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Protecting the future: annual review meeting of Ethiopia’s The Ethio-Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR) project

Source: APO


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The Ethio-Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR) Project held its first Annual Review Meeting from 9 to 11 July 2025 in Bishoftu, Ethiopia. The review brought together high-level government officials, technical experts, UN representatives, and other partners committed to advancing Ethiopia’s pandemic preparedness through a unified One Health approach. Participants included representatives from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), Animal Health Institute (AHI), Armauer Hansen Research Institute (AHRI), regional bureaus, academia, UN agencies, and key development partners, including the UK Health Security Agency.

The meeting was formally opened by Dr. Mebratu Masebo, on behalf of the Minister of Health, setting the tone for a high-level, collaborative exchange. Distinguished keynote speakers included H.E. Professor Afework Kassu, Director General of AHRI; H.E. Dr. Tesfaye Rufael, Director General of AHI; Dr. Patrick Okumu Abok, Team Lead, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, on behalf of the WHO Representative in Ethiopia; Ms. Farai Zimudzi, FAO Country Representative; and Dr. Daniel Ngemera from UNICEF Ethiopia. Their opening remarks underscored the urgency and importance of cross-sectoral collaboration in pandemic risk management.

A gallery walk showcased key achievements from the first year of implementation, highlighting the project’s strong alignment with national One Health priorities. The interactive exhibition gave stakeholders a visual and experiential understanding of interconnected activities and progress made across sectors. Leaders from human and animal health sectors, development partners, and academic institutions engaged with the displays, recognizing Ethiopia’s growing role as a regional leader in pandemic preparedness.

Implementing and delivery partners presented the project’s accomplishments, reflecting a year of determination, innovation, and resilience. Despite early implementation challenges, the EPPR Project has demonstrated measurable results and earned broad praise from government officials and partners. Ethiopia is increasingly regarded as a global example of how pandemic preparedness can be integrated across sectors to build a strong, responsive health system.

Year Two priorities, developed and refined by the project’s Technical Working Groups (TWGs), were shared with the broader stakeholder group to ensure alignment, ownership, and accountability. The revised workplan emphasizes accelerating regional implementation, deepening local capacity, and strengthening cross-sector coordination.

Three thought-provoking panel discussions provided opportunities for deeper reflection and forward-looking dialogue:

  • The first panel, led by H.E. Dr. Melkamu Abte, focused on EPPR’s contribution to Ethiopia’s national emergency preparedness and response system.

  • The second, moderated by Dr. Feyesa Regassa, addressed One Health integration and cross-sector collaboration.

  • The third, led by Dr. Shahira Ahmed Malm, explored strategies for sustainable resource mobilization and co-investment.

These expert discussions generated actionable insights and strategic ideas to guide the project’s future direction.

The meeting’s outcomes reflect not only the national progress made, but also the growing significance of Ethiopia’s leadership in the global pandemic preparedness arena. Supported by the Pandemic Fund—launched at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Bali and hosted by the World Bank Group with WHO as technical lead—the EPPR Project stands as a flagship example of how global financing and national ownership can converge to address one of the most pressing public health challenges of our time. With a shared vision and collective determination, stakeholders reaffirmed their commitment to continue building a safer, healthier, and more prepared Ethiopia.

The meeting concluded with clear commitments for the next phase of the project. Stakeholders agreed on the importance of documenting experiences through policy briefs and scientific publications; trengthening coordination platforms to avoid duplication and build synergy and Jointly mobilizing resources through a One Health financing approach. The other actions agreed on were promoting knowledge sharing via webinars, gallery walks, and field visits, deepening partnerships with academia to support research and training, and Mapping and registering trained workforce members for rapid deployment during emergencies, aligning technical expertise with regional needs.

Project leadership emphasized the need to reassess the pace of implementation, increase regional engagement, and ensure tangible impact at the community level. Sustained leadership commitment, strategic advocacy, and a culture of shared accountability across sectors will be critical to maintaining momentum and achieving long-term success.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Ethiopia.

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Energean Deepens African Gas Focus Ahead of Silver Partnership at African Energy Week (AEW) 2025

Source: APO

International hydrocarbon exploration and production company Energean will participate as a Silver Partner at this year’s African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies 2025, taking place from September 29 to October 3 in Cape Town. The company enters the conference with a deepened focus on Egypt’s natural gas sector. The company aims to optimize its offshore concessions in the country and plans to integrate its three existing licenses – Abu Qir, North El Amriya and North Idku – in the Nile Delta region to streamline costs and enhance productivity.

Energean recently launched an infill drilling campaign in the Abu Qir concession. A well drilled from the North Abu Qir PII platform discovered 270 feet of net play in the BKES-1 and Abu Madi formations – double the pre-drill estimate. The well confirmed gas in place between 87 and 129 billion cubic feet and identified a possible 55-foot liquids column, with first production scheduled to begin later this year. As part of its 2025 strategy, Energean is preparing to drill its low-cost East Bir Nus concession in Egypt’s Western Desert and is pursuing near-field drilling opportunities around Abu Qir. The company is also targeting deeper horizons with Abu Qir to access untapped resources and accelerate gas-to-market timelines.

Beyond Egypt, Energean continues to advocate for a pan-African approach to natural gas development, calling for accelerated timelines, regulatory clarity and stronger regional cooperation to unlock the continent’s vast untapped resources. The company recently emphasized that Africa’s energy transformation requires bold leadership and integrated planning, noting that natural gas can play a central role in industrialization, job creation and long-term energy security. Energean is also actively engaging with African governments and stakeholders to share technical expertise, promote infrastructure-led growth and support the development of gas value chains that are both economically and environmentally sustainable.

Following an announcement in December 2024 that Energean would target new acquisitions across Africa, along with the Balkans, the UK and the North Sea, the company is actively reshaping its portfolio around high-impact, development-ready assets. This strategic shift comes in the wake of the divestment of mature assets and signals a renewed focus on frontier and underdeveloped regions, where Energean can apply its proven development model.

“Energean’s continued investment in Egypt and its broader commitment to unlocking Africa’s gas potential reflect exactly the kind of pragmatic, forward-looking energy leadership we need. Their integrated approach to development, combined with deep technical capability, positions them as a key partner in driving energy access, industrial growth and long-term security across the continent,” states Tomás Gerbasio, VP of Commercial and Strategic Engagement, African Energy Chamber.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.

About African Energy Week (AEW):
AEW: Invest in African Energies is the platform of choice for project operators, financiers, technology providers and government, and has emerged as the official place to sign deals in African energy. Visit www.AECWeek.com for more information about this exciting event.

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Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI) announces fourth Unstoppable Africa flagship event in New York

Source: APO – Report:

The Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI) (www.GABI.UNGlobalCompact.org) will convene the fourth edition of its annual flagship event, Unstoppable Africa, on September 21-22, 2025, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York. CNN’s Larry Madowo and Al Jazeera’s Folly Bah Thibault will return as MCs.

Unstoppable Africa is the leading African business forum outside the continent. Hosted by United Nations Secretary General António Guterres and H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Chairperson of the African Union, the event will take place just before the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Unstoppable Africa aims to accelerate the continent’s economic transformation and empower Africa to lead in shaping the markets of tomorrow.

The global landscape is shifting rapidly with trade tensions, evolving alliances, and supply chain disruptions redefining the rules of international trade and commerce. For Africa, these changes present not just challenges but also a significant opportunity. Africa must lead, define its path, and shape its markets. That’s why the theme of Unstoppable Africa 2025 is both timely and imperative: The BIG Push: Africa Shapes the Markets.

Since its launch in 2022, GABI has brought together more than 8,000 participants, including 10 Heads of State, Government Ministers, corporate executives, investors, philanthropists, academics, artists and designers, stars of sports and screen and UN leaders, to focus on Africa’s economic agenda. This year’s flagship event will explore how Africa can adapt to global changes and take the lead in areas like Energy, Digital Transformation, Trade, the Creative Economy, and Sport.

Key Discussions and Featured Speakers

Issues up for discussion at this year’s event include:

  • Critical Minerals and Value Chains: Strategic dialogue on harnessing Africa’s resources such as lithium, cobalt, graphite, and rare earths, through value addition, processing, and innovation.
  • Unlocking Capital: Innovative financing mechanisms to fuel local enterprises, SMEs, and transformative infrastructure projects.
  • Technology and Market Access: Case studies on how digital innovation is overcoming logistical barriers and connecting African businesses to new frontiers.
  • AfCFTA in Action: Exploring how deeper regional integration can boost intra-African trade and strengthen supply chain resilience.

A special fireside chat will feature Luol Deng,  former NBA All-Star, real estate investor, and philanthropist, known for his extensive investments in African energy and property sectors as well as his commitment to youth empowerment.

Another highlight will be an innovation-focused conversation with Silas Adekunle, Nigerian-born robotics engineer, inventor, and tech entrepreneur, globally recognized for creating the “MekaMon” gaming robot and for pioneering robotics education to equip the next generation of African innovators.

Other speakers confirmed so far include Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom; Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa, Naspers; Martin Ochien’g, CEO, Sasini; Veronica Bolton Smith, CEO, Critical Minerals Africa Group; Dr. George Elombi, Incoming President, African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank); Tshepo Mahloele, Chairman, Harith General Partners; Samaila Zubairu, President & CEO, African Finance Corporation; Amina J Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General;  Sanda Ojiambo, UN Assistant Secretary-General & CEO, UN Global Compact; Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Africa; Nardos Bekele-Thomas (http://apo-opa.co/45OSDDD), CEO, NEPAD;  Olivier Laouchez, co-founder, Trace; Marcus Samuelsson, Chef and Author;  Ndivhuwo “Elaine” Mukheli,  singer-songwriter; Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, Mayor of Freetown, Sierra Leone and Omoyemi Akelere, CEO, Lagos Fashion Week.

In the run up to the event, GABI has started a social media campaign on LinkedIn, X and Instagram asking leaders and influencers to answer the question What Makes Africa Unstoppable? (http://apo-opa.co/45AXgjw) By mobilizing personal reflections and stories that inspire, the campaign seeks to spark a wave of organic, high-impact social media engagement. Follow the campaign using  #UnstoppableAfrica and #GABI.

While the New York event is by invitation only, registration is now open for participants wishing to attend virtually. For more information and to sign up, visit: https://apo-opa.co/4mkl8iy

GABI is coordinated by the UN Global Compact in partnership with the Economic Commission for Africa, UNDP Africa, Sustainable Energy for All, International Telecommunications Union, International Trade Centre, and the Office for the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Africa.

For more information about the Global Africa Business Initiative and Unstoppable Africa event, please visit the GABI Website: www.GABI.UNGlobalCompact.org

– on behalf of Global Africa Business Initiative.

Media Inquiries:
Email: rosemary.otalor@apo-opa.com 
Phone: +2348027171405

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Mozambique President Extols Adesina’s Transformative Decade at African Development Bank

Source: APO – Report:

Mozambique’s President Daniel Chapo has lauded Dr. Akinwumi Adesina for a decade of “transforming ambition into outcomes” as President of the African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org), crediting his leadership with improving millions of lives across the continent.

Opening Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting in Maputo on Wednesday, President Chapo thanked Adesina for his impact at both the Bank and as Board Chair of Africa50, an investment platform created by African governments and the Bank to close the continent’s infrastructure funding gap.  

“Your legacy is not just institutional but impacting the lives of Africans, and we thank you and wish you the most success for what the future has in store for you,” President Chapo said.

Africa50 CEO, Alain Ebobissé, also paid tribute to Adesina, highlighting the success of the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa (AGIA), which Adesina initiated with other partners to mobilize capital to catalyze up to $10 billion green infrastructure opportunities for private sector investment.

A fireside chat, moderated by Nozipho Mbanjwa-Tshabalala, CEO of the Conversation Strategists, explored Adesina’s legacy of institutional transformation, record-breaking achievements, and renewed global confidence in Africa’s development prospects.

In his comments, Adesina called for Africa’s vision to be bold and collective, and translated into tangible results, particularly in providing critical infrastructure such as power generation as a foundation for growth.

“Economies that don’t have power can never grow. It’s a direct correlation with your GDP growth and access to electricity. You can’t create jobs, you can’t industrialize, and sadly, you are not going to industrialize and be competitive in the dark,” Adesina emphasised.

Challenging perceptions of high investment risk in Africa, he cited Moody’s data showing cumulative losses on Africa infrastructure investments of just 1.9 percent over 15 years — lower than in other regions. “Africa is not as risky as it is perceived — You can invest in Africa, get great returns in Africa, and have great institutions like us that will always be there beside you, making sure your capital not only comes, your capital stays, your capital grows, and you can take your capital back.”

On youth, Adesina stressed the need to turn Africa’s 420 million young people into an economic asset. “Everything we do needs to be focused on African youth — If you don’t create youth-based wealth, who is going to pay the taxes in the future?”

A Decade of Unprecedented Growth and Impact

Under Adesina’s leadership, the African Development Bank broke records, including growing its capital from $93 billion in 2015 to $318 billion in 2024. This remarkable growth enabled the Bank’s flagship “High 5s” initiatives to impact the lives of 565 million Africans across critical areas, including energy access, food security, industrialization, regional integration, and quality of life improvements.

The Bank was ranked the best multilateral financing institution in the world for two consecutive years and maintained AAA credit ratings throughout his tenure, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Africa50: From Vision to Global Infrastructure Leader

Adesina’s achievements also extended Africa50, which grew from a concept to a major infrastructure facilitator with, among others, $1.4 billion in managed assets with total portfolio company value exceeding $8 billion, 33 active projects spanning energy, transport, digital infrastructure, healthcare, and education across 32 countries and $275 million raised for the Africa Infrastructure Acceleration Fund from over 20 African institutional investors

As Adesina prepares to handover the leadership of the African Development Bank on 01 September 2025, he said

“My legacy is not a personal one. My legacy is an Africa strong enough to deliver finance for its transformation at scale — we have come of age, and we can handle issues by ourselves and deliver.

– on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

Media Contact:
Emeka Anuforo
Communication and External Relations Department
Email: media@afdb.org

About the African Development Bank Group:
The African Development Bank Group is Africa’s premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 41 African countries with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states. For more information: www.AfDB.org

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Tanzania’s independence leader Julius Nyerere built a new army fit for African liberation: how he did it

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Michelle Moyd, Associate Professor, Department of History, Michigan State University

Tanzania has long enjoyed a reputation as a peaceful country. In contrast to most of its neighbours, this east African nation of 67 million people has largely avoided large-scale violence within its borders.

That didn’t seem likely in the early years after independence from Britain in December 1961. A little over two years into independence – in January 1964 – the founding president, Julius Nyerere, faced two political crises. The first started on 12 January 1964 in the form of the Zanzibar Revolution. Weeks of violence and destruction by Afro-Shirazi Party members followed. As many as 16,000 Zanzibaris were killed or forced into exile.

Then the country’s military, the Tanganyika Rifles, mutinied. Its soldiers were incensed over inadequate pay, loss of privileges, and poor prospects for upward mobility. A rattled Nyerere needed British military support to quell the mutiny. He ordered the arrests of its leaders, and effectively dismantled the entire force.

Nyerere then faced the dilemma of leading a new nation-state with no army and few resources to build one. His socialist agenda (Ujamaa, in Kiswahili) had prioritised other aspects of nation-building, especially education and public health. Nonetheless, with assistance from the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and the willingness of some of its member states to provide troops, the Tanzania People’s Defence Force was established in September 1964.

In his new book, Ujamaa’s Army: The Creation and Evolution of the Tanzania People’s Defence Force, 1964-1979, Charles G. Thomas, a scholar of post-colonial African military history, skilfully narrates this complex and absorbing history. The book covers the formation and transformations of the defence force through the new nation’s first 15 years as it shed its connections to the colonial past and charted a new path.

Unlike other writing on African armies – particularly the body of work on colonial armies – this one does not centre rank-and-file troops. Instead, Thomas’s analysis is based on rich interviews with high-ranking officers who led and moulded the force in its first two decades. This has enabled him to offer a top-down view of the construction of the army.

A rocky start

Nyerere undertook the work of unifying Tanganyika and Zanzibar in the first few months of 1964 with an eye to the region’s security. The Zanzibar revolution and the Afro-Shirazi Party’s Marxism had called attention to the island as a potential Marxist outpost. Violence against the island’s ruling party and those perceived as wealthy elites seemed to bolster this perception. In the context of the cold war, this fuelled western fears of Zanzibar becoming the “Cuba of east Africa”. An influx of Soviet and Chinese military advisers to Zanzibar made western powers nervous.

Nyerere and foreign minister Oscar Kambona worked with Afro-Shirazi Party leader Abeid Karume to unify Tanganyika and Zanzibar to reassure westerners.

The rollout of the defence force in September 1964 thus included members of the Zanzibari People’s Liberation Army. This signalled that the initial 1,000-man army would serve the larger interests of socialist Tanzania.

A regional role

Throughout the 1960s, Tanzania became, alongside Zambia, Botswana, Lesotho, Angola and Mozambique, a supporter of southern African liberation struggles. The OAU formally recognised this group of nations as the “frontline states” in 1975.

Nyerere convinced the OAU Liberation Committee to set up its headquarters in Dar es Salaam in 1963 because Tanganyika was already hosting many southern African exiles. Also, conflicts in neighbouring states, such as Mozambique, were spilling over into Tanganyika. It became the nerve centre for coordinating African liberation efforts.

Liberation organisations from across southern Africa also established offices in Dar es Salaam. These included the African National Congress and the Pan-Africanist Congress from South Africa; the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA); Zimbabwe African People’s Union (Zapu) and Zimbabwe African National Union (Zanu); South West Africa People’s Organisation (Swapo) from Namibia; and Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo).

The Tanzanian defence force took on a key role in frontline liberation struggles. In 1964 it established the Special Duties Unit, which provided a logistics pipeline to serve liberation armies.

The defence force also established training camps for liberation armies within Tanzania. And it took on a protective and support function in southern Tanzania, where Frelimo’s operations against the Portuguese embroiled communities.

Tanzania’s involvement in struggles against the white settler states of southern Africa intensified in the late 1960s and early 1970s. After Portugal retreated from its colonies, Nyerere sent the defence force to help stabilise the new Frelimo government in Mozambique against the South African- and Rhodesian-backed guerrilla force Renamo.

At the same time, the book explains, Tanzania was contending with the disruptive politics and threatening military actions of its northern neighbour, Uganda.

Uganda gained independence from Britain in 1962. In 1971 Idi Amin seized power in a military coup that ousted Uganda’s first president, Milton Obote.

Amin and Nyerere antagonised each other personally, politically and militarily for the next eight years.

In 1972, Amin bombed Tanzanian border cities in retaliation for Nyerere’s support of the invasion of Uganda by Obote supporters in 1972. In 1978, Uganda annexed the Kagera Salient across its south-western border with Tanzania. In 1979, Tanzania invaded Uganda and ousted Amin from power.

The Tanzanian defence force remained in Uganda for nearly two years, providing security as the new government attempted to re-establish services and governance for post-Amin Uganda.

Catalyst for new inquiries

Thomas’s sustained research is based in large measure on hard-won connections with defence force officers. He also used alternative sources rather than relying heavily on Tanzanian, British and US archives. Canadian military archives, for example, showed how Tanzania’s forces benefited from Canadian training and resources.

OAU archival materials helped with understanding the Tanzania People’s Defence Force as part of African solidarity efforts against apartheid and colonialism.

The book also paints a clear picture of Nyerere’s role in Africa’s postcolonial politics. It shows him as a shrewd negotiator and a “pragmatic pluralist” in a fraught cold war world, where there were many competitors for military aid, but few sources to provide it to a country seeking a non-aligned position. His decision to form the Tanzania People’s Defence Force, and his encouragement of its role in supporting liberation struggles, helped Tanzania stand apart from its neighbours.

– Tanzania’s independence leader Julius Nyerere built a new army fit for African liberation: how he did it
– https://theconversation.com/tanzanias-independence-leader-julius-nyerere-built-a-new-army-fit-for-african-liberation-how-he-did-it-246688

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Network International expands portfolio with Absa Bank

Source: APO

Network International (Network) (www.Network.ae), a leading enabler of digital commerce in the Middle East and Africa, has been chosen by Absa Business Banking, one of Africa’s leading business banks, as its digital payments technology partner.

Network will provide Absa Business Banking with end-to-end payment processing capabilities through a single payments platform and fully outsourced managed services model.

The uptake of Payments as a Service (PaaS) is fuelled by Africa’s growing cloud adoption, which can be likened to the continent’s rapid growth in smartphone ownership. According to analysts, cloud adoption in Africa is accelerating rapidly, nearing levels seen in North America and China.

“This new partnership marks a significant milestone for our company in Southern Africa and opens new avenues for growth and innovation. The growing adoption in cloud technologies has perfectly primed both fintech and traditional financial institutions to turbo-charge digital innovation. Working with managed service providers allows institutions to quickly and simply deliver new products and services to an increasingly digitally savvy customer,” comments Richard Kadiaka, Regional Managing Director, Southern Africa – Processing Services, Network International.

Modernising fleet and commercial cards

Fuel card fraud is a challenge for fleet managers which can lead to substantial financial losses over time. At the same time, connected vehicle concepts, digitisation of payment channels, and a demand for self-service management of cards requires enhanced stability and innovation in this space.                                                                  

As part of its efforts to enhance its offering in the fleet and commercial card space, Absa has partnered with Network International. Through this collaboration, services will include card management for fleet cards and commercial prepaid cards, transaction switching and authorisation, integration with fleet management software, direct connectivity to Absa Bank systems, card tokenisation, digital wallets, an online self-service platform and an expense management solution.

“As the ‘Bank of the Entrepreneur,’ we are committed to delivering seamless, secure and smart payment solutions to meet our clients’ specific needs,” says Banie Claasen, Managing Executive for Lending Products at Absa Business Banking. “By combining our deep sector expertise with Network International’s leading technology, we’re empowering businesses with enhanced control and security, greater transparency and a frictionless payment experience. This collaboration underscores our commitment to innovation and customer-centricity.”

A new dawn for African payments

African financial institutions are undergoing a seismic shift, with Africa’s financial services market potentially growing to about 10 percent per annum, reaching $230 billion in revenues by 2025 according to McKinsey. The growth will include many new payment products as more organisations understand the importance of offering safe omni-channel solutions.  

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Network International.

About Network International
Network International (http://www.Network.ae/en) is the Middle East and Africa’s leading fintech company. Our purpose is to help businesses and economies grow by simplifying payments and commerce. We support governments, banks, fintechs, telcos, merchants, and public sector companies in 50+ countries. We have 3,000+ employees based in our markets serving 250+ financial institutions and 240,000+ merchants. 

About Absa Group Limited
Absa Group Limited (‘Absa Group’) is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and is one of Africa’s largest diversified financial services groups. 

Absa Group offers an integrated set of products and services across personal and business banking, corporate and investment banking, wealth and investment management and insurance. 

Absa Group owns majority stakes in banks in Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania (Absa Bank Tanzania and National Bank of Commerce), Uganda and Zambia and has insurance operations in Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia. Absa also has offices in China, Namibia, Nigeria and the United States, as well as securities entities in the United Kingdom and the United States, along with technology support colleagues in the Czech Republic.

For further information about Absa Group Limited, visit www.Absa.africa.

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Fela and food: how Lagos restaurants are serving up the music star’s legacy

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Garhe Osiebe, Research Fellow, Rhodes University

In Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial and creative capital, food is doing something unusual. It’s keeping alive the spirit of a musician.

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, one of Africa’s most influential artists, was the architect of Afrobeat (not to be confused with today’s Afrobeats, which was born from it).

Fela pioneered his politically charged, musically expansive sound in the early 1970s by blending jazz, highlife, funk and Yoruba rhythms. He paired these with lyrics that took aim at corruption, oppression and postcolonial disillusionment. His songs were as much rallying cries as they were works of art.

Read more: Fela Kuti is more famous today than ever – what’s behind his global power

Today, dishes named after Fela’s protest anthems – and restaurant soundscapes steeped in Afrobeats – are making dining in Lagos a journey through African music history.

As a musicologist involved in African Studies, I research the legacy of Fela Kuti and how it manifests in new forms today, in music, political life and even food. I first raised Fela’s legacy in food in a 2022 article for the book that accompanied a major exhibition in France called Fela Anikulapo-Kuti: Rébellion Afrobeat.

For me the new Lagos trend raises a question: do these culinary tributes preserve the radical edge of Fela’s art – or do they dilute it by commercialising it?

From protest songs to plated specials

In May 2025, The Afrobeat opened at EbonyLife Place, a high-profile entertainment and hospitality complex in Lagos. It markets itself as

The world’s first restaurant dedicated to celebrating Africa’s vibrant music genre.

The Afrobeat offers not just meals but a fully curated cultural experience. Yet it was not the first to blend food and Fela.

That distinction belongs to Kuti’s Bistro, launched in 2019 by the family of Seun Kuti, Fela’s youngest son. It’s currently closed for diners but still delivers meals.

Positioned as a pan-African eatery, the bistro’s dining area was steeped in Afrobeat imagery and sound, with walls adorned in Fela-inspired art. Its dishes draw on regional African culinary traditions, from Nigerian staples to cross-continental flavours.

Like so many restaurants in Lagos today, its playlist was dominated by Afrobeats, the electronically driven pop music now dominant across west Africa and its diasporas. Afrobeats owes much to Fela’s pioneering spirit.

The menu is where the homage becomes striking. Meals at Kuti’s are named after some of Fela’s most famous songs: breakfast plates called Yanga, starters like Shakara, hearty mains such as Feast for Nation, Roforofo Fight, and I No Be Gentleman. Even desserts bear provocative titles like Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am and Expensive Shit.

These are not just playful references. They’re a way of transforming Fela’s work into living memory.

Read more: The daughters and sons of Fela in African Pop

The pairing of food and music creates a layered cultural experience. The textures and spices of the food evoke place and tradition; the music anchors the experience in a living, evolving sound. Diners are invited to consume Fela’s legacy with all their senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and even memory.

In this way, these restaurants function as more than dining spaces. They are cultural archives. They stage a performance of history and identity every time a plate leaves the kitchen.

Preserving or packaging the radical?

Still, the shift from protest anthem to menu item raises questions.

Can a song like Expensive Shit, originally a razor-sharp satire on state harassment, retain its political bite when it is served as a dessert on a polished ceramic plate? Does turning Roforofo Fight into a main course preserve its cultural meaning? Or does it risk reducing it to a quirky marketing hook? This tension is not unique to Fela’s legacy.

Around the world, radical art often undergoes a process of “heritagisation” and commodification. It becomes a celebrated cultural product, sometimes losing the confrontational edge that defined it.

Yet this transformation does not necessarily strip away its significance. It can create new pathways for engagement. For younger diners, who may know Fela only as a name in music history or a face on a T-shirt, a menu item can become a spark of curiosity. It might prompt a search for the original song, leading to a deeper encounter with his music and the politics behind it.

A legacy that adapts

Fela’s artistic and political vision was always about creating spaces where African identity could be expressed on its own terms.

In the 1970s and 80s, that space was his nightclub, the Afrika Shrine, where music, conversation and resistance flowed freely. In 2025, it might be a restaurant table in Lagos, where I No Be Gentleman arrives as a sizzling platter of suya-spiced beef.

These spaces also speak to the adaptability of Fela’s legacy. His music has inspired entire genres; his persona has been invoked in theatre, literature, political protests, art exhibitions, films, and now dining.

Each iteration, like the opening of the New Afrika Shrine in 2000, reinterprets him for new audiences, keeping his name and ideas in circulation.

Read more: Detty December started as a Nigerian cultural moment. Now it’s spreading across the continent – and minting money

Today’s blending of food and music illustrates how cultural memory works in Africa. Artistic legacies can be preserved not just through direct performance, but through symbolic transformation into other mediums; mediums that engage the senses, draw on tradition, and thrive in the global marketplace.

The Afrobeat-themed restaurants of Lagos are not just curiosities for tourists or novelties for locals. They are living experiments in how to honour a cultural icon while making him relevant to the present.

Whether these spaces ultimately radicalise or simply entertain, they ensure that Fela Anikulapo-Kuti remains part of the city’s sensory landscape; not only heard, but tasted. And in a rapidly changing Lagos, that may be one of the most enduring tributes possible.

– Fela and food: how Lagos restaurants are serving up the music star’s legacy
– https://theconversation.com/fela-and-food-how-lagos-restaurants-are-serving-up-the-music-stars-legacy-262994

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Abdulrazak Gurnah: searching for signs of Zanzibar’s most famous writer, all I found was trinkets and tourists

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tinashe Mushakavanhu, Assistant Professor, Harvard University

Zanzibar has long been an island of arrivals for traders, sailors, slaves and, more recently, waves of tourists. I arrived as a wedding guest and a reader of the Zanzibar born novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah, in search of the literary and emotional landscapes that shape his fiction. For a week, I was part of the tourist economy of this east African island, passively complicit in its curated pleasures.

For all its beautiful images on social media, Zanzibar is a site of difficult memory. It was once a central node in the Indian Ocean slave trade, so its past is carved into the coral-stone buildings that reflect a complex fusion of Swahili, Indian, Arab and European influences in architecture and town planning.

Zanzibar’s tourist attraction Stone Town from the air. Wegmann/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

A visit to the Old Slave Market was sobering. You cannot look away once you’ve seen it. And yet, Zanzibar is now overlaid with carefully packaged experiences: boutique hotels with infinity pools, beach picnics with imported champagne, stalls of “African” art mass-produced for western eyes. The art has become so generic that it hurts. All the curio markets on the island look the same.

Even the language has been commodified. Everyone is selling something. Everyone is searching. “Jambo,” (Hello) say mostly young men offering one service or another. “Hakuna matata.” (No worries.) “Pole pole.” (No rush.) These cheerful Kiswahili phrases made famous by the likes of the Lion King movie are repeated like slogans and feel soulless.

Most of the cars on the roads operate as taxis with stickers that say: Private Hire. The tuk tuks, three-wheeled tricycles, weave in and out of traffic because movement is an act of constant negotiation, part of a tourist infrastructure that operates as a regulated service.

The tourist markets of Stone Town. Rod Waddington/Flickr/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Amid the hum of engines and the ceaseless choreography of traffic, I kept searching not just for respite from the heat or wifi or good coffee, but for something literary. I was looking for the celebrated writer Abdulrazak Gurnah. Not the man (he hasn’t lived in Zanzibar for decades), but the essence of his writing, informed by this place: the ache of exile, the weight of history, the restless question of belonging he grapples with.

Gurnah is not just a writer I’ve read; he examined my doctoral dissertation at the University of Kent, where he taught for many years until his retirement. He is an important part of my intellectual development.

As a scholar of African literature, I engage deeply with the traditions, debates and histories that Gurnah’s novels illuminate, so my attempt to map his legacy in Zanzibar carried both personal and professional significance.

Absence of literary memory

Gurnah was born here, on this island of contradictions. He left following the Zanzibar Revolution of 1964, a violent outbreak of anti-Arab violence in postcolonial Africa. He was a teenager when he moved to England as a refugee, and has lived there ever since.

I expected, perhaps foolishly, to see a plaque with his name. A mural. Something. But there was nothing, even in Stone Town, where the past feels pressed into every narrow alley. This historical capital is an indecipherable tangle of markets, bathhouses, former colonial offices and palaces. I asked about bookshops at every turn. Locals looked puzzled, amused. “Why?” one asked. “You want to read on holiday?” That is because I can’t imagine a beach without a book.

Read more: Abdulrazak Gurnah: what you need to know about the Nobel prize-winning author

Eventually, I found Gurnah’s famous novels in a souvenir shop that mostly sold skin-care products. They sat beside cookbooks and Swahili language guides. The only other meaningful literary encounter came via the mainland: a newly published Tanzanian literary journal, Semi za Picha, sent by ferry.

That little package was the most precious thing I took away from Zanzibar. It’s described as “a film journal” and edited by Jesse Gerard Mpango and Dismas Sekibaha, who are members of an audio-visual collective, Ajabu Ajabu, based in Dar es Salaam.

It’s not that Zanzibar lacks intellectual life. There is a State University. A global centre for Swahili Studies. Museums and Unesco heritage sites.

But there are no visible monuments to literature. There is no street named after Abdulrazak Gurnah. And yet, his imagination haunts the island. Reading his fiction made me more aware of the surfaces I was treading on, all the stories hiding under sand and souvenirs here, or submerged in the waters of the Indian Ocean.

Gurnah’s novels are known for their moral precision and speak to the legacies of colonialism and displacement along the Swahili coast. His characters often inhabit spaces between languages, continents and allegiances. In many ways, the disjuncture Gurnah explores, especially the fraught layering of history, is what unfolded before us.

Read more: Why the work of Abdulrazak Gurnah, the champion of heartbreak, stands out for me

We criss-crossed Zanzibar by car, drove through villages with crumbling schools and no paved roads in search of the perfect beach. Then the ocean would appear, in its glimmering glory, and there were always many people taking pictures, as if the world was just a beautiful pose. But there’s something repugnant about turning people’s homes into backgrounds for entertainment. In our swimsuits, we were trespassing through communities, not just beautiful landscapes.

Zanzibar is not local anymore. It is a mesh of immigrants and itinerants: its service industry jobs are all occupied by people from many places. Local Tanzanian hotel staff, Kenyan chefs, French and South African restaurateurs, Belgian and German landlords. Whether you’re walking, or sitting at the beach, you can hear a babel of languages: Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, French, Hebrew, Italian, Shona, Swahili, Zulu.

African masks at the island’s many tourist shops. Djordje Markovic/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Maybe my search for Gurnah and for literature was a search for an ethical place to stand. In Zanzibar, billboards of Tanzanian president Samia Suluhu Hassan are prominently displayed, projecting an image of calm authority. Once welcomed as a reformer, Hassan now faces growing criticism over alleged human rights abuses. But beneath the façade lies a more contested reality.

Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous archipelago with its own president and parliament, yet remains politically tethered to the mainland of Tanzania. This union has long been marked by tension over power, identity and representation as many Zanzibaris continue to assert a distinct cultural and political identity.

At the wedding, we didn’t speak of any of this. There was music, speech-making and laughter. This island, beautiful and bruised, is the backdrop of the absurdity of overtourism. And I still can’t get over the fact that in Zanzibar I could find no bookshops.

– Abdulrazak Gurnah: searching for signs of Zanzibar’s most famous writer, all I found was trinkets and tourists
– https://theconversation.com/abdulrazak-gurnah-searching-for-signs-of-zanzibars-most-famous-writer-all-i-found-was-trinkets-and-tourists-262886

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Three cop killers traced through cross-border operation

Source: Government of South Africa

National Police Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, has thanked the Commissioner of the Royal Eswatini Police, Vusi Manoma Masango, for their cooperation and assistance in tracing three police killers to the Kingdom of Eswatini. 

The cross-border operation, led by the Acting Provincial Commissioner of Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Zeph Mkhwanazi, culminated in the tracing of three suspects involved in the murder of Sergeant Lawrence Mtshweni.

Mtshweni was shot and killed by more than seven armed robbers during an armed robbery at a store in Schoemansdal, Mpumalanga, on Friday, 8 August 2025. 

The first suspect was arrested on Saturday in South Africa by Mpumalanga police. Further investigations led the South African Police Service (SAPS) to Eswatini, where information was shared with the Royal Eswatini Police and the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force. 

According to the Royal Eswatini Police, two suspects were traced to the Sishweleni region. When the suspects noticed police, they opened fire at them and the Eswatini Royal Police returned fire, fatally wounding the two suspects.

Further investigation led Eswatini police to Mantambe in Shiselweni, where the third suspect allegedly took his own life with a pistol before police officers could arrest him. 

“On behalf of all the men and women in blue and the family of Sergeant Lawrence Mtshweni, we would like to thank the Royal Eswatini Police, led by Commissioner Masango, as well as the role played by the Umbutfo Defence Force, in assisting our Mpumalanga police to trace these police killers. 

“We look forward to strengthening and deepening our cooperation on matters of law enforcement. 

“The attacks and killing of our police officers is a concern and we request our communities to assist us in putting a stop to these killings. From 1 April 2025 to date, we have already lost six police officers. We cannot afford to lose more. 

“We need as much boots on the ground as possible to prevent and combat crime,” said Masemola.

This breakthrough comes at a time when SAPS is still searching for Jabulani Moyo, who shot and killed two police detectives who were transporting him back to the Boksburg Correctional Services centre after appearing in court on an armed robbery case. 

SAPS has made an offer of R150 000 to anyone who can share information on the whereabouts of Moyo. 

The leadership of SAPS, spearheaded by Masemola, will this weekend attend the three funerals of the members who died in the line of duty this past week. 

The details are as follows: 

Warrant Officer Vuyisile Sintwa will be buried on Sunday, 17 August 2025 in Mandilore, Krugersdorp. 

Sergeant Simon Masenye will be buried on Saturday, 16 August 2025 in Munsieville. 

Sergeant Lawrence Mtshweni will be buried on Saturday, 16 August 2025 in Schoemansdal. 

“The SAPS Commemoration Day is around the corner and will take place on Sunday, 7 September 2025, where 27 police officers, who lost their lives on duty, will be remembered,” SAPS said. – SAnews.gov.za

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Government condemns acts of violence at Maponya Mall

Source: Government of South Africa

The Department of Transport has condemned acts of violence and criminality that resulted in the tragic death of an e-hailing driver and the injury of two others at Maponya Mall, in Soweto.

Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, and Deputy Minister, Mkhuleko Hlengwa strongly condemned these acts.

“They also expressed their message of condolences to the bereaved family who lost their loved one. [They] further indicated that such criminal behaviour has no place in the public transport sector, and that those responsible must face the full might of the law,” the Department of Transport said on Thursday.

Reports indicate that violence erupted in Gauteng’s Soweto on Wednesday at the mall, allegedly involving taxi operators and e-hailing drivers.

READ | Gauteng government to visit Maponya Mall

Gauteng police are reportedly monitoring a protest by community members that is taking place outside the mall.

The Department of Transport has indicated that it is addressing the entirety of the challenges affecting the public transport system.

“Central to the issues addressed is the persistent violence across the system. In a meeting held on 25 April 2025, Minister Creecy and the taxi industry leadership unanimously denounced violence in the industry. 

“The meeting also agreed on a formation of a task team between the National and Gauteng Provincial Departments of Transport to fast track the process of digitisation of the issuing of operating licences to resolve route encroachments in the taxi industry, which is the main cause of taxi violence,” the department said.

The taxi industry leadership was also requested to reflect on this matter and make tangible proposals to government on the way forward.

Furthermore, the department is implementing the National Land Transport Information System, which will among other things, ensure that the operating licences are linked to the National Traffic Information System (eNATIS) eliminate the unlawful usage of one operating licence for more than one taxi vehicle.

Meanwhile, last year President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law the amended National Land Transport Act (NLTA) 5 of 2009, paving the way for e-hailing services operators to apply for operating licences like any other public transport operator.

The President also signed into law the Transport Appeal Tribunal Amendment Act on 11 June 2024.

“The regulations have been approved, now awaiting the second official language translation for gazetting and implementation of the Amendment Act. This will usher in a new era in the regulation of the e-hailing services,” the department said. –SAnews.gov.za