Africa Here and NOW

Battered by drought and flooding, laid low by more than 30 years of civil war, as SOMALIA prepares to accede to a seat on the UN Security Council and joins the East African Community, we ask a senior member of the Prime Minister’s Office could the hostilities between Mogadishu and Addis Ababa over Somaliland descend into all -out war? Plus, why are so many Somali baby girls being named I...

In South Africa the race is on to find a government of national unity. Parliament must sit by June 16 to elect a new president. Will the ANC appease the markets and investors by joining with the DA and risk widening the rifts in its ranks? Or will it take the ‘Chernobyl option’ of joining with the leftists of Malema’s EFF and former president Zuma’s MK party? We get the views of lawyer, businessma...

Chigozie talks with Donu about his new novel – The Road to The Country – a war novel which documents Nigeria’s Biafran civil war. In a frank exchange, he tells Donu this is the story he has always wanted to tell even though he was born almost two decades after the war ended. He tells us that it was so emotionally challenging to write this book, that he missed his deadline – it took much longer tha...

Kenya’s PRESIDENT WILLIAM RUTO gets the red-carpet treatment in Washington DC. Why has he become the first African leader IN MORE THAN FIFTEEN YEARS to receive the privilege of a state visit to the US? We’re in conversation with Nigerian investigative journalist, DAVID HUNDEYIN about why he fled his country fearing for his life and (CAN LOSE about) the lamentable state of journalism on the co...

Africa is the world’s youngest continent with a median age of 19. So why does it have the oldest leaders on the planet? And they tend to stick around. Cameroon’s President Biya – in his 90s – is the world’s oldest leader and has been at the top for 42 years and there are plenty of others in their 70s and 80s. We ask independent researcher, DR JOSEPH ADEBAYO why Africa is a continent for old men. &...

In France, singer, AYA NAKAMURA faces a virulent campaign against the way she sings, the way she dresses, and her language. We ask art curator and film maker, RABI YANSANE what have so many French people got against the most listened to Francophone pop superstar?   Migration, particularly from Africa, is being portrayed as a modern day scourge by many western politicians. Yet as DR NICK...

Africa Here and Now is back for it's second season with episode one coming next week! We’ll continue looking at the major political and security challenges facing the continent, but we’ll also be looking at what else is going on in Africa including sport, art, film and music, in fact anything that we think you’ll find interesting! Get in touch, let us know what you’d like to hear more of: martine@...

In this, our 12th Episode we showcase African classical music. TUNDE JEGEDE is a musical maestro who has mastered the cello and the west African kora. He explains how his training in both instruments has inspired him to produce a style of music that combines elements of African and western classical genres resulting in a unique sound that is thrilling global audiences.   Along with some of th...

Five months into the war on Gaza, we ask why Egypt is so unwilling to take in desperate Palestinians. Independent Consultant HAFSA HALAWA tells us Cairo fears letting in Islamist militants. Prominent Nigerian political economist KINGSLEY MOGHALU warns the country's economic troubles have already become a political crisis that will only get worse. And a former president contender himself, from the...

South Africa political commentator, MOELETSI MBEKI, is a harsh critic of the ruling ANC's record in office. But, he tells us, that hasn't harmed relations with his big brother, THABO MBEKI, a former South African President. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former Nigerian President, OLUSEGUN OBASANJO, in an exclusive interview, tells us why Western-style democracy doesn't work for Africa and suggests a traditional system of consensus instead. Political economist, MOELETSI MBEKI, explains why the ANC is facing a drubbing in South Africa's next elections; he pays tribute to OBASANJO, the elder statesman, and tells us he doesn't argue with...

AfricaHere&NOW's panellist, DONU KOGBARA, tells us of the time she was kidnapped from her home in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. For almost 2 weeks she was kept captive in a tiny hut in a mangrove swamp. She was beaten but developed an empathetic relationship with her captors. She grew to understand the reasons why the young men had taken her by force and were demanding $2 millons for her release. Donu t...

Donu and Gary Al Smith enlighten us... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

* We examine the state of ECOWAS, the West African bloc, as Senegal postpones elections and as 3 Sahelian countries announce their decision to leave. ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Dr ABDEL FATAU MUSAH admits that sanctions against Niger were 'not well handled' and that there's now a need for dialogue to get the 3 states back. @DrFatauMusah *Former top tier ZANU PF member,...

Mass killings and kidnappings get closer to Abuja, the Nigerian capital. Expert, Dr CHIDI ODINKALU, tells us it's not a matter of failing security forces, it's because of COLLUSION between some senior politicians and armed groups. And DONU, talks about her own terrifying kidnapping ordeal. Plus, Should Africans who collaborated in the trans-Atlantic slave trade also pay reparations, along...

* What role does the UAE play in the Horn of Africa? We look at the forgotten war in Sudan and delve into Ethiopia's controversial deal to recognise Somaliland in exchange for access to the sea. * The Christmas killings in Nigeria's Plateau State *The billion-dollar election in DRC where more than half the country didn't vote * A South African tech bro tells of his hopes for 2024 * For...

The fascinating story of a woman from Equatorial Guinea in Central Africa who grows up in North Korea. Monica Macias talks about her identity crisis as a black girl in Pyongyang and being the daughter of "Africa's Pol Pot" and the ward of a North Korean dictator. Her book is Black Girl From Pyongyang' Published by Duckworth. Get in touch: martine@africahereandnow.com Instagram: a...

Why are police officers from Kenya being sent to Haiti where gang violence is tearing the Caribbean country apart?   South Africa’s ANC loses a senior figure: MAVUSO MSIMANG, a party stalwart  quits over ‘entrenched corruption’ and says his beloved party’s prospects in next year’s elections do not look good.   As COP28  wraps up, did Africa get what it wanted? We ask a Nigerian energy consultant a...

Africa's Climate Tsar, Carlos Lopes on what Africa wants from COP28 A young Nigerian activist warns us that in the rush to kickstart production of Green energy, not to forget the 600 million Africans who don't even have access to electricity. The runners and riders in the DR Congo presidential race - all 25 of them. Get in touch: martine@africahereandnow.com Instagram: africahereandnow X @...

Liberians vote in the closest presidential runoff since the civil war -we gauge the mood in Monrovia. Nigerian politician turned academic, Kayode Fayemi, calls for a Marshall Plan for the Sahel. The Africa Investment Forum in Marrakech - almost 35 BILLION dollars is pledged. Who left Morocco happy? The Rugby Africa president persuades us that his sport is more than just fun, it's big business...

King Charles' first overseas trip as monarch is to Kenya - what kind of reception awaits him? What benefit could President Ramaphosa bring to the Israel/Gaza war? He offers his service amid a row over his government's supposed support for Hamas. Has Nollywood finally come of age? The Black Book film smashes records and goes global. Get in touch: martine@africahereandnow.com Instagram: afri...