This Week’s Essentials
‘Literature Is One of Our Most Powerful Archival Machines’
For the co-founder and publishing director, of Cassava Republic Press, which marks its 20th anniversary this year, Bibi Bakare-Yusuf, it is telling that African literature is often pronounced dead in recent years, when more women and queer voices are becoming more prominent: ‘The loudest obituary writers about African literature tend to be men. These elegies seem to come from a tacit sense of personal or generational displacement rather than from the actual state of the field.’
Podcast
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Osaze Amadasun’s ‘Ladi Kwali’
Visual artist and graphic designer, Osaze Amadasun, reimagines Ladi Kwali, reclaiming the full legacy of a cultural icon beyond her portrait on the 20 naira note.
The True Source of Ladi Kwali's Genius
For decades, the potter on Nigeria’s twenty-naira note was considered the product of British colonial art instruction, but this viewpoint denied a crucial truth: that Ladi Kwali’s art came from a Gbagyi worldview in which clay, labour and the female body were sacred, inseparable and hers alone.
How Nigerian Universities Became Centres of Islamic Radicalism
The religious extremism that fuels insecurity in Nigeria today did not begin only in terrorist camps; it also developed, quietly, within Nigerian universities.
The Last Days of Abuja’s City of Metal
For decades, Apo Mechanic Village has kept Abuja’s cars running. Now, as demolition looms again, the mechanics and traders who built the Abuja’s informal engine confront another uncertain future.
Kidnapped From the House of God
What began as a Tuesday evening service at Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Kwara State, turned into a live-streamed kidnapping that dragged 38 worshippers into the forest and left three people dead. Nearly 40 days after the bandit attack, Pelumi Salako visits Eruku to speak with survivors.
The Bombing That Changed Abuja Forever
In 2011, a Boko Haram bombing at the United Nations House in Abuja claimed the lives of 26 people. The incident changed Nigeria’s capital city and the lives of its residents forever.
Osaze Amadasun’s ‘Ladi Kwali’
Visual artist and graphic designer, Osaze Amadasun, reimagines Ladi Kwali, reclaiming the full legacy of a cultural icon beyond her portrait on the 20 naira note.
The True Source of Ladi Kwali's Genius
For decades, the potter on Nigeria’s twenty-naira note was considered the product of British colonial art instruction, but this viewpoint denied a crucial truth: that Ladi Kwali’s art came from a Gbagyi worldview in which clay, labour and the female body were sacred, inseparable and hers alone.
How Nigerian Universities Became Centres of Islamic Radicalism
The religious extremism that fuels insecurity in Nigeria today did not begin only in terrorist camps; it also developed, quietly, within Nigerian universities.
The Last Days of Abuja’s City of Metal
For decades, Apo Mechanic Village has kept Abuja’s cars running. Now, as demolition looms again, the mechanics and traders who built the Abuja’s informal engine confront another uncertain future.
Kidnapped From the House of God
What began as a Tuesday evening service at Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Kwara State, turned into a live-streamed kidnapping that dragged 38 worshippers into the forest and left three people dead. Nearly 40 days after the bandit attack, Pelumi Salako visits Eruku to speak with survivors.
The Bombing That Changed Abuja Forever
In 2011, a Boko Haram bombing at the United Nations House in Abuja claimed the lives of 26 people. The incident changed Nigeria’s capital city and the lives of its residents forever.
Explore by Topic
Why a Pardon Is Not Justice for Ken Saro-Wiwa
Last year, when Nigeria announced a posthumous pardon for Ken Saro-Wiwa and twelve other Ogonis, it was framed as a gesture of closure. Noo Saro-Wiwa does not see it that way. In this conversation, she explains why a pardon, without exoneration, cannot undo the violence of the past or resolve the political struggle her father left behind.
How African Women Are Fighting Climate Capitalism Today
Africa’s Role in the Future of Artificial Intelligence
Who Will Own and Control Africa’s AI Energy Future?
The Bushmeat System, Hunting and the Conflict of Ethics
The Human Cost of Lagos Demolitions
Why a Pardon Is Not Justice for Ken Saro-Wiwa
Last year, when Nigeria announced a posthumous pardon for Ken Saro-Wiwa and twelve other Ogonis, it was framed as a gesture of closure. Noo Saro-Wiwa does not see it that way. In this conversation, she explains why a pardon, without exoneration, cannot undo the violence of the past or resolve the political struggle her father left behind.
How African Women Are Fighting Climate Capitalism Today
Africa’s Role in the Future of Artificial Intelligence
Who Will Own and Control Africa’s AI Energy Future?
The Bushmeat System, Hunting and the Conflict of Ethics
