He recalls the popular challenge now underway against Omar al-Bashir’s rule in Sudan; the deaths of Kofi Annan, the first African secretary General of UN, and Winnie Mandela, a flawed leader of the South African liberation movement; the highly positive emergence of the reform-minded Abiy Ahmed, the Ethiopian prime minister; and the international attention to Congolese surgeon Denis Mukwege, who won a Nobel Peace prize for his work with rape victims.

Russia’s recent disinformation campaign in African countries highlights the challenges that African states face in crafting internet policy that is responsive to both external threats and internal po…

How will African countries react to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and what diplomatic fissures are likely to be opened by the conflict as it drags on? The tone for this appears to have been set by the rousing speech in defense of national sovereignty by Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Martin Kimani. Invoking historical parallels, Kimani pulled no punches in decrying Russian aggression and rejecting “irredentism and expansionism on any basis, including racial, ethnic, religious or cultural factors.”

The deployment of North Korean troops to aid Russia marks an ominous new level of cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang. The alliance could further escalate and globalize the conflict.

As the coup in Mali shows, military seizures of power have not disappeared entirely. Nevertheless, the old style of coups has become rare in Africa. More common now are incumbent chiefs of state using different, more subtle methods to stay in power.