Institutional presence doesn't automatically equal policy impact. While the African Union’s permanent seat at the G20 signals a massive shift in diplomatic weight, internal structural hurdles (like rising debt and an estimated $89 billion lost annually to illicit financial flows) remain. Dr Ruth Kolevsohn’s article tackles these governance realities head-on. From the operational challenges of the @AfCFTA to the growing case for an International Anti-Corruption Court (IACCourt), she maps out why local value-adding manufacturing and robust accountability are the only real shields against external resource exploitation. Read the full piece here: https://t.co/ldwHS382DE
"The geography of the township is apartheid engineering working as designed."
Dr Mmabatho Mongae challenges us to look at the subtle violence of what's missing in urban spaces and ask how we redesign our cities for human dignity.
Read more: https://t.co/SpVotKKC82
When open riverbeds become the default disposal system for human waste, it proves that informality is a deliberate political economy of dependency.
To break the cycle of urban violence and fragility, we must stop treating slums as voter farms and start treating them as a governance priority. - Dr Willis Okumu @issafrica
Happening Now: How do elections weaponise informal settlements?
We are co-hosting a vital webinar with the Institute for Security Studies (@issafrica) to unpack the complex political economies of East and Southern Africa's urban settlements, and how they become focal points for vote mobilisation and political violence.
Stay tuned for live insights.
Despite their political value during election cycles, places like Kibera endure deplorable infrastructure. Housing is limited to mud structures and corrugated iron sheets.
Worse, a non-existent sewage system has institutionalised the indignity of "flying toilets." - Dr Willis Okumu @issafrica
Because of this massive population density, informal settlements have systematically been transformed into "political food baskets."
Politicians treat these concentrated areas as reliable voter banks, leveraging deep-seated socio-economic vulnerabilities for electoral gain. - Dr Willis Okumu
@issafrica
Next panelist is @WellyMuzengeza, an independent political risk analyst and urban strategist. His presentation will examine the complex dynamics of tenure insecurity and electoral fragility in the informal settlements of East and Southern Africa. These rapidly growing areas sit at the critical intersection of urban governance, social stability, and contested political power.
Is the @SAHRCommission to blame for South Africa's migration and border security challenges? Speaking with @CathyMohlahlana on @SAfmRadio, Good Governance Africa’s Karam Singh challenged the logic behind a recent petition calling for the dissolution of the Commission. Singh argued that placing the blame for unlawful migration and syndicated organised crime at the doorstep of the SAHRC is a badly misplaced analysis. South Africa is grappling with profound rule-of-law failures and porous borders—challenges that belong to law enforcement and state administration, not an institution designed to uphold fundamental human rights: https://t.co/bgwpxPRI6u
Governments providing poor housing and services create the conditions for electoral mobilisation and violence in informal settlements.
At our 3 June webinar, ISS and @GGA_org unpack how elections weaponise East and Southern Africa's urban informal settlements
https://t.co/sPWjbG0HrJ
Africa's urban informal settlement crisis isn't really about houses or pipes – it's about power. During #elections, access to land and services becomes a weapon.
Join ISS and @GGA_org on 3 June to examine the political economy behind the problem in East and Southern Africa.
https://t.co/sPWjbG0HrJ
Webinar > How elections weaponise East and Southern Africa's informal settlements
Join ISS and Good Governance Africa on 3 June to examine how governments exploit informal settlement residents for votes and violence during #elections@GGA_org
https://t.co/AZkqN3GK04
[ON AIR] The Briefing Debate: A growing debate is unfolding around the role and relevance of the @SAHRCommission after a petition reportedly attracting around 30,000 signatures called for the Chapter 9 institution to be disbanded. Lwazi Gwijane - activist and entrepreneur, who started the petition calling for the SAHRC to be disbanded, Karam Singh - @GGA_org Head of Liaison and Advocacy, Dale McKinley from @KopanangAfrica on #TheNationalBriefing #sabcnews