ceesay, Gambian representative to the COP28 climate summit, argues if the West wants to address the wave of coups in Africa, it must take real climate action – rather than pursuing further failed militarization.

Decolonizing Africa’s media means interrogating its form as well as its content. Patrick Gathara examines an initiative which tells narrative stories through live performance in Kenya, and asks what lessons it holds for the continent at large.

The push for repair emanates from movements with a rich and varied history. Priya Lukka explores where we’ve come from and what could be ahead.

Mixing traditional African instruments like the ngoni and kora with modern electronic production techniques. Words by Graeme Green.

Juliet Ferguson investigates the Energy Charter Treaty, an international agreement which could be very bad news for energy policy across the Global South.

Nanjala Nyabola mourns the loss of Nairobi’s tree canopy and questions the expansion of cities.

Cape Town’s citizens’ groups are not taking housing injustice lying down, according to Ben Verghese and Ilham Rawoot.

With the release of New Daughters of Africa, editor Margaret Busby explains why the collection – 25 years after Daughters of Africa was published – could not have come at a better time and introduces three stories from the anthology.

Africa's $10-billion energy project faces problems.

Art and story by Ilya, with Yohann Koshy.

Somalia today is more like a political marketplace than a modern nation-state, writes Claire Elder.

Mustapha Dumbaya lost 47 relatives in the outbreak. He explores why dysfunctional R&D is letting down those people who need it most.

What will it take to get electricity to Africa’s rural poor? Ruth Nyambura explores.

Good news stories this month.

Development in the industrialized world has come at a high price, writes Mohamed Adow.

Community micro-grids, government-controlled energy, or both? Three experts thrash out the options.

Desert solar plants planned for North Africa are just another exploitative resource grab, argues Hamza Hamouchene.