As U.S. struggles, Africa’s Covid-19 response is praised
JOHANNESBURG—At a lecture to peers in September, John Nkengasong showed images that once dogged Africa, with a magazine cover declaring it “The Hopeless Continent.” Then he quoted Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah: “It is clear that we must find an African solution to our problems, and that this can only be found in African unity.” The coronavirus pandemic has fractured...
U.S. effort to block Ethiopian dam recalls legacy of British colonialism
(GIN)—Based on guidance from President Trump, the State Department is suspending $130 million in security-related aid to Ethiopia over a nearly-completed dam that would lift Ethiopia from poverty and end the shadow of British colonialism that favored Egypt. Programs on the chopping block include security assistance, counterterrorism and military education and training, anti-human trafficking programs, and broader development assistance funding,...
The historical impact of African musicians on the geopolitical stage
When it comes to appreciating the power of African artists and their historical impact on geopolitics there is no shortage of icons from which to choose. A recent documentary produced by France24 focusing on the legacy of Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie is a case in point. His historic 1963 speech to the United Nations General Assembly inspired reggae legend Bob...
South Sudan: Progress on peace agreement ‘limps along,’ UN envoy tells security council
Although the transitional government in South Sudan continues to function, with state governors now appointed, among other developments, progress on the 2018 peace agreement “limps along,” the top UN official in the country told a virtual meeting of the Security Council on Sept. 16.. David Shearer, head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), updated ambassadors on the country’s...
Africa’s development tied monetary sovereignty and an alternative economic development model
In an open letter signed by 550 internationally renowned personalities, which includes African economists, in a move that’s the intellectual equivalent of marching in the street, they challenged the continent and its leaders “to forge ahead and aspire to a better future in which all of its people can thrive and realize their full potential.” While the resource rich continent...
The myth of Western economic development
Brazilian economist Celso Furtado’s classic 1974 book, “The Myth of Economic Development,” he argues the very idea of Latin America and Africa someday enjoying a similar livelihood as Western Europe and North America is “unrealizable in practice.” He writes that any attempt to generalize, or use as a model, the lifestyles of the world’s well-to-do would lead to a collapse...
The toll of binge drinking on South Africa
The South African Alcohol Alliance (SAAPA), is a collaborative initiative of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) that advocate for evidence-based alcohol policies in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the years the group has reported on the harmful effects of alcohol consumption. Its reporting included the fact that even though over 60 percent of South Africans do not consume alcohol, the population that does...
Zimbabwe’s suffering and lingering land crisis
With the Zimbabwean economy in free fall, the government has agreed to pay $3.5 billion in compensation to White farmers. The land, which was originally attained by the White settler colony under British colonial rule, was expropriated by the Robert Mugabe government to resettle displaced Black families. The agreement signed July 29 at President Emerson Mnangagwa’s State House offices in...
Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia battle for Nile River rights
During recent talks by phone between Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa—current chairperson of the African Union (AU)—El-Sisi reiterated concern about Ethiopia’s filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). El-Sisi said he seeks a fair and balanced agreement and rejects any unilateral filling of the dam’s reservoir. Ramaphosa said he hopes “intensive coordination” between...
Libya’s unclear future marred by internal, external conflict
Civil war is currently ratcheting up in Libya as internal saber-rattling escalates and foreign actors involved take sides and add to heightened threats of military action. Libya has been absent a cohesive government since a United States-led overthrow of Muammar Gadhafi and the Great Jamahiriya government in 2011. Since the U.S. and NATO (North Atlanta Treaty Organization) invasion, resulting in...