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vol. 8, no. 4

REIMAGINING NIGERIAN HERITAGE

Our latest issue, Reimagining Nigerian Heritage, focuses on the unknown and underdiscussed stories that reflect the richness of Nigeria’s heritage across its different cultures.

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. 8, no. 4

REIMAGINING NIGERIAN HERITAGE

Our latest issue, Reimagining Nigerian Heritage, focuses on the unknown and underdiscussed stories that reflect the richness of Nigeria’s heritage across its different cultures.

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.

Congo

HEADLINE STORY / THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS

The Mad Scramble for Congo

At the heart of Congo’s prolonged crises is a scramble for its natural resources, similar to the precolonial scramble for Africa. All hands must be on deck this time to protect the over 100 million Congolese lives caught in this unfortunate unending war.

South Africa

HEADLINE STORY / THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS

Tomilola Coco Adeyemo

THE MINISTRY OF ARTS / FIRST DRAFT INTERVIEWS

Language

THE MINISTRY OF ARTS / PEOPLE DEPT.

Language Is the First Casualty of Exile

In the autumn of 2019, while Professor Femi Oyebode and I walked along Prescott Street, he told me that language is the first casualty of exile. I have watched my use of the English language lose its colonial stance for a more limber approach that is quick-witted and light-hearted.

Climate Action

THE MINISTRY OF CLIMATE CHANGE X THE ENVIRONMENT

Climate change is heating up the globe, causing poverty, destroying livelihoods, and making life unbearable. Addressing this crisis in Africa requires democratizing climate action and simplifying its messaging to make it accessible to everyone.

Zambian

THE MINISTRY OF GENDER X SEXUALITY

The Restorative Genius of Zambian Women

Zambian women are pioneering a new museum culture that is revolutionizing cultural preservation through a fusion of digital technology and indigenous knowledge systems, challenging Western colonial institutions’ claims to being rightful custodians of African heritage.

China

THE MINISTRY OF WORLD AFFAIRS

Congo-Brazzaville’s Chinese Roulette

As new co-chair of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) until 2027, what does the relationship between the Republic of Congo (or Congo-Brazzaville) and China illuminate about global economic interests, political alignments and geostrategy?

Books

THE REPUBLIC RECOMMENDS

7 Books That Will Bring Some Drama to Your Reading

In our latest book recommendation, we have compiled a list of books that will bring some drama to your reading. From the story about the struggles of women in war-torn Liberia to an exploration of the brutal realities faced by queer people for living authentically, these plays will spice up your reading with some drama.

Saro-Wiwa

THE REPUBLIC PODCAST

S2 EP6: The Execution

Many Nigerians and international observers pushed for the Abacha regime to recall its sentence but on November 10 1995, they woke up to devastating news. From their homes, Nigerians wondered: despite the worldwide appeals, why did Abacha stick to his decision to sentence Saro-Wiwa and the other eight Ogonis to death? What message was Abacha trying to send to the world? Let’s find out together. The sixth episode of the second season of The Republic is now available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Women

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Being Pro-Women Is Not Anti-men

Why are boys’ issues often used to derail the conversation when issues affecting girls are raised? Until men recognize that our true battle is against patriarchy and not feminism, we will remain stuck, unable to achieve meaningful progress.

ANNOUNCEMENT DESK

Onyeka Onwenu
#NIGERIANICON

The Endless Life of Onyeka Onwenu

Nigerian pop icon Onyeka Onwenu died earlier this year. With an iridescent career spanning decades, Onwenu’s knowledge of Nigeria’s failings ran as deep as her capacity to imagine and believe in a better Nigeria.

China

Congo-Brazzaville’s Chinese Roulette

As new co-chair of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) until 2027, what does the relationship between the Republic of Congo (or Congo-Brazzaville) and China illuminate about global economic interests,...

Zambian

The Restorative Genius of Zambian Women

Zambian women are pioneering a new museum culture that is revolutionizing cultural preservation through a fusion of digital technology and indigenous knowledge systems, challenging Western colonial institutions’ claims to being...

THE LATEST IN PRINT
VOL. 8, NO. 4
REIMAGINING NIGERIAN HERITAGE

Now Available: Our November 2024 – January 2025 Print Issue

Featuring: 
Republic editor, Wale Lawal, in conversation with Museum of West African Art director, Ore Disu; Emmanuel Esomnofu on the magic of musician, William Onyeabor; Kéchi Nne Nomu on the legendary influence of pop icon, Onyeka Onwenu, who died earlier this year; Ozoz Sokoh on the foods inspired by novelist, Buchi Emecheta; Yusuf Omotayo on the timelessness of Tunde Kelani’s Yoruba film classic, Ṣaworoìdẹ; and much more!

THE LATEST IN PRINT
VOL. 8, NO. 4
REIMAGINING NIGERIAN HERITAGE

Now Available: Our November 2024 – January 2025 Print Issue

Featuring: 
Republic editor, Wale Lawal, in conversation with Museum of West African Art director, Ore Disu; Emmanuel Esomnofu on the magic of musician, William Onyeabor; Kéchi Nne Nomu on the legendary influence of pop icon, Onyeka Onwenu, who died earlier this year; Ozoz Sokoh on the foods inspired by novelist, Buchi Emecheta; Yusuf Omotayo on the timelessness of Tunde Kelani’s Yoruba film classic, Ṣaworoìdẹ; and much more!

African Feminist Manifesto

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.

queer

COVER ESSAY

A Queer Dream of New and Unassimilable Things

As the rest of the world watches the exodus of American users from TikTok to RedNote, it reveals a telling paradox: Western claims to digital freedom depend on portraying contexts like Africa and Asia as uniquely hostile repressive Others, while masking their own suppression of queer expression—a power dynamic that the Global South has long been co-opted to maintain.

Frida Orupabo

THE MINISTRY OF ARTs / PHOTO DEPT.

Abrahamic Tradition

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.

Second Class Citizen

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.

Saro-Wiwa

S2 EP6: The Execution

Many Nigerians and international observers pushed for the Abacha regime to recall its sentence but on November 10 1995, they woke up to devastating news. From their homes, Nigerians wondered: despite the worldwide appeals, why did Abacha stick to his decision to sentence Saro-Wiwa and the other eight Ogonis to death? What message was Abacha trying to send to the world? Let’s find out together. The sixth episode of the second season of The Republic is now available wherever you listen to podcasts.

continue reading

We get it. Sometimes the headline stories are just not enough.

ARTS & CULTURE

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BUSINESS & THE ECONOMY

Oyetola

Gboyega Oyetola’s Blue Ministry

Nigeria’s Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy aims to harness the nation’s vast maritime potential but can Minister Gboyega Oyetola successfully navigate these complex waters?

HISTORY

Saro-Wiwa

S2 EP6: The Execution

Many Nigerians and international observers pushed for the Abacha regime to recall its sentence but on November 10 1995, they woke up to devastating news. From their homes, Nigerians wondered:...

Ogoni

S2 EP5: The Ogoni 8

Following the murders of the Ogoni chiefs, Rivers State military administrator, Lieutenant Colonel Dauda Musa Komo, and the Abacha regime finally had their way in to disrupt MOSOP. On May...

Saro-Wiwa

S2 EP4: The Kangaroo Court

On 19 January 1994, General Abacha sent a federal ministerial committee to Ogoniland to meet with Ken Saro-Wiwa in Bori. Lieutenant Colonel Komo, who acted as the official guide of...

Saro-Wiwa

S2 EP3: The Ogoni Crisis

How did the Ogonis’ peaceful protest turn into a nightmare that many in Ogoniland today are still shuddering from? How did the Ogonis’ hopes become weaponized against them? Let’s find...

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POLITICS

Russian

Tinubu’s Russian Roulette

The hoisting of Russian flags in Nigeria during recent protests suggests how President Tinubu’s ECOWAS foreign policy gambles might have triggered pro-Russian sentiments in Nigeria.

RADIO REPUBLIC

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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Aya Care

Aya Care’s Sudden Fame

After going viral on social media, the women-led team at sanitary pad provider, Aya Care, found themselves at the centre of a renewed discussion about menstrual hygiene in Nigeria. What...

WORLD AFFAIRS

Congo

The Mad Scramble for Congo

At the heart of Congo’s prolonged crises is a scramble for its natural resources, similar to the precolonial scramble for Africa. All hands must be on deck this time to...

China

Congo-Brazzaville’s Chinese Roulette

As new co-chair of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) until 2027, what does the relationship between the Republic of Congo (or Congo-Brazzaville) and China illuminate about global economic interests,...

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