11 min read. The Kibra by-election was not so much about the 24 contestants that took part in the race, but was more about a competition between the two biggest political parties, and between two bitter rivals, Raila Odinga and William Ruto. It was also a dress rehearsal for the 2022 elections, which, if this by-election is anything to go by, promises to be highly contentious.
4 min read. What does the Kibra by-election portend for the future of Kenya’s politics? Renowned photographer CARL ODERA captures the sights.
10 min read. Have Kenya’s close ties with its “Man in Somalia”, Ahmed Madobe, created a rift between Mogadishu and Nairobi? RASNA WARAH explores the precarious relationship between the two neighbouring countries.
9 min read. Student protests in Uganda have highlighted a crisis in higher education and exposed the dark underbelly of a state struggling for legitimacy.
14 min read. As Kenyan society grappled with an uncertain economy and a disease for which there was no cure, charismatic churches and sects filled a void left by a kleptocratic political class that could not provide solutions.
11 min read. Was Tanzania’s first president a hero or a heroic failure? DAUTI KAHURA examines the life of one of Africa’s most respected leaders.
11 min read. The explosion of deliverance ministries that conduct bizarre exorcisms on hapless followers is the result of governments having failed to provide services to struggling populations who turn to charlatans to ease their anxieties. This points to a society that has broken down at various levels.
5 min read. The crisis in the Gulf countries has shifted political alliances in Somalia, which may influence the 2020/21 elections.
11 min read. The Kenyan media has continuously pilloried the North through freeze-framing it as a region where nothing good can or does happen. In this first part of a three-part series, DALLE ABRAHAM examines the role the media continues to play in reinforcing lies and stereotypes about a much-maligned and misunderstood territory and its people.
15 min read. SANYA OSHA delves into the mindset of a sect that has embarked on a path of death and destruction in north-eastern Nigeria in the name of Islam.
