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Powering the Future: Why SADC Must Embrace Regional Value Addition of Critical Minerals
On 17 August 2025, SADC heads of state will gather in Madagascar for a summit themed “Advancing industrialisation, agricultural transformation and energy transition for a resilient SADC.” The...
Solar Boom, Toxic Loom: Nigeria’s Green Energy Leap Risks Turning Toxic
Late one evening in Kano, amidst the glow of flickering kerosene lamps, Aisha, a mother of three, clutches her youngest as she steps outside. On the wall of her modest kitchen, a small solar panel...
Southern Africa: The Critical Minerals Anchor of the Global Energy Transition
When the World Economic Forum released its recent analysis on the role of Southern Africa in the global energy transition, one figure stood out: countries like Zambia, Namibia, and Zimbabwe...
Who Speaks for the Community? The Missing Link in Africa’s Energy Transition
When Grace, a 47-year-old mother of four in Uganda’s Kasese district, spoke at a local town hall meeting, her voice trembled. But what she said cut through: "We see cables and poles, but not power in...
Double Standards? Why Africa’s Gas Phase-Out Is Under Fire
How do you phase out gas in Africa when a mother in rural Nigeria still boils drinking water over a kerosene flame, or a health centre in Senegal powers its only incubator with a diesel generator?...
Green Gold Rush or Resource Grab? Inside Africa's Critical Minerals Boom
Under the midday sun in Kolwezi, in the southeastern stretch of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lucien, a 26-year-old father of three, kneels in a shallow mine pit, scraping cobalt-rich soil with a...
Fossil Fuel Phase-Out in Africa: Treaty, Trap or Turning Point?
In the corridors of global climate diplomacy, a new treaty is taking shape. The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, backed by climate leaders like Kumi Naidoo and supported by a growing coalition...
Beyond Raw Minerals: Can Africa Benefit from Its Critical Mineral Wealth?
In Kolwezi, in the heart of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the earth gives way to cobalt-rich soil. Every morning, hundreds of artisanal miners, many without helmets or boots, descend into...
Fossil Exit or Justice Denied? Africa’s Fight to Lead Its Own Energy Future
In Abuja, oil still smells like prosperity. Along the congested streets of Warri or Takoradi, diesel generators hum a familiar tune of survival. For decades, the promise of oil has been both a burden...
Debt-for-Climate Swaps: Lifeline or Leash for Africa’s Green Future?
Everybody frames swaps as innovation. But who controls the script, and who ends up on the cutting room floor? Debt-for-climate swaps are enjoying a moment. Policymakers and international institutions...
Who’s Funding Africa’s Transition? The Hidden Gatekeepers of Green Finance
Billions are pledged. But who decides who gets them, and on whose terms? Across Africa, the energy transition has become more than a technical debate. It’s a question of power, politics, and people....
Oil is Still Paying the Bills: Can African Governments Afford to Let Go?
It is easy to call for an end to fossil fuels from a podium in Paris. Much harder when you are in Abuja, Luanda or Brazzaville, facing empty treasuries, unpaid civil servants, and swelling youth...