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One of Jacob Olupona’s earliest memories in Massachusetts is of nearly freezing in his apartment as a graduate student at Boston University during the great snowstorm
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When the Berlin Wall was pierced on 9 November 1989, world attention was on Europe. But the collapse of the Soviet Union that followed resonated across Africa and globally. The 30th anniversary offers an opportunity to reflect on these forces …
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Twenty-five years ago, on the eve of democratic transition, South African women were optimistic. They were confident of being included in democratic processes that would ensure greater representation for women and more spaces in the state to promote gender equality.…
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President Paul Kagame of Rwanda recently rekindled the African quest for digital transformation at the Transform Africa Summit held in Kigali. President Kagame and President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya called on other African leaders to speedily invest in technology across …
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Africa remains an enigmatic paradox: a continent rich in mineral resources yet so desperately poor. But the paradox is only superficial: Africa is poor because she is not free.
Only 10 of the 54 African countries can be labeled economic …
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More than a century after 48,000 people died in concentration camps in what’s known as the South African War between 1899 and 1902 – or the Anglo-Boer War – the events of that period are back in the headlines.
The …
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The recent announcement that a British museum will return two stolen locks of hair from a 19th-century Ethiopian king was hailed as an “exemplary gesture of goodwill” by the Ethiopian Embassy in London. The hair was cut from Emperor Tewodros …
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Equating capitalism with colonialism, Africa’s nationalist leaders rejected it and adopted socialism in the 1960s. Foreign companies were nationalized, a string of state-owned enterprises was established and a plethora of state controls on rent, prices, imports, and foreign exchange were …
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Western-style multi-party democracy is possible but not suitable for Africa.
There are two forms of democracy. Democratic decisions can be taken by majority vote, which is the Western form. It has the advantage of being transparent, fast and efficient. But …
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People and places are inextricably linked. Your knowledge about life and how you move through the world is based on the environment where you were raised. A good example is what we found among the Igbo, where landscape provides space …
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