ISS, Institute for Security Studies
Election rigging claims spark turbulence in Comoros
19th January 2024 Africa’s 2024 election season – comprising 19 presidential and general polls – got off to an unpromising and alarming start this week. After... →
Flawed elections and poor governance underlie Africa’s backsliding
19th January 2024 How do we explain the developmental and governance reversals now haunting Africa? Reasons for the apparent collapse of security are complex, but... →
Can South Sudan meet its election deadline this time?
18th January 2024 In August 2022, South Sudan’s transitional government extended its term to February 2025, with elections planned for December 2024. The extension... →
Kenya and Ethiopia could show the way on migration governance
16th January 2024 Migration governance in Kenya and Ethiopia has significant implications for regional stability and human rights in the Horn of Africa and in each... →
After a glimmer of hope, Sudan’s peace effort fades
12th January 2024 With the world’s attention focused on wars in Israel, Gaza and Ukraine, the devastating civil war that erupted in Sudan in April 2023 has largely... →
African countries should not entertain taking forcibly displaced Palestinians
11th January 2024 In early January, media reports claimed Israel was in talks with ‘Congo’ about ‘voluntary migration plans’ for Palestinians from Gaza. The original... →
Scrap metal smuggling could cripple East Africa’s infrastructure
10th January 2024 On 11 January 2022, Nairobi was plunged into darkness after Kenya Power lost supply along the Kiambere-Embakasi high voltage transmission power... →
India eyes Africa in its quest for superpower status
9th January 2024 India is rapidly forging an important role in the new global order as a bridge between the global north and south. Leveraging its economic muscle... →
Foreign criminals go for gold in Nigeria
8th January 2024 Nigeria’s mining sector is diverse in mineral resources that make a significant contribution to the nation’s gross domestic product. The country is... →
Fairer global tax won’t be enough to cure Africa’s chronic capital deficit
8th January 2024 On 22 November 2023, a coalition of 125 mostly developing countries led by Nigeria won an important United Nations (UN) General Assembly vote on... →
Positive outlook for Morocco’s development prospects
8th January 2024 North Africa and the Sahel have generally been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Coups last year rocked Mali, Niger, Chad and Burkina Faso,... →
The African Union’s fight for relevance in 2024
8th January 2024 The African Union (AU) isn’t living up to expectations – and member states are partly to blame, according to AU Commission (AUC) Chairperson Moussa... →
Inconsistencies are costing the AU Mission in Somalia
18th December 2023 In September, a call was made for a technical pause to the African troop drawdown from Somalia, following the initial withdrawal of 2 000 troops in... →
Challenges loom before DRC voting day
18th December 2023 The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) fourth election on 20 December will occur against a protracted conflict shaping the nation’s political... →
Nigeria’s military mistakes cost the country its civilians
13th December 2023 Last week’s accidental bombing of Tudun Biri in Kaduna State by the Nigerian Army’s drone unit is the country’s most devastating military mishap in... →
Ransom kidnappings challenge North Cameroon
12th December 2023 In just three years (2015–18), kidnappers in North Cameroon collected ransom money of around €3 million (CFAF 2 billion), according to Garoua... →
Ukraine’s ‘low return’ on its African investment
8th December 2023 Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba was being rather undemocratic – by his admission – when he told visiting African journalists last month... →
Africa must stand together to end Ethiopia's conflict
7th December 2023 Ethiopia's Amhara region has been the epicentre of political violence and armed conflict, with Fano ethnic militias clashing with the federal... →
Can Chad’s constitutional referendum still be saved?
7th December 2023 Following President Idriss Déby Itno’s death in May 2021, Chad entered a transition led by his son, General Mahamat Idriss Déby. The transition... →
High Seas Treaty: Africa's role in saving the world's blue lungs
6th December 2023 The High Seas Treaty – officially known as the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty – must be signed and ratified by 20 September 2025.... →
Are ZANU-PF’s high-risk strategies paying off?
6th December 2023 As Zimbabwe moves from its discredited August harmonised elections, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) government wants... →
Pilot Zambian debt relief collapses
1st December 2023 Zambia’s imploding deals for debt relief from its many creditors have plunged the country’s fragile economic recovery into uncertainty. It also... →
Nigeria’s foreign minister has his work cut out
30th November 2023 Nigeria’s new Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar is leading the country’s foreign relations in the face of significant... →
Tackling several forms of violence together delivers results
28th November 2023 Levels of interpersonal violence remain pervasive and unyielding in South Africa. While a small number of the more extreme cases make headline... →
Europe’s migration deals in the Sahel must be revised
27th November 2023 This year, a complex mix of insecurity, poverty and misgovernance has seen instability soar in the Sahel. Among the immediate effects is a rise in... →
Can revised AU policy give youth an active peacebuilding role?
24th November 2023 Despite the African Union’s (AU) various youth inclusion initiatives, practical and meaningful youth participation in peace and security remains a... →
The Loss and Damage Fund must deliver at COP28
24th November 2023 One of the most celebrated outcomes of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheik was the agreement to establish a... →
First Saudi-Africa summit: off to a rocky start?
22nd November 2023 On 10 November, the maiden Saudi Arabia-Africa summit was hosted in Riyadh – the latest in a growing list of ‘Africa+1’ summits. The gathering... →
Cellphone theft: another indicator of South Africa’s policing gaps
21st November 2023 After a robbery in August, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police arrested a suspect in possession of 153 stolen iPhones. Private security tracked... →
Why aren’t sanctions preventing coups in Africa?
20th November 2023 In response to the resurgence of coups since 2019, the African Union (AU) and regional economic blocs have issued sanctions against errant states,... →
Drones as weapons: Africa needs better data to anticipate risk
17th November 2023 In October this year, Africa’s air force chiefs of staff and air force industry representatives gathered in Senegal. They agreed the continent... →
Lack of funding could sink Africa’s ocean protection efforts
17th November 2023 Over 11-million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans annually, and 90% of its fish population has been fully exploited or... →
Will Africa remain on the sidelines of Sudan’s Jeddah talks?
16th November 2023 Since civil war broke out in Sudan in April, approximately 10 000 people have died and six million Sudanese are displaced internally and across... →
Pledges aren’t enough to protect East Africa’s refugees
14th November 2023 Despite East Africa’s recent commitments, it is becoming increasingly difficult for countries in the region to sustain financial support for... →
Climate risk in a world at war
13th November 2023 Since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October, the world has seen the unfolding of possibly the worst humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. This... →
All agree Agoa should be renewed – but how?
10th November 2023 At the 20th African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) annual forum in Johannesburg last week, the United States (US) government and Congress,... →
A year after the Pretoria agreement, hard work remains for Ethiopia
10th November 2023 On 2 November 2022 in Pretoria, Ethiopia’s federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) signed the Cessation of Hostilities... →
Intense rivalry makes transparency vital in Liberia’s runoff election
8th November 2023 Liberia’s 10 October elections marked a significant milestone for the fledgling democracy. They were the first general elections managed entirely... →
Fraudulent municipal elections cripple democracy in Mozambique
7th November 2023 The National Electoral Commission declared Mozambique’s ruling party FRELIMO the winner in 64 out of 65 municipalities participating in the... →
Ghana’s sophisticated artisanal firearms trade needs regulating
7th November 2023 All it takes to manufacture a craft firearm in Ghana is US$9. Gunsmiths produce about 200 000 of these illegal weapons a year, selling them for... →
Navigating the complex terrain of China-Africa debt relations
2nd November 2023 Africa’s mounting debt crisis could undermine the continent’s economic progress and stability. The problem has worsened with the economic fallout... →
