Sleazy goings-on in nughtclubs around Lusaka, the presence of legendary old man KK at the stadium in Libreville, memories of the 1993 tragedy in which nearly the entire national side was killed in Gabon… all worked together to propel Zambia to victory.

Findings of a recent survey do not provide evidence for mass-immigration of foreign sex workers advertising online and in local newspapers, nor a spike in sex work or risk of HIV transmission during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. 'Public health programmes focusing on sex work and HIV prevention during international sporting events should be based on evidence, not media-driven sensationalism that further heightens discrimination against sex workers and increases their vulnerability.'

Louis Bankole Jones, a medical doctor, points his homegrown radar toward a new vision and perspective in a collection of poems on Sierra Leone.

In parallel narratives Simon Bright tells the stories of Rhodesia’s transition to Zimbabwe and the personal journey of Robert Mugabe, using one to explain the other and finally suggesting why Mugabe chose the road he has.

As a biography it has everything - first-hand accounts of Mugabe’s early life with a desperately poor Catholic mother, what he was like at school, the effects of a Jesuit education and his rage against his absent father. As his star ascends commentators reflect on early landmarks, particularly his attendance of Ghana’s independence celebrations in 1957.

It’s clear the highly intellectual Young Turk was admired and respected through the 1960s and 70s: Bright traces the origins of the esteem through fascinating archival film interviews. The parallel story of the transition is equally well researched, as are later episodes of importance, notably Lancaster House, the Matabeleland genocide and the growing role of global business in Africa’s economies.

But it’s the behind-the-scenes jostling for power which Bright exposes that is the most riveting, and from it Mugabe emerges as unquestionably one of history’s most canny, devious leaders. It is a haunting film, the music an achievement in itself, a mix of liberation, folk and contemporary sounds. Simon Bright was co-producer of the pivotal 1996 Zimbabwe liberation film ‘Flame’.

* This brief is courtesy of the director and Spier Films.

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The Goethe-Institut, in co-operation with the Cape Town Book Fair and APNET, is once again offering an invitation programme for publishers from sub-Saharan African countries. The aim of this initiative is to support the participation of publishing houses from sub-Saharan African countries at the Cape Town Book Fair 2012 and to provide training and networking opportunities for publishers from this region. The grant comprises of travel costs to Cape Town, participation in a workshop on 14 June 2012, a small stand at the Cape Town Book Fair (15 – 17 June 2012) and accommodation during the workshop and the Book Fair. Costs for the transportation of books and other materials to be exhibited are not covered.

The event entices filmmakers to enhance skills, develop collaborations and interface with the dynamic future of the film industry in Africa and the world.

The collection of spirited essays issues a trenchant and timely challenge to the widespread assumption that the Arab Spring can be understood in splendid isolation from the rest of Africa.

Egypt has declared three days of mourning for at least 74 people who died at a football stadium amid violent clashes between rival supporters in the northern city of Port Said. Earlier, Essam el-Erian, a politician from the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice party, said the military and police were complicit in the violence, accusing them of trying to show that emergency regulations giving security forces wide-ranging powers must be maintained.

Here's a video from a group called Tidal Waves entitled Rapolitiki (The politician ate the money).

Africa Cup of Nations a tribute to President Nguema?

Many Kenyans are heading to the new Republic of South Sudan as investors.

The International Criminal Court has confirmed charges against four of the six Kenyans suspected of masterminding the post-election violence of 2007/8.

He changed our flag,
With cavalier insouciance,
He stood proudly to brag
While we gaped in stunned trance,
Like a rampant stag,
It was the height of arrogance,

He changes our laws with seeming impunity;
He twists them to suit his ends,
He changes the equation with intractability,
While his puppets amend;
We regress inexorably;
While sycophants defend;

He calls us stupid and drunk,
He's on a power trip,
He’s bitten off a hunk,
His mind has flipped
He's so full of spunk,
He's got a shoulder on his chip;

Absolute power carries great responsibility,
The wielder must beware the craze,
Lest he fall prey to hubristic gravity,
And stumble into an egocentric maze,
Lose touch with reality;
In a narcissistic daze;

He’s the quintessential power tripper,
And it ain’t no joke,
He’s an asset stripper,
A pig in a poke,
He’s an insatiable beak dipper
Never seems to choke,
He’s an illogical skipper,
We’re headed for broke.

The journey Betty Makoni has travelled leaves permanent and visible footsteps. Her poetry book takes a new approach to self-empowerment. Easy to read and yet very powerful for reflection.

jousts with the ruling ideas in society - or public history - to stimulate a re-think of Africans’ predicament and an understanding of its historical causes, and to encourage positive action to rectify current abuses.

This collection of essays take a broader perspective beyond oil to look at the impact of the sector and of Asian partners on the rest of Sudan’s economy, society and politics.

Gado thinks recent protests in Nigeria prove that the president may have run out of luck.

A new book documents the struggle for democracy in Swaziland in the past year, highlighting the historic 12 April protests in the absolute monarchy in southern Africa.

Kenya's Deputy Chief Justice Nancy Baraza is under investigation by the judiciary and police after a guard at a supermarket in Nairobi claimed that the judge threatened to shoot her when she (the guard) requested to search Baraza before she could be allowed into the store.

Gado's take on the celebrated Senegalese musician's announcement that he will run for president in elections this year.