OPINION

Yohannes Gedamu, scholar and university teacher, explains how Ethiopia’s federal system is responsible for the political turmoil in the country despite Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s efforts to liberalise the democratic space. For almost three decades Ethiopia’s federal structure – enshrined in the country’s 1994 constitution – has been defended by the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front. It’s …

The historic African Continental Free Trade Area agreement went into force on 30 May 2019. Creating the regionally integrated Africa of our dreams, will require political will, policy changes, and private and public sector partnerships, argues Dr Victor Oladokun, Director of Communication, African Development Bank. In 2018, the fictional country of Wakanda in the blockbuster movie Black Panther, was ranked …

With over 30 million Africans living outside of their home countries, migration will play a big role in shaping Africa’s future, write Akinyi Ochieng and Gregory Thwaites* While the vibrant and growing diaspora communities in countries such as the United States, United Kingdom and France are gaining in visibility, it is communities of Africans within Africa that will have the …

A robust manufacturing sector is broadly understood as a fundamental path to economic growth and development. Despite their manufacturing potential and promising trajectories, most African countries have remained relatively dearth of factories, writes Professor Landry Signé. How to unlock the manufacturing and industrialization potential in Africa? The United Nations General Assembly has proclaimed the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa …

David S. Levin, writing from New York, looks at how the Trump administration’s policies have been detrimental to Africa one year into his presidency. In January, I wrote an article about what I thought Donald Trump’s policies toward Africa might look like once he took office. I based my theories, in part, on the frequency that he mentioned Africa – …

From 29-30 November, 55 African and 28 European government representatives came together in Abidjan to adopt a new strategy for Africa. Despite the expectations, the end result was an utter disappointment, writes Barbara Wesel of the German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle, DW. This huge gathering of leaders in Côte d’Ivoire’s economic hub, Abidjan, was an ambitious event. Soldiers, gala dinners, …

Opposition leader Raila Odinga has rejected the result of the presidential election rerun of 26 October, which gave a landslide victory to President Uhuru Kenyatta. The veteran politician has vowed to challenge the legitimacy of Kenyatta’s presidency. Sekou Toure Otondi of the University of Nairobi argues that Odinga’s resistance to the government could in the long run benefit democratic development …

Political violence in Togo claimed more victims this week. On Wednesday at least four people were shot dead in clashes between security forces and protesters in the West African country’s two biggest cities. On Tuesday, two soldiers and a teenager died. The deaths came amid unrest following the arrest of an imam with close ties to the opposition, and against a …

The wood-frame house that was once home to the civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks has been sitting as an art exhibit in a garden in the Wedding neighbourhood of Berlin since 2016. The symbol of the American civil rights era has attracted many visitors including Germany’s Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel. Clementine Ewokolo Burnley writes on the relevance of the house to …

Despite the fact that Africa has a growing consumer market, a rapid evolution in technology, and robust growth prospects, people still tend to focus on the negative, argues Zandre Campos*. The history of the African continent is long and complicated and it has impacted the current generation of Africans. Today, many Africans tend to have a very negative mentality. Despite …

Following the shocking victory of a far-right party at Germany’s general election, Carl Bildt, Sweden’s former prime minister, writes on the challenges facing Europe, a continent that once exported war and turmoil, but now wants to protect itself from its neighbours’ problems. By Carl Bildt Travelling through Germany in the run-up to its federal election of 24 September, one cannot …

Following President Paul Kagame’s 99% election win, his former chief of staff, Theogene Rudasingwa*, speaks out against the international community’s uncritical support for the president and he explains why the Rwandan leader seeks to remain in power indefinitely. On 4 August, Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame was re-elected with a near-perfect vote of 99%, earning himself a place in history alongside …

After more than a decade of advocacy, the Nigerian Diaspora Commission became a reality recently when Acting President Yemi Osinbajo assented to the Bill establishing the body. An active participant in the process that led to the realization of the Commission is Collins Nweke*, Belgium-based media and development consultant and an elected communal politician who served in various leadership positions …

The emergence of terror groups with global reach following the wars in the Middle East has shown that events in the explosive region have potentially devastating impact worldwide. In this by-lined article for Project Syndicate, Joschka Fischer, former German Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor, sounds a note of warning to the international community that the imminent defeat of the so-called …

Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong, Assistant Professor of Strategy at the University of Bath, UK, explains why Africans have little confidence in their political leadership and he suggests how the democratic system can be reformed to work for the people and end the looting of public funds in the continent. A few months ago, a video in which a street boy blamed …

Germany-based scholar and author Fekadu Bekele, PhD, offers an original African perspective on the G20 Africa Partnership initiative as he argues that the measures envisaged under the plan do not address the root causes of the social and economic crises in the continent. Dr Bekele posits that the priority of the West and its economic institutions is to keep Africa firmly …

Daisy Maritim-Maina* explains why there are such bitter contests every election cycle in the East African country and she suggests how to create a sustainable, vibrant democratic culture where the voters look beyond ethnic affinity. In 1992 Kenya held its first multi-party election in 26 years. Since this re-introduction of multipartism, the “politics of tribe” has been blamed for the …

Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin, a Germany-based computer specialist, argues that the time has come for Nigeria to prioritise vocational education in the face of acute skills shortage in manufacturing and the trades at a time of high unemployment among young people. ——————————————– By Dr Daniel Yakubu Kutchin The Nigerian Education system still follows somewhat loosely the Commonwealth Education system. It …

Kolapo Fujah, writing from Lagos, joins issues with Frisky Larr, whose book Lost in Democracy calls for an alternative to the Western-inspired system of government in Africa because it has failed to deliver good governance in the continent. Fujah argues that the problem with democracy in Africa is not with the system itself but how it’s practiced. For starters, democracy …

Kenyan-born scholar George Ogola, writing from the University of Central Lancashire in the United Kingdom, explains why the impartiality of the media is crucial to free and fair elections in Africa and the sustainability of peace and stability on the continent. The news media is usually one of first casualties of bungled or contested elections. From the recent US elections, …