Recorded as Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arrived for bilateral talks with South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, this episode explores the dynamics of the Nigeria-South Africa relationship. At first glance, the warm visuals emerging from their meeting might lead an uninformed observer to believe that these two nations, represented by their amiable leaders, are the best of friends, united by a historical bond of tender affection and brotherly love. However, for those familiar with the interactions between these countries—especially on social media—it's clear that the diplomatic niceties barely mask some thorny citizen-to-citizen relations.

The rivalry between these two nations has intensified since 2014, when Nigeria’s GDP-rebasing exercise revealed it had surpassed South Africa as Africa’s largest economy. While much of the bilateral banter about who really owns amapiano or why the Super Eagles are vastly superior to Bafana Bafana may seem harmless and mildly humorous, it has occasionally spilled into more serious territory, with incidents of deliberate sabotage, hostile clashes, and xenophobic violence emerging in both countries. Recent examples illustrating this tension include the so-called “bolt for bolt” battle between Lagos and Johannesburg, along with the controversy surrounding the Miss South Africa competition and the xenophobic backlash faced by Chidimma Adetshina.

This backdrop frames our conversation about what is really happening between these two nations. Is it time to admit that Nigeria is winning? But more seriously: what, if anything, is at stake in the competition? What drives the vitriol? And what would a normal relationship look like? To explore these questions—and hopefully find some clarity—we're joined by the esteemed Khanya Mtshali, a critic and staff writer for Africa Is a Country.

In an unprecedented election year, more voters than ever in recorded history will have headed to the polls by the end of 2024—in at least 64 countries, with over half of the world’s population involved. In the last six months alone, pivotal elections have occurred in India, South Africa, Mexico, the UK, France, and the European Parliament. In two weeks, the US heads to the polls for a historic presidential election. 

On this episode of Just Us Under A Tree, Tanveer Jeewa and Dan Mafora host Civil and Political Rights expert Mudzuli Rakhivhane to unpack the recent threats to challenge the outcome of the May 29 national elections in South Africa. What does it mean to have free and fair elections? Dan and Mudzuli, who were on the ground on election day, share their observations of various irregularities, as the three discuss whether they were indeed “so egregious as to vitiate the entire elections,” as has been alleged on many occasions. Tanveer is a constitutional law and property law lecturer, and Dan is a lawyer in Cape Town and the author of Capture in the Court (Tafelberg, 2023).

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Despite being one of the world's major crude oil producers, Nigeria has depended for decades on imports of refined petroleum products to meet its domestic energy needs. While Nigeria exports “Bonny Light,” a variant of “Light sweet crude oil” considered more desirable due to its low sulfur content, the refined petroleum Nigeria imports from Europe is more polluting and toxic than “black market fuel made from stolen oil in rudimentary “bush” refineries hidden deep in the creeks and swamps of the Niger delta,” as the Guardian put it. As far as absurd examples of dependency theory go, this is difficult to beat.

In light of this, it is understandable that some applause accompanied the announcement about a decade ago that Aliko Dangote, Nigeria’s billionaire cement magnate, and Africa’s richest man, had broken ground on a new mega-project to construct the continent’s largest crude oil refinery in Lagos. 

Fast-forward to the present day. Following the government’s removal of petrol subsidies in mid-2023 and the intensification of an economic crisis that has left Nigerians reeling in the aftermath, many hoped that a reduction in energy costs would swiftly follow the announcement in mid-September that the first trucks laden with refined petrol had started leaving the Dangote Refinery.

Now, nearly a month later, fuel costs have not only remained high but continued to rise––amid a highly public spat between Dangote and Nigerian government officials––prompting confusion, conspiracy, and much questioning about why the Dangote Refinery has not saved Nigeria.

This episode, recorded amid the madness, attempts to make sense of the facts and fiction surrounding the refinery, the ever-spiraling price of petrol products, and the interaction between indigenous capitalist classes and the post-colonial state in Nigeria.

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On September 7, 2024, Algeria’s incumbent president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, was re-elected for a second five-year presidential term with 94.65 percent of the vote. Tebboune came into power in 2019, replacing Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who ruled the country for 20 years and planned on running for a fifth term until widespread protests for radical change ended his rule.

Data from Algeria’s National Independent Authority for Elections (ANIE) suggest that just 23 percent of the population voted for a candidate. Only three regime-approved candidates contested, with Tebboune's main challengers being conservative Abdelaali Hassani Cherif and socialist Youcef Aouchiche, who received 3 percent and 2.1 percent of the vote, respectively.

The widespread disaffection reflects the legacy of 2019’s Hirak movement—whose complaint was not just against Bouteflika but the entire Algerian political system—and many activists from this generation have been forced into exile or detained while numerous associations and media outlets have shuttered. Tebboune has managed discontent through social spending to improve quality of life, while his foreign policy has focused on key geopolitical questions around Palestine, Western Sahara, the Sahel, and Libya. Algiers-based AIAC contributing editor Maher Mezahi joins the podcast to discuss what the elections mean for Algeria’s future and its role in the region.

On July 7, France heads to the polls in the second round of a legislative election widely viewed as a referendum on the country's future. The results of the first round boasted a strong showing for the far-right party, Rassemblement National (National Rally), which won 33% of the popular vote. The leftist alliance, Nouveau Front Populaire (New Popular Front), won 28% and President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist bloc Ensemble (Together) came third with 21%.

Macron called the elections in early June after elections for the European Parliament resulted in a big swing to the right across the continent. Of the 81 seats designated for France in the 720-member body (the second-largest allocation of any member state after Germany), the National Rally won the most—30 to be exact. Faced with an uncertain parliamentary mandate, Macron seemingly called the elections to test the national mood, a gambit that many commentators say has backfired. 

Joining the podcast to discuss these elections, is AIAC’s Francophone regional editor, Shamira Ibrahim. Why are these elections significant? Why is Macron so popular, and how come it's the once-fringe right-wing benefitting, rather than the left? What might the normalization of anti-migrant policies mean for black and brown people in France, as well as the more than two million people who live in France’s overseas territories?  In addition to being our Francophone regional editor, Shamira is a Brooklyn-based writer by way of Harlem, Canada, and the Comoros, who explores identity, cultural production, and technology.

Over the last two weeks, Kenya has been rocked by widespread protests against a controversial law that aims to raise taxes. The 2024 Finance Bill sought to amass at least $2.7 billion in funds, primarily for the purpose of repaying creditors and stabilizing the country’s ballooning budget deficit, with public debt standing at 68 percent of GDP—which exceeds the 55 percent that the IMF and World Bank have recommended.

Initially, the bill proposed controversial tax hikes on basic commodities such as bread and cooking oil, which were dropped on June 19 after the first wave of protests the day before. Nonetheless, Kenya’s parliament passed the bill, which still included provisions on a 16 percent tax on goods and services to be used to equip specialized hospitals with over 50 beds, which some worried would increase the cost of health care. 

After protests continued, President William Ruto announced on June 26 that he would not sign the bill, conceding that the “people have spoken.” The day before, however, he called some actions of protesters—particularly, the storming of parliament after police shot at demonstrators with live ammunition—an “unprecedented attack on democracy.” Meanwhile, security forces have killed at least 22 people, with witness reports suggesting that the death toll could be significantly higher.

Why are these protests significant? Writing this week in Africa Is a Country, Kari Mugo observed that “this historic week marks a new era after many years of discontent and political apathy. A renewed desire for political engagement has ignited in Kenya.” The protests have wide demographic appeal but have been led primarily by Gen Z, who in Kenya is a group that largely did not participate in the 2022 general elections. And although the bill has been put on hold, protestors are still taking to the streets demanding Ruto’s outright resignation. Ruto—who came to power in a 2022 election after narrowly defeating Raila Odinga—is widely viewed as out of touch, despite styling himself as an “everyman hustler.” 

His time in office has been marked by deepening austerity that is worsening an escalating cost-of-living crisis. It is in this context that Ruto has regularly told Kenyans to tighten their belts. But in one of many examples of “do as I say, not as I do,” Ruto angered many when last month he chartered a private jet, instead of using the presidential carrier, to visit Joe Biden in Washington—the first visit by an African leader in sixteen years.

So, to talk about these protests and what lies ahead for Kenya, I am joined by Wangui Kimari, who is our East Africa regional editor. Wangui is also an anthropologist based at the American University Nairobi Center and participatory action research coordinator for the Mathare Social Justice Centre (MSJC), a community-based organization in Nairobi, Kenya.

Nigeria has a corruption problem—this is hardly breaking news. Less often acknowledged, however, is the fact that Nigeria has long had a vibrant and sometimes powerful anti-corruption movement. What are the origins of this movement? What has it achieved? Can it be rescued from the perennial limitations of anti-corruption (anti-)politics identified elsewhere in Africa and across the world? This episode examines these questions through the prism of the rise and fall of the politics of anti-corruption in Nigeria.

Sa’eed Husaini is a research fellow at the Center for Democracy and Development in Abuja, and a regional editor for Africa Is a Country. OAG is a food security management postgraduate with a passion for revolutionary politics and discourse. He lives in Hull, UK. Emeka Ugwu is a Lagos-based book critic/co-founder of Wawa Book Review. He is also a data analyst.

On this episode of Just Us Under A Tree, Dan Mafora, Elisha Kunene, and Tanveer Jeewa discuss the recent slew of litigation and controversial matters relating to South Africa’s  2024 elections. In particular, they unpack the latest Constitutional Court judgment that disqualified former President Jacob Zuma from contesting the elections with the M.K party (uMkhonto weSizwe, named after the A.N.C.’s former military wing).

They also touch on the recent ruling of the International Court of Justice on South Africa’s request for amending the provisional orders against Israel under the Genocide Convention. Tanveer is a constitutional law and property law lecturer, Dan is a lawyer in Cape Town and the author of Capture in the Court (Tafelberg, 2023), and Elisha teaches law and politics in Cape Town.

Africa is a Country is happy to announce our new collaboration with The Nigerian Scam podcast, which focuses on examining how episodic iterations of audacious fraud in Nigerian history and contemporary politics intertwine with the ongoing struggle for African independence in the intricate web of global capitalism.

In the first syndicated episode, Sa’eed Husaini, OAG, and Emeka Ugwu consider the uses and abuses of centering “the scam” as a tool for understanding the failures of independence and the emergence of capitalism in Nigeria. Why did Nigeria come to be associated with the classic internet scam, a.k.a. “yahoo-yahoo” (among other fraudulent activities)? To what extent can the phenomenon of fraud in Nigeria be neatly separated from “legitimate” forms of capital accumulation, such as in the oil sector, the music industry, or Nollywood? Is Nigeria’s case really unique, or is it a slight variation of the failures of petty bourgeois-led independence movements in Africa?  

Sa’eed is a research fellow at the Center for Democracy and Development in Abuja, and a regional editor for Africa Is a Country. OAG is a food security management postgraduate with a passion for revolutionary politics and discourse who lives in Hull, UK, and Emeka is a Lagos-based book critic/co-founder of Wawa Book Review. He is also a data analyst. 

Africa Is a Country is proud to present a new collaboration with the South African podcast Just Us Under a Tree. Once a month we will host an episode of the podcast, which is (mostly) about the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Returning from a long hiatus, its goal is to make it easier to talk about the law and read the news.

On this episode, Tanveer Jeewa, Dan Mafora, Johan Lorenzen, and Elisha Kunene host International Human Rights Law and Children’s Rights expert, Bryony Fox, to unpack the recent ruling of the International Court of Justice on South Africa’s request for provisional orders against Israel under the Genocide Convention. Tanveer is a constitutional law and property law lecturer, Dan is a lawyer in Cape Town and the author of Capture in the Court (Tafelberg, 2023), Johan works for Richard Spoor suing companies who injure indigenous communities, workers, and consumers, and Elisha teaches law and politics in Cape Town.