University capture: A decades-long problem

This influence goes beyond funding. It shows up in how systems for decision-making are designed, how public policies are shaped and even who sits at the table. Over time, this creates a situation where African initiatives remain African in name but are partly shaped by external actors in how they function

African public intellectuals have repeatedly concerned themselves about how African societies can act with purpose and autonomy in a global system that has historically limited their choices

Presidential terms are to be extended to seven years, with Mnangagwa’s current tenure lengthened by two, while parliament and local government terms are similarly prolonged

The South African government has navigated this period remarkably well. It has not capitulated to any of the stronger blocs, whilst retaining its dignity and independent views

Political entrepreneurs, while integrated and integral to both sides, are in the unique position in which they are neither. accountable to an electoral constituency nor the ground soldiers pulling triggers and exchanging envelopes

In the ruins of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, Nelson Gashagaza survived by becoming someone else’s child. In this two-part series as Rwanda commemorates Kwibuka32, he tells a personal story on a performed kinship, ordinary horror and the meaning of belonging

As the global order becomes more multipolar, opportunities for African agency are expanding. Yet these opportunities will only translate into meaningful influence if African states strengthen their coordination, develop sophisticated negotiating strategies and engage proactively in shaping the rules of global governance

America’s scale of its invented narratives are hard to match. Trump has normalised the idea that rhetorical bombast matters more than accuracy

Most cyberattacks succeed because they exploit human behaviour rather than technical weaknesses. Consumers are the frontline of defence against cybercrime

The message is unmistakable: allies must contribute to the US-Israeli campaign against Iran or face consequences for the partnership itself. Yet, as the conflict enters its fourth week, Trump appears increasingly comfortable with a go-it-alone strategy.

The two proposals reveal that reform debates are marked by a deeper theoretical divergence over whether global legitimacy hinges on balancing power or modernising institutions.

For many African public intellectuals such as Steve Biko, Leopold Senghor, Kenneth Kaunda, Julius Nyerere and Kwame Nkrumah, political independence represented more than the transfer of formal authority from colonial administrations to newly sovereign states