Ufahamu Africa

The news wrap in this week's episode offers tribute to Malawian economist and thinker Thandika Mkandawire, discusses COVID-19's economic impacts, and more. This week’s conversation is with Peace Medie (@PeaceMedie), a Senior Lecturer in Gender and International Politics at the University of Bristol. Her research examines gender, politics, and conflict in Africa. During a conversation we...

We start this week's episode discussing the swarm of locusts wreaking havoc in East Africa, how COVID-19 will push the African region into its first recession in a quarter century, and the long term consequences of the pandemic for democracy and rights. Our featured guest this week is Dr. George Ogola (@Ogolah), a scholar of media in the global south at the University of Central Lancashire&ap...

This week's brief episode focuses on what our hosts -- Kim Yi Dionne and Rachel Beatty Riedl -- are reading and learning related to the COVID-19 pandemic and responses by African governments. There is a lot that has already been written and we share what we think are some important questions and arguments that we as scholars of pandemics and authoritarian politics think our listeners should b...

On this week's news update, Kim and Rachel discuss Nigeria's first Coronavirus patient, the downward trend of Ebola, and elections in Cote d'Ivoire. At the African Studies Association Annual Meeting in Boston this past fall, Kim met with Nic Cheeseman (@Fromagehomme) to discuss his latest book and other topics, such as presidential succession in Uganda. Nic is a professor of democra...

This week's episode has a brief newswrap because co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl had to phone in from Morocco. We quickly cover the World Bank-African Development Bank spat, the plague of locusts in East Africa, and more. This week’s conversation is with Marja Hinfelaar, Director of Research and Programs at the Southern African Institute for Policy and Research (SAIPAR) in Lusaka, Zambia. Marja r...

[FRENCH VERSION] In our second episode this Black History Month, Rachel speaks with Moïses WIlliams Pokam Kamdem, a lecturer and research at the University of Dschang and a fellow at the Institute of Advanced Study in Nantes, France. They talk about Africa's energy sector, Cameroon's political history, and more. Their conversation begins at 14:01.Our news wrap covers the recent court rul...

In our second episode this Black History Month, Rachel speaks with Moïses WIlliams Pokam Kamdem, a lecturer and research at the University of Dschang and a fellow at the Institute of Advanced Study in Nantes, France. They talk about Africa's energy sector, Cameroon's political history, and more. Their conversation begins at 14:01.Our news wrap covers the recent court ruling in Malawi nul...

In this week’s episode, Kim sat down with Jennifer Hart, an associate professor of History at Wayne State University, at the African Studies Association Annual Meeting to talk about her latest projects in transportation. From her book, Ghana on the Go, to digital humanities, Kim and Jennifer discuss a wide range of topics during their time at ASA 2019. Find the books, links, and articles we mentio...

To commemorate Lunar New Year, this week's episode focuses on China-Africa relations. In the news wrap, we talk about China-Africa trade, some recommended reads and a podcast on China-Africa, as well as Russia-Africa relations, reports of an extended US travel ban for some African countries, Isabel Dos Santos's Angolan assets seizure, and more. Our featured conversation is with Jamie Mon...

We begin this week's news wrap with a discussion of some of the best literature of the decade - thanks to a curated list by African Arguments ( @africaarguments ) - and we are extremely fortunate to feature one of these authors in this episode, Yvonne Owuor ( @adhiamboKE ). Kim and Rachel also chat about films, China in Africa, cocoa price coordination in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, and a c...

Welcome back, Ufahamu Africa listeners! Kim and Rachel begin this week’s episode discussing the news, opening up with developments with the franc CFA, some excellent reporting on Ebola in DRC, security in the Sahel, and more. This week’s guest is Kako Nubukpo ( @kakonubukpo ), a Senior Research Fellow at the Agricultural Research Centre of International Development (CIRAD) in Paris and currently a...

Welcome back, Ufahamu Africa listeners! Kim and Rachel begin this week's episode discussing the news, opening up with developments with the franc CFA, some excellent reporting on Ebola in DRC, security in the Sahel, and more. This week's guest is Kako Nubukpo ( @kakonubukpo ), a Senior Research Fellow at the Agricultural Research Centre of International Development (CIRAD) in Paris and c...

In the news wrap this week, we talk about Ethiopian politics, Zambia's third term debate, elections in Namibia, and more. This week is another African podcast mashup special — featuring a conversation with Ufahamu Africa's own Kim Yi Dionne ( @dadakim ) in commemoration of World AIDS Day this weekend. Kim is a professor of political science at UC Riverside and an editor of The Monkey Cag...

This week's episode begins with congratulations to co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl and her co-author Gwyneth McClendon on the publication of their book, From Pews to Politics: Religious Sermons and Political Participation in Africa . What perfect timing, given this week's episode features a conversation with Father Emmanuel Katongole, Professor of Theology and Peace Studies at the University...

In the news wrap this week, we talk about Nigeria fact-checking, Botswana's elections, terrorist attacks in West Africa, and more. This week's featured conversation is with Ken Opalo ( @ kopalo ), an Assistant Professor at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He talks about his newly published book, Legislative Development in Africa: Politics and Postcolonial Legacies...

We start this week's newswrap talking about Russian interference in African elections using Facebook, Rose Mutiso's TED talk about energy poverty in Africa, identification card politics in northeastern Nigeria, and more. Our guest this week is Kathleen Klaus ( @KathleenKlaus ), an assistant professor of politics at the University of San Francisco. Her book, Political Violence in Kenya: L...

This week's episode opens up with discussion about the recent elections in Botswana and Mozambique, the anti-sanctions protests in Zimbabwe, post-peace prize Ethiopia, and more. Co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl moderates this week's conversation on agriculture and innovation in Africa. Our guests are Kudzai Kutukwa , Kitso Dube , and Andrew Dillon . Kudzai and Kitso were YALI Mandela Fellows...

We start this week's newswrap celebrating Kenyan marathoners, highlighting recent arts and culture pieces in OkayAfrica, talking about elections in Mozambique, protests in Guinea, and this year's Nobel Prize in Economics winners. This week’s guest is economist Grieve Chelwa ( @gchelwa ), a senior lecturer at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business. Prior to his appointm...

Following a news wrap covering Facebook's fact-checking initiative, Tunisia's elections, Malawi's protests, and more, this week's episode features an interview with Richard Banégas , a professor at Sciences Po. He talks with co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl about his research on identity papers, citizenship, and how technological developments are shaping mobility globally. Rachel&ap...

Ufahamu Africa is excited to launch its fourth season with a roundtable discussion about mobile money in Africa, its challenges, opportunities, and potential for social and political transformation. Co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl moderates the conversation with three Mandela Washington Fellows who participated in the Young African Leaders Initiative at Northwestern University earlier this year: Patto...

In this bonus recording, hear Ufahamu Africa host Kim Dionne read her review of Erin Accampo Hern’s “ Developing States, Shaping Citizenship .” The review was published as the twelfth and final installment of the African Politics Summer Reading Spectacular ( #APSRS19 ), and this recording is being shared as part of a collaboration with The Monkey Cage ( @monkeycageblog ), a blog on politics and po...

In this bonus recording, hear Ufahamu Africa host Kim Dionne read University of Cincinnati professor Alex Thurston’s review of John Campbell and Matthew Page’s “Nigeria: What Everyone Needs to Know,” Brandon Kendhammer and Carmen McCain’s “Boko Haram,” and Carl LeVan’s “Contemporary Nigerian Politics.” The review was published as the eleventh installment of the African Politics Summer Reading Spec...

In this bonus recording, hear Ufahamu Africa host Kim Dionne read Laura Seay’s (@texasinafrica) review of Strong NGOs and Weak States: Pursuing Gender Justice in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa, a book by LSE political scientist Milli Lake (@MilliLake).  The review was published as the tenth installment of the African Politics Summer Reading Spectacular (#APSRS19), and this recor...

In this bonus recording, hear Ufahamu Africa host Kim Dionne read a Q&A between TMC editor Laura Seay and Elizabeth Foster, author of African Catholic: Decolonization and the Transformation of the Church. The Q&A was published in this past Friday’s installment of the African Politics Summer Reading Spectacular, and this recording is being shared as part of a collaboration with The Monkey C...

In this bonus recording, hear Ufahamu Africa host Kim Dionne read her review of Electoral Politics in Africa Since 1990, a book by Jaimie Bleck and Nicolas van de Walle. The review was published in this past Friday’s installment of the African Politics Summer Reading Spectacular, and this recording is being shared as part of a collaboration with The Monkey Cage, a blog on politics and political sc...