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A magazine and platform centring Nigeria and Africa in the world’s most critical social, economic and political issues. #ReadSomethingAfrican
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“Behold the Dreamers” - Imbolo Mbue w/@bookduk

“Behold the Dreamers” - Imbolo Mbue w/@bookduka #ReadSomethingAfrican #ImboloMbue

Today in 1797, Olaudah Equiano died in London.⠀

Today in 1797, Olaudah Equiano died in London.⠀
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Olaudah #Equiano was a former enslaved #African and writer whose experiences as a slave prompted him to become heavily involved in the #British abolition movement.⠀
_⠀
According to his autobiography, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Equiano was born in the village of Essaka (Issaka) in the interior of modern-day southeastern #Nigeria. He was kidnapped and sold into slavery aged 11.⠀
_⠀
After years of working as a slave in the West Indies, #America and #Britain, Equiano bought his freedom in 1766. Published in 1789, Equiano’s memoir was so popular that in his lifetime it ran through nine English editions and was translated into #Dutch, #German, and #Russian. It was one of the earliest books published by a black African writer.⠀
_⠀
Equiano is often regarded as the originator of the slave narrative because of his firsthand literary testimony against the slave trade. Despite the criticism around the authenticity of his account, The Interesting Narrative remains an essential work both for its picture of 18th-century #Africa and for its eloquent argument against the slave trade.⠀
___________⠀
📝: Ibukun x Ugonna, Editorial Interns⠀
📷: 1. Olaudah Equiano by Daniel Orme, on the frontispiece of his autobiography (1789). National Portrait Gallery, London.⠀
2. Plaque at Riding House Street, Westminster, England, noting the place where Equiano lived and published his narrative. Wikimedia Commons.

Sierra Leone lifts ban on pregnant girls going to

Sierra Leone lifts ban on pregnant girls going to school.⠀
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On Monday, Sierra Leone lifted an internationally criticized ban that prohibited pregnant schoolgirls from attending school and sitting exams.⠀
_⠀
#SierraLeone introduced the ban in 2015 after a rise in rape, abuse and poverty during the #Ebola outbreak fueled a spike in teenage pregnancies.⠀
_⠀
After years of advocacy, human rights groups filed a case against Sierra Leone with the #ECOWAS court in 2018. The court ruled in their favour last December, saying the ban was discriminatory and violated the right to equal education.⠀
_⠀
The government maintained that allowing pregnant girls to attend school would tire them out, expose them to ridicule and encourage other girls to get pregnant. Critics said the ban increased stigma and set thousands back in their studies.⠀
_⠀
‘Overturning the ban is the first step in building a radically inclusive Sierra Leone where all children can live and learn in safety and dignity,’ the education ministry said in a statement.⠀
_⠀
Several other #African countries also ban pregnant girls from attending school, including #Tanzania and #EquatorialGuinea. Tanzanian schools routinely force girls to undergo invasive pregnancy tests and permanently expel those who are pregnant.⠀
____________⠀
📝: Ibukun x Ugonna, Editorial Interns⠀
📷: A 15-year-old Sierra Leonean student, Mariatu Sesay, smiles as she carries her daughter outside her house. 11 July 2019. Photo: Cooper Inveen/Reuters

Nigerians don’t trust their government. In a pan

Nigerians don’t trust their government. In a pandemic, this is a big issue. #OnSite⚡️#RxCOVID19⁠
_ ⁠
In our latest online essay, Hakeem #Onapajo and Jelili #Adebiyi analyze how the Nigerian government’s track record of failing to deliver may affect its current efforts to manage the coronavirus crisis. ⁠
-⁠
According to Hakeem and Jelili, in 2015, most of the funds—roughly $2 billion—allocated to combating insurgency in north-eastern #Nigeria was misappropriated by authorities. Before the misappropriation scandal became public, the government had assured Nigerians that it was working hard to defeat Boko Haram. ⁠
-⁠
Although it is risky to entertain any doubts about the threat of COVID-19, examples like the one above show that Nigerians may have justifiable reasons to be sceptical about the government’s approach to handling the coronavirus crisis.⁠
-⁠
So far, Nigeria has reported 70 cases and 1 death. But if people don’t trust the authorities, they are less likely to stay safe or report symptoms. This reduces our chances of overcoming the coronavirus.⁠
-⁠
How do you think the Nigerian government and health authorities can build trust at this critical time? Comment with your best one or two ideas. The comment with the most likes by the end of the week will win a year’s digital subscription to The Republic.⁠
-⁠
For more on this topic, click the link in our bio. ⁠
____________⁠
📝: Hakeem Onapajo and Jelili Adebiyi⁠
📷: A man wears a protective mask outside the Yaba Mainland hospital, where an Italian citizen is being treated after developing COVID-19 symptoms, on Feb. 28, 2020. Photo: AP.

Lagos discharges five coronavirus patients. #RxCOV

Lagos discharges five coronavirus patients. #RxCOVID19😷⠀
_⠀
On Monday, the #Lagos State Government released five #coronavirus patients who were being treated at the Infectious Disease Hospital in #Yaba. So far, eight patients in total in Lagos have recovered fully from the virus.⠀
_⠀
In a short message, Governor Babajide #SanwoOlu reassured Lagosians that the state government is 'doing all within its powers to curtail the spread of the virus so that life could return to normal.'⠀
_⠀
He said that the recovery ‘is another pointer to us that with a concerted effort, we can defeat the coronavirus in Lagos and Nigeria.’⠀
_⠀
On Monday evening, #Nigeria reported 23 new coronavirus cases and one death, bringing the total number of cases and deaths to 131 and 2, respectively. Lagos has a total of 81 cases.⠀
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📝: Ibukun x Ugonna, Editorial Interns⠀
📷: Governor Sanwo-Olu. Photo: Babajide Sanwo-Olu/Twitter

Today in 1951, South Africa’s Group Areas Act we

Today in 1951, South Africa’s Group Areas Act went into effect.⠀
_⠀
The Group Areas Act was the title of three acts of the Parliament of South Africa enacted under the apartheid government of #SouthAfrica.⠀
_⠀
Passed in April 1950, The Group Areas Act forced physical separation and segregation between races by creating different residential and business districts for each race. Thousands of Coloureds, Blacks, and Indians were forcibly removed from areas classified for white occupation. In some cases, the non-whites were loaded onto trucks and dumped into the bush to fend for themselves.⠀
_⠀
The government set aside ten ‘homelands’ for relocated non-white residents, mostly scattered bits of unwanted territories, based on ethnicity among the Black communities. The Act hugely affected communities and citizens across South Africa. By 1983, more than 600,000 people had been removed from their homes and relocated.⠀
_⠀
The Act also restricted ownership and the occupation of land to groups as permitted, meaning that Africans could neither own nor occupy land in European areas. The law was also supposed to apply in reverse, but the result was that the government took Black-owned land and allocated them for white use only.⠀
_⠀
Pass Laws were later established to require non-whites to carry passbooks, and later ‘reference books’ (similar to passports) to be eligible to enter the ‘white’ parts of the country.⠀
_⠀
The Act allowed for the infamous destruction of #Sophiatown, a suburb of Johannesburg. Sophiatown was a legendary black cultural hub that was destroyed and turned into a residential area for whites.⠀
_⠀
After apartheid ended in 1994, the new African National Congress (#ANC) government, headed by Nelson #Mandela, was faced with an enormous housing backlog.⠀
____________⠀
📝: Ibukun x Ugonna, Editorial Interns⠀
📷: A road sign common in #Johannesburg, South Africa in 1956. During the racial segregation period, these signs greeted Black workers upon their return from working in white communities. HULTON ARCHIVE.

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