USD/NGN 1,345 +0.3%USD/KES 129.4 USD/ZAR 16.01 USD/EGP 50.9 USD/GHS 11.02 +0.5%USD/XOF 562 USD/MAD 9.21
Section

Opinion

The thinking behind the numbers.

Africa10 min
Lead story

Eid al-Fitr and 1,400 years of Islam in Africa

Africa has the largest Muslim population of any continent by share of global Islam. It arrived here before it reached most of the world. This is the story of how it came, what it built, what it costs, and how 600…

10 min read20 Mar 2026

Can Africa own its social media layer?

Africa has 385 million social media users and a creator economy headed for $30 billion, yet every dollar spent on continental social media activity…

20 Mar 2026
Africa4 min

Belgium to try a man for killing Lumumba

A Brussels court has ordered former diplomat Étienne Davignon, 93, to stand trial for war crimes connected to the 1961 assassination of Patrice…

19 Mar 2026
Morocco9 min

CAF takes Senegal’s AFCON crown

CAF’s appeals board has stripped Senegal of the 2025 AFCON title and handed it to Morocco 57 days after the final. This editorial examines the legal…

19 Mar 2026
Republic of Congo7 min

Sassou at 42 years: Congo’s permanent president

Denis Sassou Nguesso has won 94.82 percent of the vote in Congo Republic, extending 42 years of rule. This editorial examines how he rose to power,…

19 Mar 2026
Editorial9 min

Iran’s yuan gambit just broke the oil market

Iran has told CNN it will allow oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz only if cargo is traded in Chinese yuan, not US dollars. It is the most…

18 Mar 2026
Kenya6 min

Nairobi cleans up. Can it become a habit?

Nairobi’s Dandora clean-up, led by Dr Joyce Kithure, raises a deeper question: what turns a community event into a permanent shift in how a city…

17 Mar 2026
Rwanda7 min

Rwanda shut 15,000 churches. Here is why.

Rwanda has closed more than 15,000 churches since 2018, citing safety failures, unqualified clergy, and financial exploitation. The policy is among…

16 Mar 2026
Africa3 min

Africa’s Oscars moment: wins, nominations at the 98th Academy Awards

The 98th Academy Awards delivered a landmark night for African and African-American talent. Sinners, Ryan Coogler’s record-breaking film rooted in…

16 Mar 2026
Africa7 min

Africa’s AI moment is now

Africa holds less than 1% of global AI compute capacity, 3% of global AI talent, and 2.5% of global AI market share. It also holds 60% of the…

12 Mar 2026
Kenya2 min

5 global brands made in Kenya

Five of the world’s most recognised fashion labels, including Levi’s, Calvin Klein, and Victoria’s Secret, are manufactured inside Kenya’s export…

10 Mar 2026
Ghana6 min

Ghana at 69: the unfinished story

On March 6, 1957, Ghana became the first sub-Saharan African country to gain independence from colonial rule. Sixty-nine years later, the story is…

6 Mar 2026
Egypt2 min

Egypt is in Africa, not Asia

Egypt is an African country. Its entire landmass sits within Africa. The confusion stems from the Sinai Peninsula, a small slice of Egyptian…

5 Mar 2026