There was noticeable evidence last year that the Somali people are ready and willing to rebuild their country after many years of turmoil. External support also improved. But the government of Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud squandered a lot of opportunities

Oil is big business. In Nigeria, it is the life of the economy, blood as oil pumping through the veins of pipelines. But the Production Sharing Contracts (PSC) that replaced the Joint Venture (JV) agreements between the cash-strapped state hydrocarbon company (NNPC), and oil companies, have facilitated a loss of $5 billion annually from deepwater extraction

Western leaders who sow violence around the world to entrench capitalism were full of praise of Mandela as a man of peace. Yet from thousands of miles away, President Obama, who led the charade, decides who dies by the unmanned drone, whether they are at a wedding or funeral, women collecting firewood, infants or the elderly

The past 25 years have witnessed fundamental sociopolitical and cultural changes in Sudan. Women have been the terrain of many of the uneasy shifts in the country, even down to their skin, which they are now being encouraged to bleach

There is growing dissatisfaction and even mistrust of human rights as an instrument for radical social change. What is needed is a revolutionary approach to human rights informed by an analysis of the oppressive, anti-human social/historical context of national and global social relationships

The former president’s tirade against the man he foisted on Nigerians is totally uncalled for, considering that Obasanjo’s failed two-time administration laid the foundation for much of the mess Jonathan is busy consolidating

Nigerians must demand that their leaders make meaningful the economic, social and political rights of ordinary people as expressed in the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights and Universal Declaration on Human Rights

Debt relief for Sudan gives the Sudanese goverment a lifeline to continue to oppress its people. Yet, the reasons for Sudan’s external indebtedness derive from various forms of corruption that many Western governments turn a blind eye to

The axiom ‘African solutions to African problems’ hides complex issues that require untangling as the problems conceal many agendas. Focusing on governance, development and institution-building will assist in future conflict prevention

The East African Community (EAC) modeled on the EU has enormous potential and resources. Resolving political differences and harmonizing with other regional blocks remains the foremost challenges

The Dominican Republic, which defines itself in opposition to Haiti, has enraged its Caribbean neighbours by preparing to deport a quarter million residents of Haitian descent. Dominican racial views are well known

‘The whites of the land’ who rule the Dominican Republic have over time increasingly become the agents of racist propaganda and actions against Haitians, Dominicans of Haitian-descent and Dominicans " accused " of being Haitian

As we evaluate the outcomes of the recent UN climate negotiations in Warsaw, one lesson that we are invited to learn, again, relates to our strategy for getting effective action taken on the ongoing climate catastrophe and other critical environmental problems. Is lobbying elites to change their behaviour an effective strategy for change?

The political and economic realities of bringing down carbon emissions are a complex process and the Warsaw talks failed to overcome them. But there is still an opportunity to salvage the trust and ambitions lost at Warsaw

Over the past decade, hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians have voted with their feet to escape one of the most ruthless and brutal dictatorships in Africa. But Saudi Arabia where many of them have ended up is no better than their own motherland

The Independent National Elections Commission (INEC) officials erred in law and in fact by declaring that the Anambra State Governorship election was inconclusive

Nigeria is preparing for another census in 2016. Head counts in the West African nation are, like elections, controversial do-or-die affairs. Powerful vested interests always tussle to have the numbers in their favour

Could the Cote D’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea Electricity Network Interconnection spell a solution for sustainable electric power supply in the Mano River Union?

Discourses on climate change and sustainable development in Africa have been hijacked with terminology such as ‘mitigation’ and ‘adaptation’ that need to be questioned

Despite South Africa’s liberal constitution, gay refugees and asylum seekers face widespread xenophobia and homophobia that does not allow them to seek stable employment nor receive legal redress when discriminated against