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Articles by Solomon A. Dersso
Malawi farmers urged to diversify from national staple as yields drop
Farmers in Malawi are being encouraged to plant different varieties of crops as extreme weather makes agriculture more challenging. Dry conditions recently have led to plummeting yields of the national staple maize, which supplies around two-thirds of the country’s calorie intake. Around 80% of Malawi’s 20 million population depend on farming for their livelihoods and 90% of these farmers produce some maize.
AU Summit drama raises questions on whether bloc is reforming
As the dust settles on the 37th Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Assembly, questions are emerging about the implication of the dramatic scenes witnessed during the summit on the future of the Union. This AU summit came when its leadership and collective action of its members to address the plethora of political, socio-economic and security challenges facing Africa are in huge demand.
Africa led UN to make history with vote for global tax convention
What you need to know: The outcome of the vote signifies that, despite the odds, the reform of the multilateral financial system is not an unrealistic pursuit. The resolution also suggest that such a reform has a better chance of success if the UN’s role as the premier platform for global governance is reaffirmed. A rare piece of good news at a time of turmoil has emerged from the UN in New York.
Why Niger’s coup is unlike others for regional bodies
Niger has become the latest country to fall prey to military coup. What started as a coup attempt following the blockading of President Mohamed Bazoum by the Presidential Guard on 26 July 2023, evolved into a full-fledged coup. The head of the Presidential Guard, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, was announced as the leader of the country on 28 July 2023 following the coup. This is the eighth successful coup to take place in Africa since April 2020.
Dersso: Why terrorism is a symptom of the problem Africa faces
The threat of deadly terrorism in Africa has grown from strength to strength, with the frequency of attacks rising exponentially. By the counts of African Union’s Algiers-based African Centre on the study of terrorism, Africa witnessed a 400 percent rise in attacks, fueling a 237 percent rise in deaths between 2012 and 2020. And civilians are bearing the brunt of much of these violent attacks by the perpetrators, but also sometimes from counterterrorism operations.
Africa: Will the U.S.-Africa Summit Address U.N. Security Council Reform?
African leaders have long sought Security Council reform. With new momentum and U.S. support, it could finally come to fruition. U.N. Security Council (UNSC) reform has been a long-standing demand from many in the international community, but calls for an overhaul of the institution have grown louder amid renewed interest in democratizing the international system and addressing historical exclusion and injustices in its core institutions.
Misdiagnosis drives Africa’s terror problem
Many leaders in Africa are failing to address the real causes behind the emergence and growth of terror groups. The Global Terrorism Index in March said 18 countries on the continent are affected by terrorism. In light of this trend, the African Union hosted a summit on terrorism late last month.
Key questions about ‘coup epidemic’ in Africa
By Solomon A Dersso The recent spate of coups on the continent has triggered several questions, including whether we are witnessing a return of coups, what explains the coups and what to make of their apparent popular support. This piece offers some insight. What evidence is there of a resurgence of coups? Story continues below Advertisement It is the first time that the AU has suspended four countries for unconstitutional changes of government.
Brace yourselves for a new Cold War
Africa is again becoming the stage for the proxy wars of foreign powers. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) During the last Cold War, African countries were trapped in the middle, forced to choose sides as the USs and the Soviet Union sought to expand their respective spheres of influence. When it ended, Africa was largely left to its own devices; to “fend for itself ”, in the words of the late Kofi Annan. This was no bad thing.
Brace yourself for a new Cold War
By Solomon A Dersso During the last Cold War, African nations were trapped in the middle, forced to choose sides as the United States and the Soviet Union sought to expand their respective spheres of influence. When it ended, Africa was largely left to its own devices; to “fend for itself”, in the words of the late Kofi Annan. This was no bad thing. The world’s indifference gave African actors the space to assume increasing responsibility for the affairs of the continent.
Coups are always a bad idea – even the popular ones - The Mail & Guardian Original
One more time: Malian soldiers arrive in Bamako after rebel troops seized power in the fragile West African country. (Photo by STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images) The coup d’état in Guinea earlier this month was just the latest manifestation of a worrying trend: an increase in the frequency of military coups in Africa. In 2019, there was one successful seizure of power (Sudan), and another one in 2020 (Mali). So far in 2021 there have been three: Chad, Mali again, and Guinea.
Evaluating the African Charter, 40 years on
Forty years after its adoption Africa is nowhere near achieving the promises of the African Charter. (Ziyange Auntony/AFP) The month of June marks the 40th anniversary of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Although many of its promises have been honored by breach rather than compliance, the African Charter came into being as an embodiment of African States’ conviction of “their duty to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights and freedoms”.
African Union wants vaccine patent waiver
Playing safe: Multiple hand-washing basins at the Mushin Market in Lagos were installed by a pharmaceutical company to help prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. (Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP) COMMENT It may not have been a leading headline, but one notable aspect of the 34th summit of the African Union (AU) assembly, held from 6-7 February, was its focus on the response to Covid-19.
African Voices, African Arguments Podcast, Episode 5: Campaigning Against Corruption: A Discussion with Hennie Van Vuuren
Debating Ideas is a new section that aims to reflect the values and editorial ethos of the African Arguments book series, publishing engaged, often radical, scholarship, original and activist writing from within the African continent and beyond. It will offer debates and engagements, contexts and controversies, and reviews and responses flowing from the African Arguments books.
We need an outpouring of outrage about Africans killed by security forces
COMMENT The brutal death of George Floyd, an African-American, at the hands of police in the United States, triggered the African Union Commission (AUC) to issue an extraordinary statement.
Ethiopia: Analysis - of the Legal Status of Ethiopia's #covid19 Measures
analysis By Solomon A. Dersso Indications are emerging that Ethiopia is heading for a full lockdown. To be more accurate, the Federal Government seems poised to bring the measures it adopted against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) to the level of the governments of the Federal Units. This would mean some form of lockdown. The indications can be gathered from some of the announcements of government institutions.
In the face of the pandemic, human rights are a necessity — not a luxury - The Mail & Guardian
South Sudan's international airport has implemented more rigorous health screenings after the World Health Organisation declared the novel coronavirus a global health emergency on January 30, 2020. (Photo by Alex McBride/AFP) COMMENT The Covid-19 pandemic that is spreading across the world is, of course, a public health emergency. But it is also, at its core, a human and peoples’ rights issue.
To really silence the guns, the AU’s resolve must be stronger
The year 2020 is the culmination of one of the flagship projects of the African Union’s Agenda 2063: silencing the guns in Africa. (Johannes Eisele/AFP) The year 2020 is the culmination of one of the flagship projects of the African Union’s Agenda 2063: silencing the guns in Africa. This is also the AU’s chosen theme for this year. Yet, the security situation on the continent has become bleaker at the start of 2020 than it was two to three years ago.
AU pushes the frontiers of transitional justice
Former Constitutional Court justice Albie Sachs made a compelling case for the African conception of restorative justice as an important contribution that we, as Africans, can make to the world. (Clive Mason/Getty Images).
Ethiopia: After a Bloody Saturday of 22 June Ethiopia Needs a New National Consensus, Urgently
analysis By Solomon A. Dersso Addis Abeba — Like millions of my fellow country women and men, I am shocked and saddened by the events of Ethiopia's bloody Saturday. Yes, the killings that took place in Bahir Dar and Addis Abeba are outrageous and tragic on their own. As we mourn those killed and condemn these atrocious acts, we need to mobilize our emotions, if only for the memory of those killed, for changing the condition that has made these acts possible.
Ethiopia: Pursuing Transitional Justice and Reconciliation in Ethiopia's Hybrid Transition
opinion By Solomon A Dersso, PhD Addressing the topic of transitional justice and reconciliation in today's Ethiopia is perhaps one of, if not, the most difficult one. Transitions, which are characterized by political and institutional fluidity and societal polarization, by their very nature, are complicated and challenging. They as such make justice and reconciliation unavoidably problematic.
Photo of the Week: Hitching a ride in Liberia - African Arguments
On the road to Liberia‘s capital Monrovia, a boy wearing a pink motorcycle helmet scrambles to get on a truck as it pulls back onto the dirt road after bananas were loaded on the truck. The photo was taken by Bruce Strong as part of Together Liberia, a platform for media development and Liberian storytellers using text, audio and visual media. Find out more here.
Africa’s challenge | Opinion | thenews.com.pk
On November 16, the signatories to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court will come together for the 15th session of the Assembly of States Parties, and for the first time they’ll have to face defections. In a matter of weeks three states withdrew from the ICC after being signatories to the Rome Statute for more than a decade. On October 12, Burundi’s parliament adopted with an overwhelming vote a law on the withdrawal of the country from the Rome Statute.
Africa's challenge to the ICC
The scrutiny of the three African withdrawals from the ICC should not be reduced to accusations of seeking impunity. On November 16, the signatories to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court will come together for the 15th session of the Assembly of States Parties, and for the first time they'll have to face defections. In a matter of weeks three states withdrew from the ICC after being signatories to the Rome Statute for more than a decade.
Africa | Daily Maverick
As the African Union gathers for its 27th summit in Kigali in July, the agenda is likely to be dominated by the race to elect a new chair of the African Union Commission. Yet much of the anticipation is around whether the election will be held and any of the candidates will receive the required vote to win. By SOLOMON A. DERSSO.
Zambia: Ahead of August’s election, is the fix already in?
Earlier this month, a Zambian news outlet released what it claimed was the ruling party’s top-secret strategy to steal the presidential election scheduled for August this year. While the document itself has yet to be verified, there is no doubt that the strategy is already being implemented, almost to the letter. The fix appears to be in. By SIMON ALLISON.
While you were sleeping: 28 June 2016
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Nkandla, The Finale: Treasury sets ‘reasonable’ R7.8m for Zuma to pay back The end of the Nkandla affair is in sight. In line with the Constitutional Court judgment that found the Public Protector’s report on Nkandla was binding, National Treasury determined a “reasonable percentage” of the non-security upgrades that President Jacob Zuma has to pay back to the state. After an extensive process, they set this amount at R7.8-million, which the Constitutional Court must now approve.
By Ranjeni Munusamy Verified, Richard Poplak Verified, Simon Allison Verified, Antoinette Muller Verified, Solomon A. Dersso
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Daily Maverick
Verified
Op-ed: Expropriation Bill - a step forward?
Sunday 19 June marked the 103rd anniversary of the Natives Land Act; legislation that precipitated the widespread dispossession and forced relocation of black South Africans. Awaiting signature on President Zuma’s desk is the Expropriation Bill, the latest law designed to address that painful legacy. Whether he endorses it or not will say a great deal about how he perceives rural South Africa. By NICK BRANSON.
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