Africa

An overview of the current political situation in 55 African countries shows that many movements are making gains in the struggle against authoritarianism.

I understand now that what 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg referred to as “a disaster of unspoken sufferings for enormous amounts of people” is worse than a drought, flood, or heatwave. It’s not treating climate change like wildfire, and casually burning down the house in the process.

Many African dictators are facing new wave of dissent enabled through social media. The information monopoly has been challenged; ordinary citizens can now organize and confront their autocratic regimes from below. As they become more interconnected and bypass severe information control, citizens across these repressive countries have become emboldened in the face of armed repression.

Temperature increases in the Africa are projected to be higher than the global mean temperature increase; regions in Africa within 15 degrees of the equator are projected to experience an increase in hot nights as well as longer and more frequent heat waves. Every bit of additional warming adds greater risks for Africa in the form of greater droughts, more heat waves, and more potential crop failures.

A look at the work of revolutionary Cuban military doctors throughout Africa in the midst of 1960s liberation movements. This second part in a series on the topic focuses on the relationships between Cuban doctors and African civilians, vaccination efforts, and the social and political impact of Cuba's efforts.

South Sudan faces several arms embargoes. How has the government continued to get weapons?