Editorial April 2026 | Stars of hope
- Details
- By ZAM Reporter
- Politics & Opinion
As often highlighted by ZAM, there is no shortage of troubling dynamics shaping relations between Africa and Europe. As Fortress Capitalism gains ground across the continent, wealth and resources open borders and airports, while those most exploited are left vulnerable to traffickers, often ending up behind barbed wire or in trenches. At the same time, autocracy and oppression are on the rise, increasingly sustained by a rapidly expanding security industry.
Guinea-Bissau | Parents in the dark
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- By Samba Baldé
- Investigations
On 22 January, the government of Guinea-Bissau cancelled a controversial Hepatitis B vaccine trial involving 14,000 newborns that was about to start in the capital, Bissau. The cancellation was a victory for those who had raised their voices nationally and globally against the experiment, which was funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who has become increasingly outspoken against vaccines.
Nigeria | Journalism’s impact on lead-poisoned community
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- By ZAM reporter
- Investigations
Battery recycling, often portrayed as a ‘green’ process that protects the environment, provides employment for many in the Ogijo community in Nigeria. Refurbished batteries from the town are sold to car manufacturers around the world. Yet while Western companies centre this recycled “green” solution in their marketing, unsafe production practices and regulatory violations have poisoned the very Nigerian communities where these batteries are processed.
Exploitation and carbon credits
- Details
- By ZAM Reporter
- Investigations
In the interviews, Siele, Sys, and Cabello shed light on a chaotic picture marked by ineffective land-based carbon offsets, the reinforcement of exploitative neo-colonial structures, and the abuse of power by local political opportunists. Science urges us to address the climate crisis, the interviewees argue, but the solutions must be both non-exploitative and effective. They also question whether current practices constitute solutions at all.
South Africa and Amsterdam | Simphiwe Ndzube
- Details
- By Thembinkosi Goniwe
- Arts
South African artist Simphiwe Ndzube, the new Thami Mnyele Resident in Amsterdam, builds on magical realism, a tradition of writers and storytellers “who do not distinguish between reality and fantasy, or between the imagined and spirituality, particularly in the context of post-apartheid South Africa.”
Kenya | The graves of the Kikuyu who were burned alive in Kiambaa are nowhere to be seen
- Details
- By Marnix de Bruyne
- Politics & Opinion
During the ethnic violence in Kenya in 2008, the church in Kiambaa became a symbol of the horror that shook the country. Kikuyu who had sought refuge there were killed on New Year’s Day when Kalenjin youths set the building alight.
Elegy | When Mourning Is Put on Trial
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- By Heidi Thembeka Sincuba
- Arts
There are disputes about art. And then there are disputes that expose the nervous system of an entire democracy. The case before the High Court of South Africa, Goliath and Others v Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture and Others...
Editorial February 2026 | Europe’s equal partners
- Details
- By ZAM Reporter
- Politics & Opinion
The word ‘equal’, often followed by ‘partner’ or ‘relationship’, or simply used as ‘equality’, appears 68 times in the Netherlands’ Africa Strategy document. This paper, in which “shared challenges, such as security and migration, while promoting investment” are the most prominent points, was launched in 2023 and is intended to guide Dutch dealings with the African continent over the next decade...
Kenya | How to colonise in the 21st century
- Details
- By Martin Siele/Africa Uncensored
- Investigations
On April 30th 2025, Maasai youth disrupted the signing of a carbon offsetting project agreement in Kajiado county, Kenya. On the face of it, they had simply rejected a controversial carbon project.
En wat vindt Periwinkle van Okorafor?
- Details
- By Wim Bossema
- Boekenclub
Nnedi Okorafor heeft een mooie eigen website. Daarop zijn de omslagen van al haar werk te zien: fantasy romans, stripverhalen, kinderboeken, Death of the Author, en meer. Verder een hele collectie 'headshots' in de afdeling media kit.
Op zoek naar achtergronden bij Nnedi Okorafor en haar nieuwe roman Death of the Author. Rondneuzen op haar fraaie website en in haar stripboeken.
Important announcement - Nelson Mandela Lecture postponed until 2027
- Details
- By ZAM Reporter
- Events
The ZAM Nelson Mandela Lecture, initially scheduled for 2026, has been postponed by one year and will now take place in February 2027.
Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama heads ArtReview’s Power 100
- Details
- By ZAM Reporter
- Arts
In December 2025, ArtReview’s Power 100 for 2025 named Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama, celebrated for his textile installations and community-focused art, as the list’s most influential figure.
