Dossier articles from the past 3 months
It is East Africa’s first port, but its development is being challenged by a series of rival projects in Berbera and Djibouti to the north, and Dar es Salaam and Bagamoyo to the south. Almost everywhere, the Emirati company DP World controls the traffic. By far, the port of Mombasa which was built before Portuguese…
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As Africa’s largest port, Durban faces many challenges that are hampering its development. These include congestion, lack of reform and competition from other regional ports. Managed in a landlord capacity by the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), the port of Durban is the largest in Africa. It has strong maritime connections with the rest of…
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The Lagos complex, with the new Lekki container port and the neighbouring Tin Can Island port, is the largest maritime hub in the Gulf of Guinea. But Nigeria’s ports face many challenges, including congestion, corruption and piracy. With an annual cargo volume of 27 million tonnes, the Port of Lagos is the second largest seaport…
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Since colonial times, African ports have been the main gateway to coastal countries and their vast hinterland. We examined the performance, challenges and development prospects of three of the largest ports in sub-Saharan Africa: Lagos in West Africa, Mombasa in East Africa and Durban in South Africa. In this globalised economy, where ports are gateways…
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The country has long been going through a phase of instability and violence that threatens its survival. The rise to power of the military has not improved the situation. On the contrary, it has actually worsened it by aggravating a series of pre-existing problems. At this moment, there is no way out of this state…
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Distrust seems to be growing not only among ethnic groups but also among religious communities. And this translates into attacks against the faithful gathered to pray in churches or mosques. And the junta bears its share of responsibility in all this. To stay in power, Traoré, in addition to the measures seen above, frequently resorts…
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In Burkina Faso, the terrorist threat emerged after 2015, the year in which the first president after the lengthy period of the Compaoré regime was democratically elected. In 2016 jihadists started to penetrate the country from Mali. Since then, the situation has steadily worsened. According to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED, that…
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Each of these three ‘rebel states’ has forged more or less strong ties with Russia, the global player that has been most active and unscrupulous in Africa in recent years. This growth in influence has been primarily at the expense of France, the colonial power. In some ways, ties with Paris remain strong. Suffice it…
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The Muslim religion is the unifying feature of Mauritanian culture and society which, however, presents notable differences in other aspects. To fully understand the extent of Islam’s role in the country, we must start from the decision taken in 1958 when it was not yet independent, to define itself as the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.…
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The presidential elections, scheduled for June 22, constitute a test for the Mauritanian political system. The outgoing president, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, elected for the first time in 2019, is widely expected to win. The majority parties have designated him as their candidate ever since the announcement of the elections last December by the Independent National…
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Nouakchott has not suffered large-scale attacks for 12 years. There are three reasons: collaboration with neighbouring countries, the intervention of religious authorities and having “institutionalised” the demands of Islamist parties and movements. The Sahel is an endemically poor region and Mauritania struggled significantly after independence, to achieve economic development that lived up to expectations. Over…
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The government is focusing on green hydrogen to diversify the rapidly growing economy, aiming for growth in the renewable energy sector. The country is among those most suffering from the climate crisis with increasingly frequent and destructive floods and longer periods of drought. On the one hand, the prospect of becoming Africa’s third largest gas…
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In Burkina Faso, the ‘Mother of the Sahel’ brings education and hope to forcibly displaced children. As conflict forced thousands of children to flee to the…
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As the sun sets over the stony plateau of Mexico, a beautiful white flower opens its corolla among the blade-like thorns of the Cereus Nycticalis: it…
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With the highest percentage of her population made up of youth, Africa is a bed of opportunities for growth and prosperity. The African youth are a…
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