OPINION

Mauritius is set to become a plastic free island that will help protect the nation’s wildlife and place the country on the path to a green economy. Early this year single use plastics were banned in and over the next three years the Mauritian government will be putting in place further regulations and restrictions to rid the island of plastics. …

There is a resurgence of a once forgotten infirmity in West Africa, writes Steve Ogah, as he comments on the increasing spate of military interruption of democratic governance in the sub region. Once, on the rise to the pinnacle of some of the finest ethos of democracy, the West African sub region is now fast backsliding into the dark and …

Former Chadian dictator Hissène Habré died in a Senegalese prison on 24 August. He was serving a life sentence for the widespread human rights abuses and atrocities committed by his regime during its reign of terror in the country from 1982 to 1990. Prof David Monda writes on the lessons of Habré’s conviction, the first by an African court, for …

Dr. Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Member of the European Parliament representing Germany on the platform of the Green Party, writes on the Taliban takeover of power in Afghanistan and the moral debt of the free world to the people of the country —– We are all in shock, stunned, following the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. We are faced with a state of …

Collins Nweke is a Councillor in the Belgian town of Ostend. The Nigerian-born communal politician narrates his experience of fighting poverty in his community and he reveals the institutional practice that has deliberately kept many families from accessing state support due to them ———– By Hon. Collins Nweke* We had our first son shortly after moving to Belgium. By the …

By Prof David Monda* On July 4th, 1776, the preamble to the American Declaration of Independence emphasized the centrality of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness to the ideals of the new American nation. While America advanced lofty ideals on this day, the reality of balancing its ideals and its interests in Ethiopia, almost a century and a half later, have …

Our contributing editor and Duesseldorf-based journalist Tina Adomako writes on the deteriorating climate for human rights and democracy in the West African country that traditionally enjoys the image of a role model for democratic governance in the continent Ibrahim Kaaka Mohammed – better known as Kaaka – was part of a group of civil society activists in Ghana. Using the …

What will West Africa look like in ten years? Will the region continue on the path of slow advancement, or will technology be a catalyst that could see it create a technologically advanced society such as the one embodied by Wakanda in the Black Panther movie? Titilayo Adewumi, Regional Sales Director: West Africa at SAP, takes a view of West …

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana*, Member of the European Parliament (MEP), writes on the historic agreement between the governments of Germany and Namibia on the genocide committed by German colonial troops against the people of the African country at the beginning of the 20th century. She explains why the agreement is to the detriment of the victims’ descendants ——- Following the return …

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Green Member of the European Parliament representing Germany, praises the appointment of Michaela Moua as the first Anti-Racism Coordinator at the European Commission, and what she expects from the history-making appointee ——- Cultural Diversity in the European Institutions The European Commission has appointed Michaela Moua as its first anti-racism coordinator. I am delighted that she has been …

Finally, the verdict on the police killing of Afro-American George Floyd has been issued and was handed down on 20 April 2021, in the court of Minneapolis. The white former police officer Derek Chauvin officer was found guilty by the jury on three counts, including second-degree murder. For the first time in US history, the established jurisprudence acknowledges and acts …

Harrison Mwilima, Kiswahili correspondent for the German international broadcaster DW in Berlin, explains how Tanzania’s recent peaceful transition of power following President Magufuli’s death was not only a result of adhering to the constitution but also respecting the country’s political culture. When Tanzania announced the death of President John Pombe Magufuli on March 17, the East African nation went into 21 …

Prof. David Monda of the City University of New York in this opinion piece outlines the major challenges that the new president of Tanzania faces and how best she should address them and make the country work better —– An old Swahili proverb states, “Hata kiporo ni ugali – Even yesterday’s ugali, is still ugali”. While the legacy of President …

Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Member of the European Parliament, representing Germany on the platform of the Green Party, writes on her efforts to make Europe leave up to its self-professed commitment to upholding the memory of the trans-Atlantic slave trade and work for the mitigation of its present-day negative legacies, such as racism and discrimination —– In June 2020, the European …

The following is a press statement issued by Dr Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, Member of the European Parliament, on the ongoing protests in Nigeria against police brutality: Comment on #endSARS movement in Nigeria These last days, the hashtag #EndSARS has been highly visible in social media as well as to us in the European Parliament. First, Nigerian civil society, then people from …

Young people in Africa continue to be frustrated by their exclusion and exploitation in political processes. In order to build a mutually beneficial Europe-Africa Partnership that enhances youth trust in political processes, Zigwai Tagwai and Merryl Omondi* have come up with a few concrete points on building inclusive democracies VENRO, the Association of German Development and Humanitarian NGOs, has been …

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement was initially scheduled to enter into force in July 2020. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the commencement of the implementation of the continental deal has been postponed until January 2021. NJ Ayuk*, international legal practitioner and founder of one of Africa’s most successful law chambers, explains why the global health …

The Public University Bill has been the cause for heated debate in Ghana, especially in academic circles. Germany-based journalist and scholar Tina Adomako explains how the new bill could herald the end of freedom of speech and research in government-owned institutions of higher learning in the country. While the global coronavirus pandemic has challenged educational institutions and universities around the …

To those who keep on deriding Pan-Africanism as a hopeless dream, Fẹ̀mi Akọmọlàfẹ́, book author and political analyst, writing from Accra, Ghana, makes the case for a united continent that is stronger on the world stage —– The future, they say, belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Stop confusing Pan-Africanism with African-Romanticism. Pan-Africanism is not …

NJ Ayuk, founder of one of Africa’s most successful law chambers, supports the Senegalese leader's call on the G20 to help African countries balance their obligations to international creditors with their obligations to their own citizens in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. He explains why debt relief is crucial to Africa's recovery from the economic fallout of the global health crisis