Organize or starve!
Instead of voting for the bankrupt ANC or DA, South Africans could do better with social movement candidates in upcoming local elections.
democracy
Reimagining local government in South Africa
If re-municipalization — returning a privatized service to local public control — is to work in South Africa, we need other forms of social contracting between municipalities and citizens.
The end of Tunisian democracy?
On this week's episode of AIAC Talk, Will Shoki speaks with Maha Ben Gadha about the changing political landscape in Tunisia.
Alpha and Omega
AIAC Talk is back, and to kick off our second season we head to Guinea to discuss a crisis of state, institutions and public morality with Siba N’Zatioula Grovogui.
The strongman’s vision of democracy
Former South African President Jacob Zuma’s various rationalizations and obstructions for his crimes make for good drama. But they also reveal Zuma’s aversion to the rule of law.
Exit the bulldozer, enter Mama Samia
Has the recent death of Tanzania’s president John Magufuli created new political possibilities?
South Africa’s Left needs a new party
Assuming today’s socioeconomic crisis benefits the Left is folly. That will only happen if we have the political vision to make class the fault line of social polarization, and for that we need to face the challenge of constructing a new party.
Beware of martyrs
The Senegalese state’s quest to crush the opposition has caused massive unrest throughout the country. A regime that blows on the embers fans the flames.
The music of the Nyayo era
Tracing the music, from 1978 to the 2000s, that defined the rule of former Kenyan president Daniel Torotich Arap Moi.
Thousands of mockingbirds
On surviving the Khartoum massacre and trying to make sense of what remains from Sudan’s revolution.
The liberation stories of Guinea Bissau
Amilcar Cabral is a household name. But what happened to the young women like Joana Gomes who helped lead Guinea Bissau’s independence struggle?
The legacy of violence in the struggle for South Africa
An excerpt of an essay, titled “Nongoloza’s Ghost,” in Lapham’s Quarterly. It's published in partnership with Africa Is a Country.
A democracy of chameleons
Malawi is experiencing a crisis over the legitimacy of the democratic state itself.
The mythical black voter
Black Americans are not a unified voting bloc, and it is time to start paying attention.
When things fall apart
The demise of Alassane Ouattara’s presidency in Cote d’Ivoire.
Democracy needs dissent
In a ruling party-dominated Tanzania, opposition parties are flawed but remain critically important.
Liberal democracy has failed in Nigeria
What alternative pathways are available towards accountable governance in Nigeria?
Finding a way through the deluge in Zimbabwe
Public sector strikes place major pressure on the Zimbabwean state, but not enough to effect a meaningful national dialogue on the country's direction.
Between democracy and despotism
South Africa introduces a new law which allows traditional leaders along with third parties to decide for communities, without their consent.
What’s the point of opposition politics in Southern Africa?
Opposition parties, inequality, and the politics of failure in the Southern African region.