Vol 59 No 1 | KENYA Political rift will linger 12th January 2018 The unrest and instability of the prolonged electoral crisis will continue to dominate politics as Kenyatta looks to his legacy The political tug-of-war between the governing Jubilee Party of Kenya and the opposition National Super Alliance (Nasa) which dominated 2017 is expected to continue through the rest of...
Vol 59 No 1 | ETHIOPIA Trouble in the engine room 12th January 2018 The biggest threats to the successes of the 'developmental state' are the growing challenges to the ruling party's legitimacy The most worrying thing about the chaos towards the end of the year in Ethiopia was just how commonplace it seemed – a clear indication that the engine...
Vol 59 No 1 | SOMALIA Cracks in the federal system 12th January 2018 Farmajo is swamped by an ocean of political problems, and victory over Al Shabaab will be no closer this year No one could have predicted that Mohamed Abdullah Mohamed 'Farmajo' would have lost so much popularity, and become so dictatorial less than a year after becoming president. He...
Vol 59 No 1 | SOUTH SUDAN Low expectations for peace talks 19th December 2017 As the two sides in the conflict meet in Addis they trade accusations of unwarranted attacks. The notion of talks being 'revitalised' is already coming under question The 'High Level Revitalisation Forum' in Addis Ababa looked doomed as soon as it began on 18 December. Several military offensives are already in progress and are unlikely...
Vol 58 No 25 | KENYA Allowance alliance 15th December 2017 Members of parliament of the opposition National Super Alliance (Nasa) have boycotted the National Assembly since August's controversial elections, bringing legislative business to a halt. But when the...
Vol 58 No 25 | RWANDAUGANDA Pepper spray 15th December 2017 Three editors from the Ugandan satirical tabloid Red Pepper have been charged with libel and 'offensive communication' over a story alleging that Uganda's security services were plotting to...
Vol 58 No 25 | UGANDA Probing the gold 15th December 2017 The African Gold Refinery, launched by President Yoweri Museveni in February, is being investigated by a United Nations panel of experts and two Ugandan anti-corruption agencies. The experts...
Vol 58 No 25 | UGANDA Farm-downs and cash-cows 5th December 2017 Despite a massive oil find over ten years ago, inter-company disputes, and wrangles over taxation and a refinery are still slowing progress Late last year, President Yoweri Museveni directed his technocrats and the oil companies to start production in two years. It's going to take more than State House decrees...
Vol 58 No 23 | KENYA Unpacking Raila's resistance 17th November 2017 As the country simmers after its election re-run, churchmen take to diplomacy – and politicians to the street and social media In an eloquent address to a full auditorium at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC on the morning of 9 November, Raila Odinga,...
Vol 58 No 23 | KENYA Counting on the counties 17th November 2017 Hopes are high that however dangerous national politics may be, regional government will reduce ethnic and economic tension Devolving power to Kenya's 47 counties was one of the main provisions of the 2010 constitution drafted in response to the post-election violence in 2007-08. Moderate government and...