ISS, Institute for Security Studies
Industrial-scale meth production poses new security risks for Nigeria
3rd June 2026 Southwestern Nigeria has largely been spared major security threats – now it faces a troubling convergence of drugs and terror. Nigeria’s National... →
Can South Africa afford to keep Starlink out?
2nd June 2026 Achieving the country’s ambitious goal of 100% broadband access by 2030 could require a trade-off between politics and connectivity. Starlink – the... →
Why military gains are not weakening the ADF in eastern DRC
1st June 2026 The ADF’s resilience stems from kidnapping economies, forced recruitment and governance failures that military operations cannot address alone.... →
The Gambia’s first Special Prosecutor: a non-Gambian?
29th May 2026 To achieve justice and reconciliation, the Special Prosecutor must ensure that accountability appears neither distant nor external to victims. On 9... →
Crackdown on Chad’s opposition threatens a return to one-party rule
28th May 2026 Rather than learning from Chad’s history of coups and deadly conflicts, current leaders seem determined to repeat the cycle. Just two weeks after... →
Will the US-Nigeria targeting of ISWAP’s deputy weaken terrorism?
27th May 2026 International and local experience shows that targeted leader killings tend to have more symbolic than practical impact. The joint Nigerian-United... →
Guinea’s May elections end its transition – but will they bring stability?
26th May 2026 Although authorities adhered to the ECOWAS timeline, Guinea’s return to democracy is mired in controversy. On 31 May, 6.8-million citizens will... →
Dear Mr President: to succeed, SA needs an excellent social development minister
25th May 2026 The department can no longer be treated as peripheral – its new minister must have empathy and a deep knowledge of social welfare. Dear President... →
Economic hardship drives Kenyans onto Russia’s brutal frontline
21st May 2026 High youth unemployment exposes young Kenyans, like thousands across Africa, to exploitation and false promises of lucrative jobs abroad. Kenya has... →
More instability for Somalia as another election deadline lapses
20th May 2026 Only a gradual consensus-based process can reconcile Somalia’s competing political systems and avert repeated election crises. When Somalia’s... →
US-Africa migrant deals ramp up as government transparency fails
20th May 2026 More secretive deals to accept deported third-country migrants from the US degrade democracy and don’t serve African countries. Throughout 2026... →
Somali piracy returns: a warning from the Western Indian Ocean
18th May 2026 Joint naval patrols are stretched thin by the Middle East crisis, but their ability to eradicate piracy was always limited. Piracy has re-emerged... →
Ruto and Macron sing a duet in Nairobi
18th May 2026 Did France’s first Africa summit outside the Francophonie reset its relations with the continent? For two decades, Paris has seemingly been trying... →
How the Iran war could derail Somalia’s fragile recovery
14th May 2026 Somalia faces more than spillover effects – these shocks are pushing the country’s long-term recovery further out of reach. The United... →
Can civilians fill the peacekeeping gap in eastern DRC?
12th May 2026 If formally recognised, unarmed civilian protection and community-based early warning can offer a path to sustaining stability and security amid... →
The optics, interests and limits of China’s tariff offer to Africa
11th May 2026 Without a collective approach from African states, China’s tariff-free market access will not be the silver bullet many expect. China’s decision to... →
Is Namibia's Nandi-Ndaitwah matching her anti-corruption rhetoric with action?
8th May 2026 The president has fired ministers and condemned graft as treason – yet the system enabling it remains intact. Namibian President Netumbo... →
With SAPS under scrutiny, what should SA interim police chief prioritise?
7th May 2026 Puleng Dimpane may only have a short time available, but she can still do things that strengthen the South African Police Service. On 23 April,... →
African champions chart the way on the Global Compact for Migration
5th May 2026 Seventeen African nations are pioneering global migration management, but will others follow their lead? Over 80% of people migrating in Africa... →
South Africa's road rage problem goes deeper than bad drivers
4th May 2026 Accumulated stress, inequality and normalised violence find expression on the road – and a firearm can turn misperception fatal. The fatal... →
Cape rerouting exposes South Africa’s maritime blind spots
29th April 2026 More ships are rounding the Cape, but ports, policy and strategy are not yet built to turn the surge into lasting gain. Rerouting around the Cape... →
The Hormuz chokepoint is threatening Africa's food supply
29th April 2026 Fertiliser disruption exposes a blind spot that farm-level policy has long ignored – but Africa holds the resources to fix it. Africa’s next food... →
Internet shutdowns won’t solve Central Africa’s political crises
28th April 2026 Silencing the internet during unrest buys governments time but corrodes the trust and economic foundations that stability requires. In Gabon,... →
Spat with Trump distracts from Pope Leo’s Africa tour
28th April 2026 The Pope used his Africa debut to address broader global issues – but left many local questions unanswered. Pope Leo XIVth’s 10-day African tour,... →
Niger-Benin: a narrow window for diplomatic reset
23rd April 2026 The political transition in Cotonou opens a window for regional de-escalation that the African Union should seize. Romuald Wadagni’s election as... →
A quiet US-AU deal that could reshape investment in Africa
22nd April 2026 The Trump administration and the AU have started a bold journey that could ‘flip the script’ on decades of development cooperation. The United... →
Why minerals-for-security deals won’t save the DRC
22nd April 2026 Resource bartering doesn’t deliver stability – it perpetuates institutional fragility and rarely builds public trust and legitimacy in African... →
Counter-terrorism lessons to avoid a Lake Chad Basin scenario in Borgu-Kainji
20th April 2026 Reactive counter-terrorism posture risks entrenching armed groups in a new corridor linking northwest to southwest Nigeria. Mass killings,... →
The Chagos conundrum – a high-stakes game of brinkmanship
16th April 2026 The Iran war has upended the process of transferring the archipelago’s sovereignty from the UK to Mauritius. The Chagos Archipelago has been in the... →
Justice in Sudan cannot wait for the war to end
15th April 2026 Planning a comprehensive, nationally grounded transitional justice process for Sudan must start sooner rather than later. Today, 15 April, Sudan... →
Digital radicalisation in Senegal: early warning of an evolving terror threat
15th April 2026 As the risk of jihadist influence grows in southeastern Senegal, the digital dimension must be integrated into terrorism prevention strategies. On... →
Africa and the Middle East crisis: better prepared, but not insulated
14th April 2026 The timing couldn’t be worse for a continent just beginning to recover from two recent global shocks. Africa is again staring down the barrel of an... →
Ruto bumps Ramaphosa from France’s G7 – or does he?
13th April 2026 US President Donald Trump had threatened to boycott the G7 summit if South Africa’s president attended. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa... →
Can the UN’s transatlantic slavery decision deliver meaningful reparations?
10th April 2026 The UN General Assembly’s landmark resolution is likely to be stymied by a world divided on how to right past wrongs. A Ghana-led resolution... →
Local election watch: SA’s future is tied to the health of its cities
8th April 2026 Municipal elections will decide whether cities are engines of growth or hotspots of failed governance and unemployment. South Africa’s upcoming... →
Macky Sall’s failed UN bid: a stress test for the African Union?
7th April 2026 Rather than indicating disunity, the outcome shows that the AU upheld its procedures for endorsing candidates to international positions. A draft... →
Breaking the code of silence is key to confronting SA police corruption
2nd April 2026 Fear of retribution and a leadership that does not prioritise police integrity discourage officers from reporting corrupt colleagues. Members of... →
Lessons from Rwanda’s threat to withdraw from Cabo Delgado
2nd April 2026 Kigali’s threat to remove its security forces exposes the limits of Mozambique’s fragile, natural resource-driven security strategy. Senior Rwandan... →
Race against time to stabilise South Sudan as elections loom
30th March 2026 With the window for holding meaningful elections fast closing, can the three initiatives underway deliver more than previous efforts? The December... →
Can the Iran war shift the dial on climate action?
30th March 2026 The war’s impact on Africa will be profound – but lessons learnt could spur a rapid energy transition to a more peaceful continent. The world is... →
Upstreaming offers SA a smarter response to organised crime and corruption
26th March 2026 As justice systems worldwide grapple with tech-driven financial crime, disruption and early intervention are becoming vital prevention tools. South... →
