East Africa

Lifting of US Sanctions on Sudan Seen as Positive Step Toward Re-engagement

The United States’ decision to lift the sanctions on Sudan, citing progress made on counterterrorism and humanitarian efforts, indicates Washington’s understanding that cooperation with Khartoum will best serve the interests of both countries, according to an Atlantic Council analyst. “This decision reflects the conviction that engagement, rather than isolation, is more likely to advance US […]

Germany’s compact with Africa

By Xaviera Gitau

Over the past three years, as thousands of refugees drowned off Europe’s coasts, Germany’s open-door policy towards asylum seekers propelled the country to a position of global humanitarian leadership, and turned its chancellor, Angela Merkel, into a global icon for human rights advocates. As of 2016, the nation of 82.5 million absorbed 890,000 refugees, and […]

What South Sudan’s war means for northern Uganda’s “relative peace”

By Kyra Fox

Ten years after the guns of the three-decade-long Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) insurgency went silent, northern Uganda’s local leaders are concerned that the deadly war raging across the South Sudanese border could disturb the fragile region. As Uganda’s poorest region, the north is hardly unused to conflict. Decades of economic and political marginalization dating back […]

The Kenyan Elections: Too Soon to Relax

By Bronwyn Bruton

Though incumbent Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has won the 2017 presidential election, the country remains on edge due to allegations of voter fraud by his opponent, Raila Odinga, which could plunge the country into post-election violence. In 2007, a horrific spasm of post-election violence swept across Kenya when Odinga, who has made four bids for […]

Kenya’s Fake News Problem

By Kelsey Lilley

Fake news has reared its ugly head in elections again—this time in Kenya. As East Africa’s most tech-savvy country went to the polls on August 8, its citizens were inundated with fake news that colored the campaign season and now threatens hard-won gains to prevent post-election violence. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and his primary challenger, […]