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The Conversation

A man wearing a tie and specs looks ahead, listening to a speech.

South Africa elections: Zuma’s MK Party has hit the campaign trail with provocative rhetoric and few clear policies

Mashupye Herbert Maserumule, Tshwane University of Technology

Zimbabwe’s likely to abolish the death penalty: how it got here and what it means for the continent

Frans Viljoen, University of Pretoria

A rope noose photographed against a black background.
South African elections: research explores how disillusioned ANC supporters might use their vote

Michael Braun, University of the Witwatersrand

A man in a yellow short smiles and raises a hand in greeting outside a house, with other people standing next to and behind him
Togo has adopted major constitutional changes to give parliament more power: how it will work

Koffi Améssou Adaba, Université de Lomé

A man looks back over his shoulder smiling, with a garland of flowers around his neck and his hands held up
Chad’s election outcome already seems set: 4 things Mahamat Déby has done to stay in power

Helga Dickow, University of Freiburg

Man wearing white kaftan dress and cap surrounded by other men wearing white shirts.

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In the news

A large cement gate is pictured at the border of Gaza and Egypt.

Egypt’s Rafah crossing is a lifeline to Palestinians living in Gaza – but opening it is still unresolved

Lorenzo Navone, Université de Strasbourg

Uganda-DRC reparations verdict raises questions about the price of justice

Kerstin Bree Carlson, Roskilde University

A woman carrying a baby on her back
Economic Freedom Fighters became South Africa’s third largest political party in just 10 years. What’s behind its electoral success

Ongama Mtimka, Nelson Mandela University and Gary Francis Prevost, College of Saint Benedict & Saint John's University

Thousands of people, many wearing red, cheer at a stadium.
DRC-Rwanda crisis: what’s needed to prevent a regional war

Jason Stearns, Simon Fraser University and Joshua Z. Walker, New York University

A file of people carrying personal possessions on a rural track
Droughts don’t need to result in famine: Ethiopia and Somalia show what makes the difference

Joshua Busby, The University of Texas at Austin

A woman adjusting the sides of a makeshift cloth tent next to several similar structures.

Peace + Security

Wagner Group is now Africa Corps. What this means for Russia’s operations on the continent

Alessandro Arduino, King's College London

Candles and photos of a man.
Rwanda and DRC’s turbulent past continues to fuel their torrid relationship

Jonathan Beloff, King's College London

Men standing on stage with Rwanda, Congo and African Union flags behind them.
Nigeria’s security situation has got worse: what Tinubu’s administration needs to do about it

Sallek Yaks Musa, University of Northampton

A man wearing white dress with traditional cap in front of a military officer in ceremonial uniform
South Africa’s security forces once brutally entrenched apartheid. It’s been a rocky road to reform

Sandy Africa, University of Pretoria

Policemen and women on parade.
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Elections + Governance

The two faces of Jacob Zuma – former South African president campaigns to unseat the ANC he once led. Who supports him and why?

The two faces of Jacob Zuma – former South African president campaigns to unseat the ANC he once led. Who supports him and why?

Susan Booysen, University of the Witwatersrand

The challenges African election bodies face go beyond ‘democratic backsliding’ – analysis

Sonali Campion, University of East Anglia

A man wearing a Covid mask casts his vote.
Chad’s election outcome already seems set: 4 things Mahamat Déby has done to stay in power

Helga Dickow, University of Freiburg

Man wearing white kaftan dress and cap surrounded by other men wearing white shirts.
How the Mandela myth helped win the battle for democracy in South Africa

Jonny Steinberg, Yale University

A black and white photo of an African couple, smiling, the woman raising a fist in the air and the man waving as he holds on to a railing.
Tanzania’s elections are vulnerable to state abuse – urgent law reforms are needed

Aikande Clement Kwayu, Tumaini University Makumira

A woman wearing a headscarf places her ballot into a box in a school classroom.
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Human rights

Men and women standing on the street, mouths open in a chant and holding up posters written 'No human is illegal', 'You are welcome here' and 'Refugees are not criminals'

UK’s failed asylum deportation plan puts Rwanda’s human rights and refugee struggles in the spotlight

Evan Easton-Calabria, University of Oxford

Owning a gun in South Africa offers some safety, but risks run high for users and society – expert

Guy Lamb, Stellenbosch University

A man holds a gun in one hand and bullets in another.
Nigeria has a democracy deficit – corruption and a lack of welfare policies are to blame

Fidelis Allen, University of Port Harcourt

A group of people protesting while holding placards
Western Sahara: the six-decade struggle to liberate Africa’s last colony

Meriem Naili, University of Exeter

Flag-waving protesters shout slogans
Lagos: drugs, firearms and youth unemployment are creating a lethal cocktail in Nigeria’s commercial capital

Adewumi I. Badiora, Olabisi Onabanjo University

Men in police uniform arresting a young man on the street.
Read more

Most read this week

1.
South African elections: research explores how disillusioned ANC supporters might use their vote

Michael Braun, University of the Witwatersrand

South African elections: research explores how disillusioned ANC supporters might use their vote
2.
South Africa elections: Zuma’s MK Party has hit the campaign trail with provocative rhetoric and few clear policies

Mashupye Herbert Maserumule, Tshwane University of Technology

South Africa elections: Zuma’s MK Party has hit the campaign trail with provocative rhetoric and few clear policies
3.
Tanzanians go to the polls in 2025: President Samia has changed the landscape, but Magufuli’s legacy persists

Nicodemus Minde, United States International University

Tanzanians go to the polls in 2025: President Samia has changed the landscape, but Magufuli’s legacy persists
4.
Zimbabwe’s likely to abolish the death penalty: how it got here and what it means for the continent

Frans Viljoen, University of Pretoria

Zimbabwe’s likely to abolish the death penalty: how it got here and what it means for the continent
5.
Egypt’s Rafah crossing is a lifeline to Palestinians living in Gaza – but opening it is still unresolved

Lorenzo Navone, Université de Strasbourg

Egypt’s Rafah crossing is a lifeline to Palestinians living in Gaza – but opening it is still unresolved
6.
Owning a gun in South Africa offers some safety, but risks run high for users and society – expert

Guy Lamb, Stellenbosch University

Owning a gun in South Africa offers some safety, but risks run high for users and society – expert

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