By Judd Devermont and Jon Temin | June 11, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Five guys: Abiy, Lourenço, Ramaphosa, Tshisekedi, and BuhariLeft to Right: Reuters / Tiksa Negeri, Pool, Sumaya Hisham, Olivia Acland, Afolabi Sotunde In the 60-plus years since the countries of sub-Saharan Africa started becoming independent, democracy there has advanced unevenly. During … [Read more...]
African praise of Saudi Arabia highlights diplomatic pressures
Sam Mednick, Elias Meseret, and Ahmed Mohamed Salem Associated Press | October 24, 2018 | Christian Science Monitor In the weeks after Jamal Khashoggi's murder, five African nations made statements in support of Saudi Arabia. The statements are an example of how foreign aid may influence diplomatic decisions, particularly in the horn of Africa. Addis Ababa - As … [Read more...]
Fresh Prince: The Schemes and Dreams of Saudi Arabia’s Next King
F. Gregory Gause III | May/June 2018 Issue | Foreign Affairs It is not often that a Ritz-Carlton becomes a detention facility. But last November, when a large slice of the Saudi elite was arrested on accusations of corruption, the luxury hotel in Riyadh became a gilded prison for hundreds of princes, billionaires, and high-ranking government officials. Behind this … [Read more...]
Mo Ibrahim: Africa’s decade of ‘lost opportunity’
Simon Allison | 30 Oct 2018 | Mail & Guardian The 2018 African governance index was released this week. It’s not good news. The Ibrahim Index of African Governance, now in its 11th iteration, is the most comprehensive measure of governance on the African continent. It makes for thoroughly depressing reading. “Public governance progress in Africa is lagging … [Read more...]
Villagers win landmark case against mining company
Allan Seccombe | 25 October 2018 | Business Day Constitutional Court judgment sets precedent for how mining companies should deal with land owners A group of 38 villagers won an important victory in the Constitutional Court against their own community mining company and set a precedent for how land owners should be dealt with by mining companies. In a ruling that … [Read more...]
Ethiopia gets female president as it commits to reforms
George Obulutsa | 25 October 2018 | Business Day Primer Minister Abiy Ahmed reshuffled cabinet has 10 female ministers Addis Ababa — Ethiopia’s parliament has approved senior diplomat Sahle-Work Zewde as the country’s first female president, proceedings on state television showed, cementing another shift in the country's political system from Prime Minister Abiy … [Read more...]
Cameroon’s Paul Biya Gives a Master Class in Fake Democracy
Jefcoate O'Donnell, Robbie Gramer | October 22, 2018 | Foreign Policy One of the world’s most experienced autocrats has clinched another seven-year term by bending the rules of the game in his direction in ways both old and new. It’s no accident that Paul Biya is the second-longest-ruling head of state in the world who isn’t a monarch. Nor that Cameroon’s constitutional … [Read more...]
DP World eyes Eritrean ports in region strategy
Agency Staff | 22 October 2018 | Business Day Addis Ababa — The Red Sea state of Eritrea may play a key role in DP World’s plans in the Horn of Africa, where a dozen ports could be needed to service the region, CEO Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem said. The Dubai-based state-controlled harbour operator is evaluating its strategy in the region after having its stake in a port … [Read more...]
When Ye met Yoweri, and worlds collided
Simon Allison | 18 Oct 2018 | Mail & Guardian In a world where power is measured in Instagram likes, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian-West are royalty. They are celebrity supernovas blazing a trail through the social media firmament, demanding our attention and sucking us into their capricious orbit. Love them or hate them, you can’t avoid them. Donald Trump, the … [Read more...]
Abiy Ahmed’s Ethiopian exceptionalism
Simon Allison | 19 Oct 2018 | Mail & Guardian Ethiopia’s new prime minister is trying to do things differently. If he succeeds, the consequences will be felt beyond his borders Autocracy is trending around the world. From Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping and Donald Trump to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Jair Bolsonaro, Rodrigo Duterte and Mohammed Bin Salman, a populist, … [Read more...]