Civil Society | Council on Foreign Relations

Nigeria

The Unmaking of an Elite

The great tragedy of Nigerian tertiary education is the debasement of its professoriate.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare September 16, 2024 Africa in Transition
Sub-Saharan Africa

The Truth About Africa's "Debt Crisis"

Africa has a governance crisis, not a debt crisis.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare September 5, 2024 Africa in Transition
Rwanda

Kagame's Crusade

The Rwandan President’s attempt to regulate faith-based organizations raises more questions than answers.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare August 26, 2024 Africa in Transition

Experts in this Topic

Jerome A. Cohen

Adjunct Senior Fellow for Asia Studies

Kat Duffy

Senior Fellow for Digital and Cyberspace Policy

Carl Minzner

Senior Fellow For China Studies

Ebenezer Obadare

Douglas Dillon Senior Fellow for Africa Studies

Sub-Saharan Africa

Uncivil Society

The standard state versus society framework for analyzing African politics is no longer fit for purpose.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare August 22, 2024 Africa in Transition
Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s Pre-SADC Crackdown

As SADC leaders gather in Harare for their annual summit, Zimbabwe’s government rounds up perceived “enemies of the state.”

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin August 13, 2024 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

A Loud Silence

Pentecostal leaders’ avoidance of the #EndBadGovernance protests in Nigeria speaks volumes about the protests’ ethnoreligious undercurrents.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare August 12, 2024 Africa in Transition

Nigeria

The Myth of the ‘Leaderless’ African Protest

Rather than being leaderless, contemporary African protests are being steered by a leadership no one saw coming.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare August 8, 2024 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

A False Dilemma

Bad governance, not dissent, is the real threat to law and order in Nigeria.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare July 29, 2024 Africa in Transition
Uganda

Uganda’s Inventive Protest Culture

In the face of growing repression, Ugandans continue to find new and creative ways to combat the entrenched system of state capture.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin July 17, 2024 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Who Needs an Emir?

The ongoing Emirship tussle in Nigeria begs broader questions about the place of traditional rulership in Africa’s emerging democracies.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare June 24, 2024 Africa in Transition
Burkina Faso

When Civilians Become Targets

Recurrent deadly encounters between soldiers and civilians across West Africa offer an instructive glimpse into the state of civil-military relations in the region.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare May 22, 2024 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Ethnonationalist Rumblings

Why seeming democratic progress has failed to staunch agitation for self-determination in Nigeria.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare May 9, 2024 Africa in Transition
LGBTQ+

How (Not) to Talk About Sex in Africa

It is time the LGBTQ+ coalition changed its strategy on the continent.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare April 8, 2024 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

The Ride of Their Lives

More than a mere automobile, the sport utility vehicle (SUV) in Nigeria is rich in social meaning.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare March 19, 2024 Africa in Transition
Religion

A King and His Subjects

The relationship between a Nigerian pastor on death row and his congregation offers a timely glimpse into the nature of devotion and social obedience across African Pentecostal churches.

Blog Post by Ebenezer Obadare March 11, 2024 Africa in Transition