Most South Africans, and indeed observers the world over, have been left scratching their heads over the recent events that with dizzying speed led to Thabo Mbeki's looming resignation and the biggest political crisis in South Africa since the period prior to 1994. Not all are thrilled with the decision and others are worried about the ramifications. […]
Details are sketchy, but it appears that Thabo Mbeki has agreed to resign after the ANC's National Executive Committee asked President Thabo Mbeki and several of his sympathizers in government to step down. The NEC took a long time in coming to this solution and appears to have been deeply divided. I am surprised Mbeki […]
The World Health Organization's Global Malaria Programme has issued its World Malaria Report 2008. The gist of the argument is as follows: Things cotinue to improve. they need to improve more. The number of nets to protect people from malarial mosquitoes has risen impressively. It needs to rise more. the number of people with access […]
Cautious optimism seems to prevail in Zimbabwe, with an emphasis on the “cautious” part. And why not? For the moment relative calm prevails and the worst of the country's political deadlock appears to have been resolved. But Robert Mugabe still has his hands on, or at least near, the reins of power, talks have been […]
Am I the only person for whom the current political crisis in South Africa seems like a scene from The Godfather? It seems as if Tom Hagen, the trusted consiglieri, needs to step in and remind the principals that whatever happens is business, not personal. Instead, everyone is Sonny Corleone, taking it all very, very […]
The 2008 Failed States Index, a joint venture of Foreign Policy magazine and the Fund For Peace, has been released, and as usual, Africa is sadly overrepresented. The continuing presence of African states on this ranking (the continent holds more than half of the slots among the twenty worst — most failing — countries) has caused Peter Pham […]
Thabo Mbeki will be fighting for his political life this weekend when the National Executive Council (NEC) of the African National Congress (ANC) meets. Supporters of Jacob Zuma believe that Mbeki is behind political machinations in the judiciary aimed at Zuma and have called for Mbeki's ouster. Mbeki's supporters insist that the President is not […]
Imagine it: A government official in Africa goes out to pay a visit to the headquarters of a company. The company's managers pile up freebies for the official, gifts and extras and the usual pocket-lining tribute that has come to accompany power across the continent. But a funny thing happens on the way to business […]
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), an umbrella militant group in the Niger Delta, today threatened to broaden their “oil war.” MEND plans to target offshore oilfields, crude oil pipelines in the Niger Delta and other facilities. The organization is estimated to have cut Nigeria's oil output by a fifth.
Forgive the silence the last few days. A monstrous illness felled me and then for the last day or so I have been waiting for the Zimbabwe situation to sort itself out. As I’ve maintained all along, I am thrilled at the prospects of a resolution to the political stalemate and am more than happy to have […]
If the optimists are right and the sides in the Zimbabwe negotiations really are close to an agreement, even Thabo Mbeki's harshest critics will be forced to give the man credit for his role in keeping the sides at the bargaining table and thus facilitating an agreement. Certainly Mbeki will still be vulnerable to accusations […]
Despite my pessimism (cynicism? realism?) about the on-again, off-again negotiations in Zimbabwe, optimism seems to be ruling the day elsewhere. And assuming that the various parties can overcome the remaining sticking points and achieve a meaningful agreement, I will be happy to have been wrong (though I think that my generally skeptical forecast and assessments […]
We all know that Somalia is “A country in peril, a policy nightmare.” Now we have this Ken Menkhaus report (pdf) to give us the grim and graphic details. Do take the time to read the whole thing.
South Africa's unmatched political cartoonist Zapiro has caused quite a stir, infuriating the Jacob Zuma wing of the African National Congress over this controversial cartoon depicting various wings of the ANC holding down the justice system, depicted as a woman struggling to break free, as Jacob Zuma prepares to, well, rape her. [Zapiro, Sunday […]
Despite some signs of tentative optimism on the part of parties to the Zimbabwe negotiations, and despite Thabo Mbeki's best efforts, Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) do not seem any closer to approaching a deal than they have at any other point in the past month. ZANU-PF appears unwilling to […]