The Gambian election dispute is not the first that ECOWAS has confronted. Côte d’Ivoire’s 2010 presidential election is a case in point. There it resorted to military action to enforce the outcome.
N'da Yao Messou is president of a cocoa farmers’ association in Niable, eastern Ivory Coast. Women’s right to development has a long way to go.
Reuters/Thierry Gouegnon
Africa battles with a dearth of data and seems unable to scale up health innovations. If these can be systematically addressed, the continent can take great strides towards better health for all.
Presidents Jacob Zuma and Uhuru Kenyatta. Their countries are at the forefront of efforts to have Africa leave the ICC.
GCIS
Ironically the campaign to withdraw from the ICC was mainly initiated by the very same governments and heads of state that had earlier referred cases to the ICC when it suited their own interests.
One of the first dilemmas that black people face is whether to let strangers touch their hair – and under what circumstances.
Thomas Mukoya/Reuters
When it comes to black hair, “common sense” is the least reliable tool for decision making since even black people are constantly changing their minds about what they want to do with their hair.
Ranking organisations call the shots about which universities are ‘best’.
Shutterstock
It is arrogant and hypocritical for ranking institutions to declare that they’re building Africa’s legacy or its global partnerships on the continent’s behalf.
Former Chadian dictator Hissène Habré at his trial in Senegal for crimes against humanity.
EPA
The trial of Chad’s former dictator could provide a template for prosecutions of other African despots. Its success could be seen as a victory for African justice over international approaches.
Investment in science and innovation is needed to help build Africa.
Kate Holt/Africa Practice/Flickr
Successful economies are led by innovation and driven by knowledge. For Africa to advance, it needs to make more substantial investments in its research and development sector.
Heads of state at an African Union session in Addis Ababa. They have signed up to a plan that envisages strengthening institutions and governance.
EPA/Solan Kolli
If the governing ANC ignores the calls for Zuma’s resignation,it may undermine South Africa’s leadership on the continent. It creates the idea that he can undermine the constitution with impunity.
A Nigerien voter makes his feelings felt.
EPA/Arne Gillis
When talking about the role that higher education can play in developing Africa, it’s important not to forget the continuing and crucial role of the continent’s flagship universities.
The island of Mauritius has a strong democratic tradition that has deepened over the past decades.
Reuters/Ally Soobye
History tells us that while elements of competition and inclusion strengthen multiparty systems, too much of either can be fatal to the process of democratisation.
Senegalese boys learn at a koranic school. Even in secular schools, religion dominates class time.
Finbarr O'Reilly/Reuters
Sarah Croché, Université de Picardie Jules Verne (UPJV)
In Senegal, schoolteachers who are personally religious must work in a secular space that marginalises religious discourse and knowledge. They have several ways of subverting the system.