When the Nigeria–São Tomé and Príncipe Joint Development Zone (JDZ) was established in 2001, it was expected to become a profitable offshore oil-producing area. But nearly 25 years later, the project has proven to largely be a white elephant.
OUR BEST WRITING OF 2023
Every year, The Republic publishes the most ambitious writing focused on Africa, from news and analysis to long-form features.
Support our award-winning coverage by subscribing today.
Read our best writing of 2023.
vol. 9, no. 2
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP?
Our latest issue, Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?, focuses on Africa’s place in the era of multipolarity amid Trump-led anti-globalization.
Purchase an annual print + digital subscription, and get unlimited access to The Republic. We ship worldwide.
Every year, The Republic publishes the most ambitious writing focused on Africa, from news and analysis to long-form features.
Support our award-winning coverage by subscribing today.
Our print + digital subscription is 50% off.
vol. 9, no. 2
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP?
Our latest issue, Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?, focuses on Africa’s place in the era of multipolarity amid Trump-led anti-globalization.
Purchase an annual print + digital subscription, and get unlimited access to The Republic. We ship worldwide.
This Week’s Essentials
Our top analyses, debates, ideas and stories of the week.
HEADLINE STORY / THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS
HEADLINE STORY / THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS
- WINNIE RUGUTT
- FRIDAH NJOKI
- February 9, 2025
As domestic unrest in Kenya grows, President William Ruto’s carefully crafted global image is unravelling. Internal discontent is eroding Ruto’s international standing, which can potentially damage Kenya’s position as a regional sanctuary.
THE MINISTRY OF ARTS / BOOKS DEPT.
Grief Is the Hiding Place of Love
With Grief’s First Kiss is an Avalanche, Wendy Okeke joins a solid line of Nigerian authors who have explored grief in their literature, examining the deep affinities between love and loss without putting one over the other.
THE MINISTRY OF BUSINESS X THE ECONOMY
Who Benefits From Nigeria’s Detty December?
The beginning of the second half of the year signals plans for Lagos’ glitzy Detty December, a seasonal spectacle that generates short-term profits for a privileged few while deepening inequality, fuelling inflation and missing opportunities for sustainable and inclusive economic growth.
THE MINISTRY OF CLIMATE CHANGE X THE ENVIRONMENT
Africa’s Climate Future in a Fragmented Multipolar World
Africa’s ability to shape its climate future in a multipolar world depends on deepening feminist, decolonial and intersectional approaches to foreign policy, development cooperation and justice.
THE MINISTRY OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS / FIRST DRAFT INTERVIEWS
‘Read With Curiosity, Not Conclusion’ Ama Asantewa Diaka’s First Draft
With her latest short story collection, Ghanaian poet and author of Someone Birthed Them Broken, Ama Asantewa Diaka, set out to document the lives of contemporary youth in Ghana: ‘I wanted to create something that future youths could look back on—something they could hold up against their own lives and say, “This is where we came from. This is what it was like.”’
THE MINISTRY OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS
The Human Cost of Lagos Demolitions
When the government demolishes the building you live in, your property is not the only thing you lose. You also lose your self.
THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
- Taibat Lawanson
- DEJI AKINPELU
- February 9, 2025
The smell of Lagos is far more than a sensory inconvenience; it is a symptom of deeper urban management gaps, waste management inefficiencies, inconsistent policies and citizen irresponsibility. A comprehensive and inclusive approach to waste management is the only way to transform the city into a cleaner, healthier environment for all its residents.
THE MINISTRY OF GENDER X SEXUALITY
The Indigenous Queer Vision for a Decolonial West Africa
As ECOWAS celebrates its 50th anniversary, it has an opportunity to redefine its vision for the future. A decolonized West Africa must be one where all individuals—regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity—can live with dignity and freedom.
THE MINISTRY OF MEMORIES
Nok and Africa’s Disregard for Prehistory
African societies have, over centuries, had to deal with a cleavage of their present from their pasts by foreign powers. In the face of such cultural imperialism, how invested are their leaders in reclaiming Africa’s plundered historical heritage?
THE MINISTRY OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS
Togo’s Fifth Republic Is Here—But at What Cost?
Long-standing fatigue with eroding civil liberties and authoritarianism in Togo has culminated in an outbreak of youth-led protests following constitutional changes ushering in Togo’s Fifth Republic. Is the creaking Gnassingbé dynasty finally under threat?
THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE X TECHNOLOGY
Can Nigeria’s Tech Sector Drive Inclusive Growth?
As Nigeria embraces its digital future, inclusion—not just innovation—must lead. Can this transformation reach all Nigerians or just the privileged few?
THE MINISTRY OF SECURITY
Restrategizing Northern Nigerian Security Beyond Border Fences
Nigeria’s worsening insecurity cannot be curtailed by border fences alone, as suggested by the chief of defence staff, but by the government investing in border communities, strengthening local infrastructure and deepening cross-border cooperation with neighbouring countries.
THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS
Africa’s Opportunity in the Trumpian Age of American Transactionalism
Amid Trump’s disruptive return, Africa isn’t just reacting—it’s recalibrating. The continent has the opportunity to turn Washington’s unpredictability into a strategic advantage.
THE REPUBLIC RECOMMENDS
5 Books That Read Like Tales by Moonlight
From the story of a troubled treasure hunter to that of a spirit child who chooses to remain in a crumbling world rather than escape to bliss of eternity, the books in this collection will cast a spell on you just like any tale by moonlight.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
On Meeting Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o
Sarah Ladipo Manyika reflects on her relationship with Kenyan literary giant, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, and coming to terms with the complexities of his life.
ANNOUNCEMENT DESK
Become One of The Republic’s Founding Advertisers
For the first time since we officially launched in 2018, The Republic is opening up its platform to advertisers. But we’re not doing it the usual way.
ANNOUNCEMENT DESK
Black Atlantic Editorial Fellowship Call for Applications
The Republic is pleased to announce the Black Atlantic Editorial Fellowship, a six-month fellowship programme designed towards the commissioning, writing and curation of stories rooted in Blackness and the African experience.
#TRUMPIANAGE
Africa’s Opportunity in the Trumpian Age of American Transactionalism
Amid Trump’s disruptive return, Africa isn’t just reacting—it’s recalibrating. The continent has the opportunity to turn Washington’s unpredictability into a strategic advantage.
Grief Is the Hiding Place of Love
With Grief’s First Kiss is an Avalanche, Wendy Okeke joins a solid line of Nigerian authors who have explored grief in their literature, examining the deep affinities between love and...
Who Benefits From Nigeria’s Detty December?
The beginning of the second half of the year signals plans for Lagos’ glitzy Detty December, a seasonal spectacle that generates short-term profits for a privileged few while deepening inequality,...
Restrategizing Northern Nigerian Security Beyond Border Fences
Nigeria’s worsening insecurity cannot be curtailed by border fences alone, as suggested by the chief of defence staff, but by the government investing in border communities, strengthening local infrastructure and...
Togo’s Fifth Republic Is Here—But at What Cost?
Long-standing fatigue with eroding civil liberties and authoritarianism in Togo has culminated in an outbreak of youth-led protests following constitutional changes ushering in Togo’s Fifth Republic. Is the creaking Gnassingbé...
THE LATEST IN PRINT
VOL. 9, NO. 2
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP?
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP?
Now Available: Our May – July 2025 Print Issue
Featuring:
Republic editor, Wale Lawal, in conversation with celebrated artist, Sokari Douglas Camp; our first fiction stories selected and edited by writer Chigozie Obioma; Abel B. S. Gaiya on African cooperation in the age of anti-globalization; Chido Nyaruwata on Africa’s climate future; Andrea Ngombet on Africa’s opportunity in the Trumpian age; Blessing Simura on the politics of foreign aid; Eberechukwu Ezike on the uncertainty of the AfCFTA, Maggie LoWilla on activist and politician, Naledi Pandor; art, comics, quizzes and much more!
THE LATEST IN PRINT
VOL. 9, NO. 2
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP
WHO DEY FEAR DONALD TRUMP
Now Available: Our May – July 2025 Print Issue
Featuring:
Republic editor, Wale Lawal, in conversation with celebrated artist, Sokari Douglas Camp; our first fiction stories selected and edited by writer Chigozie Obioma; Abel B. S. Gaiya on African cooperation in the age of anti-globalization; Chido Nyaruwata on Africa’s climate future; Andrea Ngombet on Africa’s opportunity in the Trumpian age; Blessing Simura on the politics of foreign aid; Eberechukwu Ezike on the uncertainty of the AfCFTA, Maggie LoWilla on activist and politician, Naledi Pandor; art, comics, quizzes and much more!
vol.8 no.1 / EDITOR'S FOREWORD
‘An African Feminist Manifesto’
For whom is the transformative potential of feminism new? Our latest issue, An African Feminist Manifesto, considers the imperatives for Black African feminism(s) in our uniquely uncertain times, plus more.
COVER ESSAY
Queer People Today, You Tomorrow
Every Nigerian is one state decision away from becoming ‘unworthy’ subjects. Yet many Nigerians celebrate when the state punishes queer people not realizing that what is being witnessed is the state testing and perfecting its technologies of removal.
THE MINISTRY OF ARTs / PHOTO DEPT.
The Disruptive Potential of Frida Orupabo’s Metamorphic Women
To encounter a body in collage is to momentarily believe the human form is physically and even gesturally incapable of coming up against its own limitations. Frida Orupabo’s collages do this so well. They haunt the viewer with fond, familiar and unexpected shapes.
THE MINISTRY OF MEMORIES
A Womanist Reading of African Women in Abrahamic Tradition
Though the presence of Abrahamic tradition within global Black consciousness often finds expression through male-dominated narratives, a closer examination uncovers Black women at the very centres of the most path-altering moments in the tradition, offering analogues with which Black women have interpreted, reimagined and reclaimed their past, present, and future.
THE MINISTRY OF ARTs / BOOKS DEPT.
50 Years of Buchi Emecheta’s Second-Class Citizen
In 1974, Buchi Emecheta’s novel, Second-Class Citizen, was published. While this novel has inspired a generation of African writers, the themes Emecheta explored—such as Black immigrant life in the UK and the ills of a patriarchal society—remain as relevant today as ever.
Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?
Our latest issue, Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?, assesses Africa’s global positioning in the new Trumpian era of multipolarity.
continue reading
We get it. Sometimes the headline stories are just not enough.
ARTS & CULTURE
Grief Is the Hiding Place of Love
With Grief’s First Kiss is an Avalanche, Wendy Okeke joins a solid line of Nigerian authors who have explored grief in their literature, examining the deep affinities between love and...
‘Read With Curiosity, Not Conclusion’ Ama Asantewa Diaka’s First Draft
With her latest short story collection, Ghanaian poet and author of Someone Birthed Them Broken, Ama Asantewa Diaka, set out to document the lives of contemporary youth in Ghana: ‘I...
5 Books That Read Like Tales by Moonlight
From the story of a troubled treasure hunter to that of a spirit child who chooses to remain in a crumbling world rather than escape to bliss of eternity, the...
On Meeting Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o
Sarah Ladipo Manyika reflects on her relationship with Kenyan literary giant, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, and coming to terms with the complexities of his life.
ADVERTISEMENT
BUSINESS & THE ECONOMY
Who Benefits From Nigeria’s Detty December?
The beginning of the second half of the year signals plans for Lagos’ glitzy Detty December, a seasonal spectacle that generates short-term profits for a privileged few while deepening inequality,...
Nigeria Was Once the World’s Largest Palm Oil Producer—What Happened?
Nigeria is the fifth largest producer of palm oil in the world although it used to be number one. Despite being a major producer, its population relies on imported palm...
Financial (Dis)Integration Within ECOWAS
For 50 years, West Africa has struggled to establish financial integration. The East Africa community offers a compelling success story that West Africa can emulate.
The Economic Uncertainties of the AfCFTA Amidst Regional Conflict
The AfCFTA’s potential to transform intra-African trade risks being undermined by the volatility created by instability in the Sahel and Great Lakes regions.
HISTORY
Nok and Africa’s Disregard for Prehistory
African societies have, over centuries, had to deal with a cleavage of their present from their pasts by foreign powers. In the face of such cultural imperialism, how invested are...
The Timeless Solutions of the Gadaa System
The Gadaa system of the Oromo people of Kenya and Ethiopia offers an indigenous method of governance in Africa, as the adopted Western democracy seems to be failing the continent.
From Kongo Kings to Cross-Congo Conflicts
The world’s closest capital cities—Kinshasa and Brazzaville—sit within two modern-day states, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, that once reigned as a united Kongo...
10 Books That Belong on Your Reading List This Women’s History Month
To celebrate Women’s History Month, Nigerian writer and editor, Angel Nduka-Nwosu, compiles a list of books by Black women that belong on your reading list this month and beyond. These...
Shop The Republic
-
₦2,500.00
-
₦2,500.00
-
₦2,500.00
POLITICS
Restrategizing Northern Nigerian Security Beyond Border Fences
Nigeria’s worsening insecurity cannot be curtailed by border fences alone, as suggested by the chief of defence staff, but by the government investing in border communities, strengthening local infrastructure and...
Togo’s Fifth Republic Is Here—But at What Cost?
Long-standing fatigue with eroding civil liberties and authoritarianism in Togo has culminated in an outbreak of youth-led protests following constitutional changes ushering in Togo’s Fifth Republic. Is the creaking Gnassingbé...
Ghazouani at the Helm
While domestic challenges to Mohamed Ould Ghazouani’s legitimacy dimmed soon after he was re-elected as Mauritanian president last year, his attempt to balance competing external pressures risks reigniting the social...
Politics of Religion in Northern Nigeria
The failure of populist religious reforms has opened the door to radical religious groups who criticize the state for both poor governance and non-adherence to religious doctrines. This unresolved tension...
RADIO REPUBLIC
The Republic: Season 1, Episode 1 Transcript IBB, the Evil Genius
We all grew up hearing about ‘June 12’, but how well do you know what really happened? Let’s find out together. The first episode of The Republic is now available...
The Republic: Season 1, Episode 2 Transcript MKO: The Man Nigeria Waited to See
This episode will establish M. K. O. Abiola as a major actor. It will examine his personal life; his initial foray into business and politics; and areas of his life...
The Republic: Season 1, Episode 3 Transcript Two Sides of the Same Coin
In this episode, we take a look at the key election candidates and what platforms they ran under. We compare their profiles and proposed agendas for Nigeria, highlighting what political...
The Republic: Season 1, Episode 4 Transcript June 12: Freest and Fairest of Them All
After eight years of anticipation, and eight years of promises from General Ibrahim Babangida’s junta, Nigerians were finally about to have their say at the ballot box. In this week’s...
ADVERTISEMENT
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Can Nigeria’s Tech Sector Drive Inclusive Growth?
As Nigeria embraces its digital future, inclusion—not just innovation—must lead. Can this transformation reach all Nigerians or just the privileged few?
Reimagining Feminist Digital Worlds
The founder of PARIWO and creator of the social media platform, neno, Ann Daramola, discusses building technology by and for African women and reimagining digital platforms that centre Black African...
Who Pays When Africans Fall Sick?
Across Africa, millions in the informal sector remain uninsured—not from apathy, but due to the exclusionary nature of health systems. In Tanzania and beyond, digital innovations offer promising models for...
When Darkness Fell on UCH Ibadan
By 06 February 2025, the University College Hospital in Ibadan had been in a blackout for 97 days. ‘Surgeries are on hold. Patients are dying. And in the best teaching...
WORLD AFFAIRS
The Development Zone That Never Was?
When the Nigeria–São Tomé and Príncipe Joint Development Zone (JDZ) was established in 2001, it was expected to become a profitable offshore oil-producing area. But nearly 25 years later, the...
Is the African Union a Symbol of Waning Pan-Africanism?
In the wake of tumultuous geopolitical policies and an increasingly multipolar world, pan-Africanism today struggles to evoke the spirit of comradeship that it used to.
Building a Pro-Regional Coalition in Nigeria
ECOWAS has underperformed in its trade integration and crisis response mandates. Nigeria has to step up its game in improving effective regional cooperation in West Africa. To accomplish this, a...
Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?
Our latest issue, Who Dey Fear Donald Trump?, assesses Africa’s global positioning in the new Trumpian era of multipolarity.
