SPECIAL FEATURES - The African Mirror

Mar

06

2024

The African Union is weak because its members want it that way – experts call for action on its powers

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

THE African Union (AU) comes in for a lot of criticism. Most recently this is from within its own ranks. The AU Commission chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, set out his frustrations after an AU summit in February 2024. The commission is the executive organ which runs the AU’s daily activities. Mahamat accused member states of getting in the way of the commission doing its work, and failing to match rhetoric with action: Over the last three years, 2021, 2022 and 2023, 93% of African Union decisions have not been implemented. We think many of the criticisms of the AU are…

Mar

02

2024

By FEDERICO DONELLI

Red Sea politics: why Turkey is helping Somalia defend its waters

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

SOMALIA and Turkey recently announced that they would expand the terms of a defence agreement first signed on 8 February 2024 to include the maritime sector. This came as tensions rose between Somalia and landlocked Ethiopia. Ethiopia is seeking access to the Red Sea through Somaliland, a breakaway state of Somalia. Federico Donelli, an international relations professor whose research covers Red Sea security and politics, puts this defence agreement into context. FEDERICO DONELLI, Assistant Professor of International Relations, University of Trieste What’s the scope of the relationship between Turkey and Somalia? Turkey’s entry into Somalia in 2011 started out as…

Feb

28

2024

By ROULA INGLESI-LOTZ and MENDITA A. UGEMBE

Mozambique’s unstable and expensive power supply is devastating small businesses – study examines what’s gone wrong

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

INSIDE a small bakery in Maputo, the morning’s batch of 150 loaves of bread has just gone into the oven. But there’s a problem: the electricity has gone out without warning for the third time that week. Yet again, the batch of bread is ruined. The owners of the bakery have just lost all the flour and yeast they used to prepare the bread, and they won’t be able to sell the failed loaves either. This is just one example of the daily reality for medium and small business owners in Mozambique. We set out to research what happens to…

Feb

27

2024

By The African Mirror

What are Sabaki languages? How people formed ethnic groups along the coast of East Africa

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

A new book called Ethnicity, Identity and Conceptualizing Community in Indian Ocean East Africa tracks the history of the coastal communities of East Africa and how the Sabaki family of Bantu languages was formed, shaped in part by the sea and the arrival of visitors from other shores and within the continent. We asked historian Daren Ray to tell us more about his book for International Mother Language Day. DAREN RAY, Assistant Professor of History, Brigham Young University Which languages fall into the Sabaki family? Sabaki languages are a grouping of Bantu languages spoken near the east African coast. The…

Feb

23

2024

By DANNY BRADLOW

Africa’s debt crisis needs a bold new approach: expert outlines a way forward

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

IT hasn’t been easy for African states to finance their developmental and environmental policy objectives over the past few years. Recent events suggest that the situation may be improving. For the first time in two years, three African states have been able to access international financial markets, albeit at high-interest rates. Kenya, for example, is now paying over 10% compared to about 7% in 2014. Many African countries continue to face challenging sovereign debt situations. DANNY BRADLOW, Professor/Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Advancement of Scholarship, University of Pretoria Total external debts as a share of Africa’s export earnings increased from…

Feb

21

2024

By MAREW ABEBE SALEMOT

Ethiopia’s peace pacts with the Oromo Liberation Front have failed: here’s what was missing

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

TWO attempts have been made over the past six years to broker peace between the Ethiopian government and the armed rebel group Oromo Liberation Front. The armed group was formed half a century ago to carve out an independent state for Oromia, the country’s largest regional state. MAREW ABEBE SALEMOT, Lecturer of Federalism, Debark University Both attempts at brokering peace – in 2018 and again in 2023 – ended in failure and a return to violence. Oromia is Ethiopia’s largest and most populous region. The Oromo Liberation Front has sought autonomy for the region since the group emerged in 1973.…

Feb

16

2024

By ALESSANDRO ARDUINO

Wagner Group is now Africa Corps. What this means for Russia’s operations on the continent

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

In August 2023, Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died after his private jet crashed about an hour after taking off in Moscow. He had been Russia’s pointsman in Africa since the Wagner Group began operating on the continent in 2017. The group is known for deploying paramilitary forces, running disinformation campaigns and propping up influential political leaders. It has had a destabilising effect. Prigozhin’s death – and his aborted mutiny against Russian military commanders two months earlier – has led to a shift in Wagner Group’s activities. ALESSANDRO ARDUINO, Affiliate Lecturer, King's College London What does this mean for Africa?…

Feb

12

2024

By The African Mirror

South Africa: Old Mutual Insure 2024 Car of The Year finalists announced

MOTORING NEWS

THE finalists of the prestigious Old Mutual Insure 2024 Car of the Year (COTY) competition have been announced. The top 18 finalists meticulously chosen by the jurors of the 38th annual COTY competition presented by the South African Guild of Mobility Journalists (SAGMJ) will go through to the next stage in the search for the 2024 SA Car of the Year. "Congratulations to the top 18 finalists! We eagerly await the upcoming competition phase, where the contenders will undergo comprehensive testing by COTY's expert juror group in early March," says Garth Napier, MD of Old Mutual Insure. "This rigorous and…

Feb

13

2024

By The African Mirror

Mungiki, Kenya’s violent youth gang, serves many purposes: how identity, politics and crime keep it alive

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

KENYA has scores of youth gangs known for their violence and links to the politically powerful. None is more infamous than the Mungiki movement, with a past membership estimated to be at least a million. Though banned, it’s constantly in the news as a tool or target of big political players. Bodil Folke Frederiksen, who has studied Mungiki as part of her field-based research on youth culture in Kenya, traces the origins, growth and persistence of the group. BODIL FOLKE FREDERIKSEN, Associate Professor Emerita, Roskilde University What gave rise to Mungiki? Mungiki emerged in the late 1980s in what was…

Feb

12

2024

By The African Mirror

Volkswagen presents new models to be launched in 2024

MOTORING

VOLKSWAGEN is set to make a significant impact on the South African passenger car market with the launch of three new models in 2024. The new T-Cross, new Tiguan, new Touareg and the ID.4 were unveiled at a special media event hosted at the Volkswagen manufacturing plant in Kariega, in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. “As we embark on the journey that is 2024, we cannot help but feel a positive sense of anticipation for the exciting year ahead. For the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand, 2024 holds immense significance as we set our sights on re-establishing our presence in the…