The Continent is an award-winning weekly newspaper made by African journalists. Free on đ đ±WhatsApp: bit.ly/4b2gpfI đŹ Signal: bit.ly/TCSignal đČ Telegram: t.me/continentnews âïž Email: read@thecontinent.org đ Donate: http://bit.ly/3IYcp6X
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Days after a massive landslide buried about 1,000 people, only a few rescue workers have managed to reach Tarsin, a remote village in the Jebel Marra area of Darfur in Sudan. The landslide on Sunday also killed more than 5,000 animals, including sheep and camels, destroying survivorsâ livelihoods.
The #MparoRoyalTombs, resting place of Chwa II Kabalega and his descendants from the #Bunyoro Kingdom in modern day #Uganda are subject of part 6 in @thecontinent.org's #MuseumOfMemory: continent.substack.com/p/the-museum...
"While international law and the Geneva Conventions stipulate the protection of journalists, the mark we carry â the word âPressâ â has become a target instead of protection."
In May 2022, an Israeli sniper shot and killed Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh. Last week, Israel targeted and killed five journalists in one attack. In between those dates, Israel became the largest killer of journalists in the world.
As Reporters Without Borders, which co-ordinated the unprecedented international campaign, explains: âThis isnât just a war against Gaza, itâs a war against journalism ⊠Without them, who will alert us to the famine? Who will expose war crimes? Who will show us the genocides?â
www.standaard.be/buitenland/b... Burundi expulses Country Director of Belgian Development Agency #Enabel after reposting article published by @thecontinent.org
An outstanding edition of @thecontinent.org with an incredibly moving piece on #Gaza, reportage from # Sudan on the landslide that buried a thousand people (did you hear about it?) and your weekly does of hope on how WHO is quietly eradicating river blindness An essential part of your media diet.
All Protocol Observed. Welcome to Issue 212 of The Continent. We join more than 250 newsrooms in 70 countries blacking out front pages in solidarity with journalists in Gaza. Read Ansam al-Kitaaâs despatch from Gaza City: bit.ly/212_TC
A whole new world: Jasmine harvests have sustained thousands of families in Egyptâs Nile Delta over many generations, but rising temperatures, long dry spells and climate-driven pests have left that legacy in peril. Photo: Khaled Desouki/AFP
Review: In Nyasha Kadandara's 'Matebeleland' Zimbabweâs traumatic history finds purchase in the present through a flawed, haunted survivor.
From the beginning of the new school year, pregnant girls will no longer be excluded from school in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All schools except Catholic ones, if men of the cloth have their way.
Cry foul or cry me a river? If youâre sceptical of your governmentâs willingness to take whistleblowers seriously, remember youâre not the only one. Check out @afrobarometer.bsky.socialâs latest survey on what residents of 34 African countries think.
The Museum of Memory: The Mparo Royal Tombs are the sacred resting place of Chwa II Kabalega and his descendants from the once-powerful Bunyoro Kingdom in what is now western Uganda. The tombs, around 50, are spread across four acres in Mparo village in the Hoima district.
August has been nothing short of extraordinary as Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania hosted the delayed 2024 African Nations Championship, commonly known as Chan.
Some food for thought, and little else | @thecontinent.org open.substack.com/pub/continen...
The Sahrawi people living in the Tindouf camps of southwest Algeria are facing their worst nutrition crisis since 2010. The Almasar Library Centre in Smara camp started a seed bank, giving families seedlings and training them to create home gardens.
African countries are importing solar panels from China at record rates. Energy thinktank Ember says imports rose 60% in the 12 months to June 2025, as Africaâs power needs converge with Chinaâs overproduction and low prices.
One of my favourite things about the @thecontinent.org is the artistic/ creative direction. Every cover feels like a new piece of art. If ever your team hosts an in person exhibition @simonallison.bsky.social @wynonamutisi.bsky.social - I am there!
I canât stop thinking about this article from @thecontinent.org âShe (Angelique Nyirasafari) noted that boys continue with school even when they cause pregnancies.â
Two years ago, more than 400 bodies were unearthed in Shakahola Forest near the Kenyan coast, linked to a doomsday sect that coerced its members to starve themselves to âmeet Jesusâ before the world ends. Now, more than a dozen more bodies have been uncovered in the same county, Kilifi.
It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone, rich or poor, to get a full tank of petrol in Burundi. Severe fuel shortages started in 2018 and have not let up since.
The weekend is here
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Africaâs accelerated shift to solar âïžfueled by Chinese overproduction: âImports rose 60% in the 12 months to June 2025, as Africaâs power needs converge with Chinaâs overproduction and low prices.â This and much more in my fav Saturday morning read đđŒ
All Protocol Observed Welcome to Issue 211 of The Continent. Fuelâs been scarce in Burundi since 2018, thanks to political unrest. Now, people are risking bullets, crocodiles, even prison just to fill up. Get your copy here: bit.ly/211_TC
Andabluesian: An elder descends through the distinctive alleys of the Medina of the northwestern Moroccan city of Chefchaouen, where the blue hues of its buildings are complemented by ornate mosaics. Photo: Abdel Majid Bziouat/AFP
More than 90% of Africans identify with a religion across Afrobarometerâs sample of 38 countries. Does faith shape citizens' views of religious leaders and people of different creeds? Check out @afrobarometer.bsky.socialâs survey in this weekâs issue of The Continent: bit.ly/210_TC
Review: In âEsperanceâ Adam Oyebanji infuses the classic police procedural with sci-fi elements and the satisfying prospect of vengeance, writes @hararereview.bsky.social
In part 5 of their #MuseumOfMemory series, @thecontinent.org asks how we choose to remember, highlighting the #MonumentoDaPaz in Luena - and with it the the complex and complicated history of a brutal 27-year civil war (and its aftermath) in #Angola: continent.substack.com/p/the-museum...
Two giant hands, representing a once-divided country, release a white dove into the sky. Monumento da Paz is meant to evoke Angolaâs striving for peace and healing after a brutal 27-year civil war. The 30m-tall structure, made of copper and iron, is located in Luena, Moxico province.
The ylang-ylang trade sustains about 10,000 producers in Comoros, which is significant in a country with a population of less than a million. But it also drives deforestation.
What does the incautious fate of an orphaned baboon tell us about the extraordinary bridging of the Victoria Falls?
Just a year after a feasibility study confirmed that a Malawian rare-earth minerals deposit is one of the worldâs best and largest, an Australian company has raised $59-million to begin mining. The first output is expected in late 2026, @mcbrams.bsky.social reports.
SALC's director, Anneke Meerkotter, questioned how any third country can justify the acceptance of foreign nationals who were illegally deported from the US. @thecontinent.org #NoToUSdeportationPlanesToSADC open.substack.com/pub/continen...
The path to peace in Sudan must begin in Abu Dhabi. Appeals for donor support flood inboxes but coherent civilian protection canât happen when there is a refusal to definitively answer the question, âProtect them from whom?â
Let cents prevail: When pregnant women in western Kenya received $1,000 from a charity, they spent it on better food and healthcare, and took time off work, which led to healthier and safer births.
âItâs no longer one war but many, all happening at the same time, feeding into each other. In all of them, the same pattern: armed groups taking, punishing, and controlling.â Moe Kadana (pseudonym) about the Sudan war in Iss. 209 of @thecontinent.org
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More Africans need to read Will Shoki at @africasacountry.bsky.social. More Africans need to subscribe to @thecontinent.org!
Human rights defenders are suing the Eswatini government for accepting deportees from the United States, arguing it is both irrational and unlawful.
Amgad Eltayeb has a great essay about perceiving Sudan in this weekâs edition of @thecontinent.org.
'The Continent' 210 du 23 août 2025 : - des stablecoins liés au USD en Afr. ; - une passionnée de moto au Nigeria ; - témoignage en BD : la vie à Goma ; - mémoire : Monumento da Paz à Luena (Angola) ; - la culture de l'ylang-ylang aux Comores ; - roman policier-fantastique d'Adam Oyebanji. #Afrique
With the state absent and armed groups in control, Goma, in eastern DRC, feels like purgatory. Edizon Musavuli, a local artist, turns to drawing to capture life in the uncertainty of occupation.
The memorial park at #Bishoftu in Ethopia marking the site where Flight ET-302 crashed in March 2019 is covered by the part 4 of @thecontinent.org's #MuseumOfMemory series. Representing their four home continents, the monument is honoring the 157 victims: continent.substack.com/p/the-museum...
Read about this in @thecontinent.org. Rhino conservationist charged with smuggling a hell of a lot of rhino horn. Accomplished stealthy predator.
The cover art on this weekâs edition of @thecontinent.org?? đ„ đ
All Protocol Observed Welcome to Issue 210 of The Continent With the state absent and armed groups in control, Goma, in eastern DRC, feels like purgatory. One local artist turns to drawing to capture life in the uncertainty of occupation. Get your copy here: bit.ly/210_TC
Reins off, fire: Moroccan horsemen fire their rifles in a simulated cavalry charge in El Jadida on 11 August. The tradition, Tbourida, began in the 16th century, inspired by ancestral Arab-Amazigh traditions. Photo: Abdel Majid Bziouat/AFP
Life for a woman in West Africa is shorter than most. In Benin, Togo, Sierra Leone and Gambia, Sylvia Arthur spoke to 100 women who defied the odds to live long, and prosper.
The Museum of Memory: A place of âremembrance and healingâ. This is how Ethiopian architecture firm Alebel Desta describes the memorial park honouring the 157 people who died when Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET-302 crashed in March 2019.
The rites, practised since the 12th century, prepare initiates to enter the sacred forest on a spiritual journey to receive ancestral wisdom, deepen their respect for women and elders, and take on new responsibilities in the community. Photos: Muhamadou Bittaye/AFP
In Thibion, a village in Senegalâs Casamance region, crowds cheer as men perform feats of bravery like cutting your body without drawing blood. This is Futampaf â a traditional ceremony, that gathers the Jola people of Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau to initiate boys into manhood.
âThis conflict has polarised communities and reignited questions about âWhat is Sudan?â and âWho is Sudanese?ââ For Oslo-based artist Khalid Shatta, these are not abstract questions â they have shaped his life.
Africa | "Everything is Fine Here" defies the tired trope that African stories must be about war, poverty or AIDS. A sharp reminder: African lives are layered, complex, full of sisterhood, secrets, and selfhoodâdeserving dignity, equality, and freedom beyond stereotypes.
The war in Sudan is often reduced to numbers â 12-million people displaced â or shorthand â âtwo generals fighting for powerâ. Then there are the labels â âforgottenâ, ânihilisticâ, and âwar about nothingâ. In El Fasher, residents who are organising to survive an ongoing siege defy such flattening.
The 3rd part of @thecontinent.org's #MuseumOfMemory series covers the Thomas Sankara #Mausoleum in Ouagadougou. Unveiled in May, the mausoleum honours the legacy of #BurkinaFaso's former revolutionary leader #ThomasSankara, who led the country 1983-1987. continent.substack.com/p/the-museum...
On 15 April 2023, everything changed. In an instant, life became war, survival, checkpoints, shelling, and impossible choices for this Khartoum resident.
âI am not a journalist, just an ordinary, apolitical Sudanese citizen. The war I saw was not about ideology â just money, power, and the survival of armed men at the cost of our lives.â
We asked Sudanese people to explain what the war is about. What emerges is clear: there is no such thing as a war about nothing. continent.substack.com/p/is-the-sud...
The who, why, and means of the Sudan war.
Es gibt aktuell keinen besseren Journalismus zu afrikanischen Themen als @thecontinent.org und Ihr könnt ihn einfach ĂŒber Signal und WhatsApp UMSONST abonnieren: wa.me/27738056068?... signal.me#eu/_OpoNMfIF...
Subscribe to @thecontinent.org.
And yes, subscribe to @thecontinent.org If you care *at all* about Africa.
Wer sich fĂŒr afrikanische Politik interessiert, dem empfehle ich mit Nachdruck "The Continent". Eine tolle Zeitung, die ich jetzt seit ĂŒber einem Jahr lese đ www.thecontinent.org
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The latest issue of @thecontinent.org is out now to download and read. Get essential African journalism in issue 209 of The Continent today!
Downloading this was immediately worthwhile
Last month @theatlantic.com published an often problematic piece about the war in #Sudan called âthe war about nothingâ. This week @thecontinent.org swings back, reminding us that what is ânothingâ to you is âeverythingâ to someone else. The Continent is a free publication, subscribe to read.
Big up @thecontinent.org with the broad Sudan coverage.
All Protocol Observed Welcome to Issue 209 of The Continent The war in Sudan is more than numbers and labels â itâs a war about everything. Five Sudanese writers share stories from the ground, revealing its real contours and what itâs truly about. Get your copy here: bit.ly/TC_209
Golden age: Faid Kassime (centre), accompanies a gold dowry to his wifeâs family home in Moroni, Comoros â as part of Grand Mariage rites held years after an initial Petit Mariage seals a coupleâs union. Photo: Marco Longari/AFP
Review: Everything is Fine Here is excellent modern African literature that scores highly in the ânot about war, poverty or Aids, pleaseâ category, making the point that African lives have complexity outside tired stereotypes â thereâs so much more to see.
The Museum of Memory: Commissioned by former president Marc Christian KaborĂ©, the Thomas Sankara Mausoleum was unveiled in May this year. Itâs part of a wider effort to honour the legacy of Burkina Fasoâs most famous son: former revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara.
Recently for @thecontinent.org : On @wordsweaver.bsky.social's Everything is Fine Here, a tale of sisterhood, society and self in #Uganda. Out now from @houseofanansi.bsky.social!
If youâre reading The Continent, youâre already ahead of the curve. Help someone else get quality African journalismđ They can get their copy each week on WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram or email.
The road from Ibadan to Ilorin is paved with good intentions but, 46 years in, some tarmac would be nice.
Iranâs support for the Palestinian cause in Gaza and the recent escalation in its long-standing conflict with Israel have brought unexpected visibility â and even adoration â to the Egypt's sidelined Shia minority.
Ahead of International Youth Day, we're asking: Are African youth making their voices heard? See Afrobarometer's latest in @thecontinent.org to find out. #VoicesAfrica #InternationalYouthDay2025
Mind the gap Ahead of International Youth Day, we're asking: Are African youth making their voices heard? Check out @afrobarometer.bsky.socialâs latest survey in this weekâs issue of The Continent to find out. bit.ly/TC_208
Get quality African journalism delivered to your device every Saturday. Subscribe to The Continent here: đ±WhatsApp: bit.ly/4b2gpfI đŹ Signal: bit.ly/TCSignal đČ Telegram: t.me/continentnews âïž Email: read@thecontinent.org đ Donate: bit.ly/3IYcp6X
One of Ethiopiaâs most prominent feminist activists, Jordin âJordiâ Bezabih, has been forced to flee the country after a co-ordinated cyberbullying campaign in which her private accounts were hacked. Her intimate videos and text messages were then shared online.
Blondie, a five-year-old research lion, was struck down in his prime by a trophy hunter. He was a dominant male with 10 cubs in Zimbabweâs Hwange National Park. His death risks destabilising his pride and increasing human-wildlife conflict in the area.
Drought forced a group of farmers out of their homeland. Squatting near Zambiaâs West Lunga National Park, one of them unexpectedly struck gold, setting off a deadly international frenzy.
"There is gold in the ground and death in the air. At the site of Zambiaâs latest gold rush in the remote forest-fringed communities of Dengwe and Kikonge, Mufumbwe district, the stench of rotting bodies hangs thick." open.substack.com/pub/continen... (#MustRead via @thecontinent.org)
All Protocol Observed Welcome to Issue 208 of The Continent A gold discovery near Zambiaâs West Lunga Park has triggered a chaotic rush. Thousands have flooded Kikonge, clashes have turned deadly, and illegal buyers are cashing in. A gold rush means risk, riches, and unrest. bit.ly/TC_208
Wrap battle: Amateur Dambe fighters, hands roped up for striking, face off in Abuja, Nigeria. Once a highlight of harvest festivals in the Sahel, Dambe is now a league sport with big prizes and bigger crowds. Photo: Olympia Maismont/AFP
Review: The title of Burna Boyâs latest, No Sign of Weakness, is intriguing, hinting at the distinct assertiveness that marked his African Giant era. The record itself is less so, playing as a pale copy of Twice as Tall.
Part 2 of @thecontinent.org's new #MuseumOfMemory series on some of Africa's most iconic monuments covers the towering statue of #Zimbabweâ's former vice-president Joshua Nkomo - created, another twist in a story full of twists, by a North Korean studio ... continent.substack.com/p/the-museum...
Did you know Africans lead the world in attending community meetings and joining with others to raise issues? Check out Afrobarometerâs survey on how African levels of civic engagement compare to other parts of the world, in this weekâs issue of The Continent. Get it here: bit.ly/TC_207
The Museum of Memory: A towering statue of liberation leader Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo stands in Zimbabwe's second city, Bulawayo. Made by North Koreaâs Mansudae Art Studio, it draws visitors and symbolises a complex legacy of unity, betrayal, and remembrance.
Last week, my commentary on AI-generated propaganda and its impact on democratic processes in Africa was published by @thecontinent.org! Thank you to Democracy in Africa for the invitation to contribute. www.thecontinent.org/_files/ugd/2...
Photo Essay: Nashville or Nairobi? Thatâs a potato, potahto question when it comes to country music in East Africa. Kenyan interest in country music goes all the way back to the 1920s and 1930s, when locals first heard Jimmie Rodgers on early country and western records.
Prices for cobalt have been on the decline; the DRC halted exports to shore them up. It seems to be working for now, but the strategy may yet backfire.
'The Continent' 207, 2 août 2025 : - Pourquoi Jonathan Oppenheimer, héritier du fondateur de De Beers a fermé la Brenthurst Foundation ? - La popularité de la country music au Kenya. - #HGGSP #mémoire : la statue nord-coréenne de Joshua Nkomo au Zimbabwe. - Du cobalt en RDC. #Afrique
This weeks @thecontinent.org
Did you know Africans lead the world in attending community meetings and joining with others to raise issues? See how African levels of citizen engagement compare to other world regions, in our latest in @thecontinent.org. #VoicesAfrica
With no legal right to work in Kenya and few paths to higher education, if any, many residents of Dadaab trapped. Drug and substance abuse is reportedly on the rise.
O dito ocidente não se cansa de traficar todo tipo de artefato histórico, arqueológico e até extraterrestre do resto do mundo... (da edição de såbado passado da @thecontinent.org que adiei tanto a leitura que só estou lendo agora)
Analysis: Four men are richer than half of all other Africans combined. Taxing them more feels like a no-brainer â but a lot needs to be fixed before that would truly address wealth inequality.