The Conversation: In-depth analysis, research, news and ideas from leading academics and researchers.

Malaria scorecard: battles have been won and advances made, but the war isn’t over

Shüné Oliver, National Institute for Communicable Diseases and Jaishree Raman, National Institute for Communicable Diseases

Beating malaria: what can be done with shrinking funds and rising threats

Taneshka Kruger, University of Pretoria and Tiaan de Jager, University of Pretoria

South Africa: state of the nation 30 years into democracy

Sandy Africa, University of Pretoria; Musa Nxele, University of Cape Town, and Na'eem Jeenah, Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection

Tattered flag in red, white, green, blue, black and yellow

South Africa needs a fresh start, says new book: but does the argument hold up?

Roger Southall, University of the Witwatersrand

Young boys run through flood water blocking a street after heavy rainfalls in an informal settlement in Langa, Cape Town.

Ghana’s first genetically modified crop: why we created a new cowpea variety, how we tested it and what we found

Jose Maria Barrero, CSIRO; Gloria A. Adazebra, CSIR-Savanna Agricultural Research Institute; Jerry A. Nboyine, CSIR-Savanna Agricultural Research Institute, and TJ Higgins, CSIRO

Humans lived in African rainforests 150,000 years ago, far earlier than believed – new research

Eslem Ben Arous, Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH) and Eleanor Scerri, Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology

VAT hikes can raise tax without hurting the poor: an economist sets out the evidence

Imraan Valodia, University of the Witwatersrand

Fingers holding a wooden block bearing a percentage sign, placing the block on others that spell out VAT

Sexual predators at school: why South African law is failing to protect children from teachers

Cecile de Villiers, University of Cape Town

A man holding a gavel hits it against one hand

Pedestrians and motorcyclists on a flooded urban street

Flooding incidents in Ghana’s capital are on the rise. Researchers chase the cause

Stephen Appiah Takyi, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and Owusu Amponsah, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)

West Africa’s bold trade experiment turns 50: an Ecowas report card

Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Kofi Annan International Peace Keeping Center and Jesper Bjarnesen, The Nordic Africa Institute

An armed soldier in combat gear clears the way for a red carpet ceremonial procession.

Rating agencies don’t treat the Global South fairly: changes South Africa should champion in G20 hot seat

Daniel Cash, Aston University

Nigeria’s growing security crisis: 6 essential reads

Adejuwon Soyinka, The Conversation

New survey explores what people in South Africa expect of publicly visible scientists – why it matters

Marina Joubert, Stellenbosch University; Lars Guenther, Stellenbosch University, and Simone Rödder, University of Hamburg

A man in a white lab coat, wearing blue surgical gloves, stands in a laboratory alongside a woman, similarly garbed, who is working on samples of some sort

Man in a white robe and white cap sitting in the back of a car lifts his hand in greeting - a crowd of people in the background waves back

Pope Francis: the first post-colonial papacy to deliver messages that resonate with Africans

Stan Chu Ilo, DePaul University

Pope Francis: why his papacy mattered for Africa – and for the world’s poor and marginalised

Stan Chu Ilo, DePaul University

A man in white mitred hat and cloak, seated on a white and gold chair, holding a document or book

Zimbabwe’s house of stone: the gallery that showcases a famous sculpture tradition

Tinashe Mushakavanhu, University of Oxford

A stone sculpture of a sleeping human figure, legs drawn up to its chest.

Planning for death: four things you can do to ease your family’s emotional and financial stress

Amanda Craft, Western Sydney University and Bomikazi Zeka, University of Canberra

Why Kinshasa keeps flooding – and why it’s not just about the rain

Gode Bola, University of Kinshasa ; Mark Trigg, University of Leeds, and Raphaël Tshimanga, University of Kinshasa

Santa, death and the Easter Bunny – how to have that hard talk with your kid

Peter Ellerton, The University of Queensland

Ernest Cole: the South African photographer at the centre of a powerful and heartbreaking film

Kylie Thomas, NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies

A black and white close-up portrait of a young African man looking earnestly at camera, a moustache and small beard and a beret on his head.

I was a child soldier – here’s what it’ll take to protect young lives in conflict zones

Charles Wratto, Babes Bolyai University

The story of the enigmatic man who founded southern Africa’s largest church

Barry Morton, Indiana University

Maize cobs on the ground, as well as calabashes and grains in a basket

Africa’s traditional fermented foods – and why we should keep consuming them

Florence Malongane, University of South Africa and Tendaiishe Berejena, University of South Africa

Africa’s superfood heroes – from teff to insects – deserve more attention

Kagure Gacheche, The Conversation and Moina Spooner, The Conversation

Several, large fried locusts served up on a plate

South Africa finally has a masterplan for a renewable energy industry: here’s what it says

Ricardo Amansure, Stellenbosch University

A giant circular array of solar panels on the ground with heliostats and a huge central generating tower

Ethiopia’s 2026 elections: without reforms, the vote may not be free or fair

Bizuneh Yimenu, Queen's University Belfast

Two men and a woman looking at a pile of folded up papers on a table in front of them

Africa’s healthcare funding crisis: 3 strategies to manage deadly diseases

Francisca Mutapi, University of Edinburgh

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Gabon elections: why a landmark vote won’t bring real change

Douglas Yates, American Graduate School in Paris (AGS)

Accra is a tough city to walk in: how city planners can fix the problem

Seth Asare Okyere, University of Pittsburgh; Daniel Oviedo, UCL; Louis Kusi Frimpong, University of Environment and Sustainable Development ; Mariajose Nieto, UCL; Matthew Abunyewah, Charles Darwin University, and Stephen Leonard Mensah, University of Memphis

Ritual murder of children: study in Ghana and Kenya explores who’s doing it and why

Emmanuel Sarpong Owusu, Aberystwyth University

One person's hands holding a bottle, pouring something into the hands of another person. Both people are wearing bead bracelets.

Sudan’s war isn’t nearly over – armed civilian groups are rising

Mohamed Saad, Charles University

A man waving from the door of a vehicle as a crowd surrounds him near a petrol station with a red, white, black and green flag waving in the middle of the crowd

A group of flags standing against a wall

Power drives global affairs today, not rules – what Africa’s strategies should be

Kennedy Mbeva, University of Cambridge and Reuben Makomere, University of Tasmania

Wild meat is eaten by millions, but puts billions at risk – how to manage the trade

Delia Grace, International Livestock Research Institute ; Hung Nguyen-Viet, International Livestock Research Institute , and Steve Staal, International Livestock Research Institute

Pieces of dried meat and carcasses hanging in a row

Critically ill patients in African hospitals aren’t getting the care they need: new survey

Tim Baker, Karolinska Institutet and Karima Khalid, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences

Hand in a blue glove holding a plastic tube which appears to be a medical drip

South Africa’s coalition government is at risk of crumbling: why collapse would carry a heavy cost

Vinothan Naidoo, University of Cape Town and Brian Levy, Johns Hopkins University

A bald man in a suit and tie stands at a podium, gesturing as he speaks

South African court said no to new coal-fired power: what’s behind the ruling

Melanie Murcott, University of Cape Town

Protestors hold up a banner saying Coal kills while others lie on the ground

Fulani: new study unravels the genetic history of Africa’s largest pastoralist community

Carina Schlebusch, Uppsala University; Cesar Fortes-Lima, Johns Hopkins University, and Viktor Černý, Charles University

A man wearing a turban and carrying a stick leans on a watering trough, surrounded by cattle, in a dry landscape

Amadou Bagayoko: the blind Malian musician whose joyful songs changed west African music

Uganda’s boda boda bikes are deadly polluters: study models how going electric could save lives

About 150 motorbikes crowding a very congested road

Rwanda’s image abroad: how western countries are beginning to turn their backs

David E Kiwuwa, University of Nottingham

Two men shake hands in front of a door with the number 10 on it

Gloved hand of worker in blue overall above a production line of citrus fruits

Trump’s tariff hikes and South Africa: hunt for new agricultural markets must begin now

Wandile Sihlobo, Stellenbosch University

Africa’s refugee camps are plagued by flooding: we looked into drainage systems that can withstand local conditions

A barren area with bushes in the background and tents and grass huts

South Sudan on the brink of civil war: bold action from the international community is needed

A crowd of people cheering with their hands held up, with some holding up photographs and others phones

Kenya’s courts are corruption hotspots – radical actions the chief justice must take

Gedion Onyango, London School of Economics and Political Science

Do African MPs reflect the people who vote for them? We studied 17 countries to find out

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G20

Culture can build a better world: four key issues on Africa’s G20 agenda

Ribio Nzeza Bunketi Buse, University of Kinshasa

Three performers, men and women, dressed in skirts and balancing a large concrete brick on their heads like a hat.

South Africa as G20 leader can take action on Africa’s food supply: 4 ways to make a difference

Wandile Sihlobo, Stellenbosch University

Man standing in a field of maize, holding a tablet device

Wealthy nations owe climate debt to Africa – funds that could help cities grow

Astrid R.N. Haas, University of Cape Town

The G20: how it works, why it matters and what would be lost if it failed

Danny Bradlow, University of Pretoria

A man speaking at a podium, also seen on a big screen behind him. People seated at a long table are turning to look at him.

In the news

Francis − a pope who cared deeply for the poor and opened up the Catholic Church

Mathew Schmalz, College of the Holy Cross

Pope Francis, dressed in white priestly garments, raises his hand to wave to people.

Africa-US trade: Agoa deal expires in 2025 - an expert unpacks what it’s achieved in 23 years

David Luke, London School of Economics and Political Science

Middle Eastern monarchies in Sudan’s war: what’s driving their interests

Federico Donelli, University of Trieste

An aerial shot of a dusty field dotted with several white tents with several people walking around

Who is Tundu Lissu? Tanzania’s opposition leader is fighting for change in the face of fresh attacks on political freedoms

Nicodemus Minde, United States International University

A man wearing a black cap and shirt holds up two fingers in a salute

Research highlights

A close-up photograph of a snake whose head scales are formed into two small grey-black "horns", the same colours as most of the rest of its body

Reptiles in South Africa are under threat – but there’s good news too

Krystal Tolley, South African National Biodiversity Institute and Graham Alexander, University of the Witwatersrand

White Malice: how the CIA strangled African independence at birth

Henning Melber, University of Pretoria

A man bespactacled man wearing a bow tie speaks to an audience.

Chimpanzees hunting for honey are cleverer than we thought

Vittoria Estienne, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology

LGBTIQ+ migrants and asylum seekers in South Africa: major new study identifies a diverse, wide-spread community

A rainbow flag is taped on the cheek of a member of the LGTBI community during the Soweto Pride in 2021.

Archaeology shows how hunter-gatherers fitted into southern Africa’s first city, 800 years ago

Tim Forssman, University of Mpumalanga

Rocky landscape with human figures crouched on the ground outside an overhanging rock face

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TC Afrique

Trait d’union ou hub saharo-sahélien ? La Mauritanie contemporaine vue depuis ses routes

RD Congo : l’industrie numérique alimente les conflits et la violation des droits humains

Nouveau plan de développement du Sénégal : les investissements à privilégier pour un modèle économique de rupture

Musique sénégalaise : ces obstacles sur le chemin des femmes dans le hip-hop

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