SPECIAL FEATURES - The African Mirror

Apr

19

2024

Maserati launches electric drop-top GT

MOTORING NEWS

In 2023, Italian supercar manufacturer Maserati made a triumphant return to single-seater racing by partnering with MSG Racing in the Formula E (FE) championship. This marked not only a bid to reclaim its motorsport legacy but also a significant step in its venture into the realm of retail electric vehicles (EVs)." Maserati introduced us to its GranTurismo Folgore, its first electric vehicle. With a powerful three-motor electric drivetrain, it packs 818 horsepower and accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 2.7 seconds. Its travel range goes up to 450 kilometres. Now they have launched another model, the GranCabrio Folgore,…

Apr

18

2024

By The African Mirror

Nikhil Sachania, a paraplegic rally driver re-defining Kenya’s motorsports scene

MOTORING NEWS

THE WRC Safari Rally Kenya 2024 took place from March 28 to March 31 in Naivasha, Nakuru county. This was the third round of the 2024 World Rally Championship events, following the Rallye Monte and Rally Sweden events that took place in January and February respectively. The sport is cherished in Kenya, with drivers like 35-year-old Nikhil Sachania being highly recognized and adored. Sachania is Kenya’s first and only paraplegic rally driver. For him, getting through the race successfully has always been the ultimate goal. In the just concluded WRC Safari Rally, Sachania was among the team of competitors, alongside…

Apr

18

2024

By CLAUDE MUHINDO SENGENYA

For Congolese displaced by the M23 war, host families offer a ‘heart of solidarity’

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

KANYABAYONGA, Democratic Republic of the Congo WHEN thousands of displaced Congolese arrived in the eastern town of Kanyabayonga fleeing M23 rebels last month, local resident Jeanine Bitasimwa acted as she always does in these circumstances: She welcomed destitute families into her humble home. “We agree to welcome the displaced because we do not know if we too will be displaced one day in this country, which only seems to experience war,” Bitasimwa told The New Humanitarian on a visit to Kanyabayonga late last month. Some 1.5 million people are currently uprooted following two years of ruinous conflict between the Rwanda-backed…

Apr

17

2024

By HUGH CORDER

South Africa’s Constitutional Court at 30: a solid foundation but cracks are showing

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

SOUTH Africa’s Constitutional Court stands out as one of the few government institutions that have protected and advanced the constitutional vision of a participatory democracy and social justice. Many other government institutions which ought to have allied themselves with the court have been weakened or have failed to deliver. The court has consistently championed one of the fundamental values to be found in section 1 of the Constitution, 1996. This requires that the exercise of public power be accountable, responsive and open. Despite this, but also because of it, the court faces challenges from outside and from within. The duty…

Apr

16

2024

By The African Mirror

Who is fighting in Sudan?

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

HERE are some facts about Sudan's army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group which have been fighting each other for a year, devastating their country, reigniting ethnically-targeted killings in Darfur and displacing millions. The factions, uneasy partners in the toppling of President Omar Hassan al-Bashir in 2019 and the overthrow of a civilian-led government in 2021, clashed as they competed to protect their interests in a planned political transition. THE ARMY Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stands at the podium during a ceremony to sign the framework agreement between military rulers and civilian powers in Khartoum, Sudan December 5, 2022.…

Apr

16

2024

By The African Mirror

Sudan’s humanitarian crisis: The facts and figures

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

A year of war between rival military factions in Sudan has pushed parts of the country to the brink of famine, and left 25 million people - about half the population - in need of assistance, according to aid agencies. Sudan was already burdened with rising hunger, a collapsing health system and widespread poverty before the conflict between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out. HUNGER *Some 17.7 million of Sudan's 49 million population were facing what experts term acute food insecurity, a sharp increase from last year, according to a projection covering the five months to…

Apr

13

2024

By The African Mirror

State capture in South Africa: time to think differently about redress and recovering the stolen loot

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

SOUTH Africans are plunged into darkness daily by rolling power cuts. These are a stark reminder of the destruction that years of state capture wreaked on Eskom, the state-owned power utility. Eskom’s inability to meet the energy needs of citizens and the economy is now the undeniable example of how state capture made parastatals and other state institutions ineffective. The country urgently needs action to recover the stolen funds and fix the economy. So far, President Cyril Ramaphosa has offered only a few general targets, and outcomes have been dissatisfying. For example, the “total of R2.9 billion” that he said…

Apr

13

2024

By AIDAN LEWIS

Sudan’s conflict: Who is backing the rival commanders?

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

AS a devastating conflict has unfolded across Sudan over the past year, the country's military rivals have sought support from foreign backers as they try to tip the contest in their favour. That backing risks widening and prolonging the war between the Sudanese armed forces, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) headed by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti. The influence of outside players has loomed over events in Sudan since the overthrow of former leader Omar al-Bashir during a popular uprising five years ago. WHO SUPPORTS BURHAN? Burhan's clearest ally has been Egypt, which shares a border with…

Apr

12

2024

By ROBERT PAARLBERG

West Africa’s falling fish stocks: illegal Chinese trawlers, climate change and artisanal fishing fleets to blame

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

AVERAGE fish catches by traditional fishing communities along the West African coast have declined significantly over the past three decades. Along the Gulf of Guinea, stretching from Côte d'Ivoire to Nigeria, fishers launch their wooden canoes from the beach to catch small pelagic fish, like sardines and anchovies, which they sell into local informal markets to make a living. They have done this for generations, but since the 1990s, a decline in the catch has put their livelihoods at risk. In Ghana, total landings of small pelagic fish fell by 59% between 1993 and 2019, despite increased fishing efforts. Landings…

Apr

11

2024

By The African Mirror

What happened to Nelson Mandela’s South Africa? A new podcast series marks 30 years of post-apartheid democracy

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

WHEN Nelson Mandela stood in front of the Union Buildings in Pretoria in May 1994 as South Africa’s first democratically elected president, my country was brimming with optimism for its post-apartheid future. I was there and relieved at the prospect of an end to bloodshed. I had seen far too much violence and death in my five-year career as a journalist, covering the deadly political violence that characterised the dying moments of apartheid. But was the negotiated settlement real freedom? The sceptic in me wondered. How could it be when we did not really defeat the white settler colonialists who’d…