The reality of Rwanda is that there is no viable alternative to President Paul Kagame, within or outside his ruling RPF. Political rivals have died, are jailed, or have fled the country.
Supporters of Rwandan president Paul Kagame in full cry.
EPA/Stephen Morrison
Recent changes to the Rwandan constitution appear to have been tailor-made for the current president. This does not bode well for the country’s future constitutional base.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame at the 2016 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos. He has drawn flack for seeking a third term.
Reuters/Ruben Sprich
Unlike the third-term fever afflicting the Great Lakes region, Rwanda is not mired in corruption and stagnation. Rwandans were fearful and anxious about what might happen after 2017 without Kagame.
A truck bearing the image of Uganda’s President Museveni.
Reuters/James Akena
Regular changes of government through free and fair elections that reflect the wishes of the majority of citizens are a critical component of democratisation. But how significant are polls in Africa?
Supporters cheer for Rwandan President Paul Kageme who has secured a much longer term of office for himself.
Epa/STephen Morrison
This year no fewer than 16 elections will take place in Africa, many of which involve removing presidential term limits. The motives are worth examining.
Rwandan president Paul Kagame has long benefited from the support of the US.
DFID/Flickr
The Africa-China summit will provide an opportunity to get a feel for how Chinese President Xi Jinping is responding to democratic developments in Africa.
Tanzania’s John Magufuli greets ruling party members after being declared winner of the presidential elections.
Reuters/Sadi Said
Tanzania’s new president, John Pombe Magufuli, needs to change the country’s lukewarm attitude to the EAC and regional integration, which has cast a shadow over the future prospects of the region.
Post-election violence in Kenya in January 2008. The country was forewarned in its peer review report that trouble was brewing, but took no action.
EPA
The African Peer Review Mechanism has made a difference since it was started in 2003. There are multiple examples of reforms that have been introduced as a result. All have gone unnoticed.
Then-US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discusses collaboration between the US and Senegal. International partnerships, particularly between universities, can yield great rewards.
EPA
If memorandums of understanding with international institutions are properly developed and put into action, they can contribute a great deal to African universities’ push for internationalisation.
Gorillas in the wild: better than a zoo.
David Newsome
The fortunes of the world’s remaining wild gorillas is linked to prosperity in the places where they live - hence the high price of tourist permits. But with economic development comes economic threats too.
More than 100,000 people have fled Burundi since violence erupted in April.
Reuters/Thomas Mukoya
Rwanda and Burundi, once the conjoined twins of East Africa, marked over five decades of going separate ways since independence. Today, the difference in their fortunes couldn’t be more stark.
Rwanda faces energy isues and renewable energy in rural parts of the country is vital for healthcare.
George Baryamwisaki/EPA
The arrest of Rwanda’s intelligence chief is part of a long-running international attempt to issue justice for Rwanda’s history.
Health workers rest outside a quarantine zone at a Red Cross facility in eastern Sierra Leone in this file picture from December last year.
Baz Ratner/Reuters
Why does Burundi’s Nkurunziza, like many African leaders before him, find it difficult to leave office? The events of the Arab spring should have served as a wake-up call.
Suspects await their turn in front of a gacaca court
Reuters photographer
To mark the 21st anniversary of the Rwandan genocide: lessons from the “gacaca” courts, the country’s unique and ambitious community justice initiative.
Notorious: Mathieu Ngudjolo, who awaits the ICC’s latest verdict.
EPA/Tugela Ridley
On 7 April 2014, Rwanda commemorates the 20th anniversary of the genocide against the Tutsi. The events of 1994 continue to cast a long shadow over both Rwanda and the international community. As the world…