Stories about Sub-Saharan Africa
Unfreedom Monitor Report: Sudan
Advox research into digital authoritarianism in Sudan is now in a report. Read an excerpt and download the full pdf.
How the government in Sudan legalized internet categorizing and content filtering
One regulation obliges telcos to block and filter a list of URLs, and to “daily monitor” the filtering equipment to verify that it is being updated
Umasoye: A language activist who uses technology to make learning Ekpeye fun
Umasoye is a digital language activist from Nigeria that is using media tools to make the preservation and teaching of the Ekpeye language fun and engaging for younger generations.
Why has Swahili not become Africa’s unifying language?
Despite all of these countries' strong intentions to make Kiswahili their motherland's lingua franca, geo-political differences and foreign influence remain as some of the obstacles that jeopardize its success.
Exploring Nigeria’s Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Arts
The Pan-Atlantic University, Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Arts — Nigeria's first university museum — by hosting the ‘Invisible Hands’ exhibition, provided a counter-narrative to the historical erasure of Nigerian women artists.
World Cup theme songs through the ages
World Cup Theme Songs: A Sneak Peek into the Past to the Present
Nigeria deteriorates into a perilously insecure nation
Armed banditry, Jihadist terrorism, kidnappings, and sports-related violence all impact the safety and livelihoods of citizens across the country.
Meet the Kenyan women trailblazing tennis and rally driving in Africa
While Kenya is best known for its amazing runners, these young Kenyan athletes are scoring major victories in non-traditional sports
Nigeria’s Lagos gangs terrorize citizens, extort transport workers, and wreak havoc
Area boys (agbèrò) make life hellish for Lagosians. They tax cab drivers, peddle illicit drugs, collide with politicians as thugs and make life insecure with their numerous gang fights.
The Gambia's former spy chief sentenced to death for murder of political activist
Ebrima Solo Sandeng, an opposition youth leader, was arrested in 2015 after calling for political reforms. Sandeng was tortured to death while in custody.
Zé Du, Angolan president who was in power for 38 years, dies in Spain
José Eduardo dos Santos was head of state between 1979 and 2017, having served one of the longest presidential terms in the world.
The ‘Ikorodu Bois’ demonstrate how digital platforms are amplifying Nigerian movies worldwide
With sparse equipment and digital tools, the ‘Ikorodu Bois’ crew created sensational and hilarious mimicry of Hollywood and Nollywood movies that has become a global social media sensation.
Access the Unfreedom Monitor database
The Unfreedom Monitor is an Advox initiative to deepen our understanding of the relationship between technology and authoritarian power. In the first phase of this project, researchers working in 11 countries and four key themes conducted analysis of incidents, narratives, and media items, to explain acts of digital authoritarianism and...
How Nigeria confronts the persistent practice of Female Genital Mutilation: An interview with Dr. Chris Ugwu
FGM causes excruciating pains, infections, excessive bleeding, urinary incontinence, complications in childbirth, trauma, and even death. The highest FGM prevalence rates are found in southwest and southeast Nigeria.
The Gambia launches digital immunization registry
This novel intervention employed a novel hybrid paper-digital solution that collects, shares, stores and distributes data for the Expanded Programme for Immunisation (EPI) using Smart Paper Technology.
What the world needs now: A new deal in a reformed global economic system
"The prosperous East Asian nations (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong, and China at the lower income margins) have been the greatest assets for growth of the world system for some time now."
Celebrating the Kenyan poet, Grandmaster Masese who preserved the Abagusii culture through poetry and song
Grandmaster Masese's eponymous album released in December 2021 on Digital, CD, and Vinyl, is the first LP album of Obokano music to be produced since 1972.
Nigerian highlife music scene gets a makeover by two brother duos
Umu Obiligbo maintained the original Igbo highlife style, while the Cavemen have modernized it. Both groups have transformed highlife with an originality that resonates with young people.
Undertones: Is there a perversion of decolonial narratives in Mali?
With the military junta and Russia's increasing presence in the region, Mali is undergoing an information warfare
Illegal timber trade persists in The Gambia's Upper River Region
A large number of trees were illicitly felled in Kundam, a village in Tumana District in the Upper River Region, by 'unknown culprits' allegedly working with forestry officials, who denied the claim.
How Flavour and Phyno pioneered the revival of Nigeria's Igbo highlife music
Flavour revolutionized highlife by adapting it for dancing in nightclubs and parties. Phyno successfully fused hip-hop and pop into highlife with such finesse.
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