Cyril Ramaphosa handled COVID-19 well, but more could have been done on governance, security and violent extremism.
Liesl Louw-Vaudran
Politics and Society Election observation in Africa put to the test
COVID-19 travel restrictions are adding to the growing pressure on observer missions to prove their worth.
Politics and Society Dealing with crises in Africa: south vs west
Why doesn’t SADC intervene in dire political situations in the same way leaders in West Africa do?
Politics and Society Keeping the AU relevant to Africa’s citizens
As Africa Day is celebrated, debates abound about how to make the African Union more efficient.
Politics and Society 28th AU Summit: Promoting women’s rights the highlight of Dlamini Zuma’s legacy
The AU Commission chairperson steps down this month, leaving behind a mixed bag of failures and successes.
Politics and Society Castro’s death casts light on Africa’s relationship with its diaspora
The death of longtime Cuban ruler Fidel Castro last month led to tributes for the larger-than-life revolutionary leader from all over the world. In Africa, from the African Union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa to Harare and Pretoria, leaders praised Castro’s contribution to anti-colonial struggles on the continent.
Politics and Society Term-limit changes the biggest threat to democracy in Africa?
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe (92) is famous for quirky responses when asked why he has stayed in power since 1980. Asked by journalists whether it isn’t time he said farewell to the people of Zimbabwe, he replied: ‘Why, where are they going?’ On a serious note, he also angrily told journalists who asked about his decades-long presidency: ‘Have you ever asked the Queen that question, or is it just for African leaders?’ According to Mugabe: ‘Only God who appointed me can remove me’. Are term-limit changes a threat to democracy in Africa?
Politics and Society Replacing Dlamini Zuma won’t be business as usual
With less than three months to go before the mid-July summit of the African Union (AU) in Kigali, Rwanda, candidates have started vying for the position of the chairperson of the AU Commission (AUC). The post has been occupied by South African politician Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma for the last four years.
Politics and Society Zuma’s lost opportunity in Burundi
South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has been active on the foreign policy front in the last few weeks – with varying degrees of success. At the end of last month he travelled to Burundi to head a delegation of heads of state mandated by the African Union (AU), and this past week he visited Nigeria to address a joint sitting of Parliament in Abuja – a rare event that last occurred when former president Bill Clinton addressed a joint sitting in 2000.