With Africa firmly integrated into the international financial order, there is almost no potential within the existing political arrangements for substantial advancements in the socio-economic status of workers, farmers and youth.

Leaders who fail to follow the law must be accountable for their actions before courts of law. But the Protocol adopted by African leaders on 4 July turned this basic legal principle on its head.

Should little children be allowed to stay with their mothers in prison or they should be separated? This is a difficult question, but there are some suggestions on what should be done for the best interests of the child

In the Pambazuka special edition on to such BRICS bashing. Below is a piece that calls progressive forces to address the agency of local elites in colluding with capitalism and imperialism and oppose both global imperialism and local tyranny

Countries in the South have jumped on the biometric bandwagon, including South Africa, in spite of the many red flags about the technology. Citizens need to be aware that the ID cards allow governments to carry out surveillance of people considered to be a threat to the interests of the ruling classes

Afro-Uruguayans have contributed to the construction of Uruguay as a consequence of enslavement. They have set up important organisations such as Mundo Afro to lobby the national government to recognise its black minority as an equal member of the national community

This year’s African Union summit was marked by calls for economic and political independence from the West. Mutually beneficial relations between the AU and China as well as internal security are critical to the discussion around Africa’s sovereignty and the ways in which the continent may seize its rightful place in international affairs.

In the 20 years since genocide, Rwanda’s government has fostered the appearance of national progress while focusing its machinations on concentrating power along ethnic lines. Rwanda has not reached reconciliation, healing, or equality, increasing its risk of another round of national upheaval.

The feeling of hope after the independence of South Sudan was short-lived for many South Sudanese and has now been replaced by cynicism and suspicion. In this light, a new agreement to end war in South Sudan gives only little hope that it will set a different path for the Africa’s youngest nation.

Rwanda gets plenty of applause for putting the genocide behind and creating a reconciled society focused on marching forward to a prosperous future. But is that so? In this article, we learn that former high-ranking officials who were acquitted of genocide charges by the international crimes tribunal in Arusha, or who served their sentences, are not welcome back home.

What are the citizens supposed to do when the president blatantly violates the constitution he was elected under and which he swore to uphold, protect and defend? That is the questions Kenyans are grappling with

The environmentalist, Nnimmo Bassey, deplores the Green Revolution in Africa and oil spills in the Niger Delta region. He does not underestimate the work to be done to educate people on the need to stop those who wish to destroy the environment and to redefine new concepts of development

Smallholder farmers in Nigeria remain underprivileged, lacking access to critical information required for their agricultural activities. We are often not able to produce sufficiently for our communities and often see limited incentives to produce more than what is needed for our own livelihood. This is primarily caused by the limited access to the inputs, support services, markets and credit, which would enable us to increase our production and sales volumes.

* Henry Ekwuruke, a smallholder farmer, writes from Umuahia, Abia State.

Although New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has OK’d a $40 million settlement with the Central Park 5, who were wrongfully imprisoned for brutal rape, former Mayor Michael Bloomberg insists the police acted in “good faith.” In a sane, non-racist society, the fact that five innocent children had been made to confess to a horrible crime that they did not commit would be viewed as a prima facie case of police misconduct.

The post-revolution governments in Egypt have done little to appease a disgruntled, restless and marginalised youth. The youth spearheaded the revolt that toppled the Mubarak dictatorship, but a largely ageing elite is still at the helm.

Young gay men are taking refuge online as their lives become increasingly difficult in this deeply conservative country

Babu’s ideas and organising skills were behind the Zanzibar revolution of 50 years ago. A great pan-Africanist and socialist, his life is an inspiration to all people who dare to resist oppression and imperialism.

Margaret Mitchell Armand is a Haitian scholar, poet, artist and trained psycholo-gist. Born in Haiti and raised between Haiti and the US, Margaret's' life and work are framed by her faith in the African religious traditions and a celebration of Haitian Vodou.

Malawi marks 50 years of independence next Monday. But the country is hardly independent in any meaningful sense. It heavily relies on donor support and international NGOs. It is these foreigners, not the citizens, who are in charge of the country’s governance

Much hope is placed on foreign direct investment to deliver development capital for African countries. Yet FDIs are part of the global financial capitalist system, which maintains and reproduces inequality and keeps African states dependent on Western countries and financial institutions