OUR BEST WRITING OF 2023

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. 

vol. 8, no. 1

An African Feminist Manifesto

Our latest issue, An African Feminist Manifesto, considers the imperatives for Black African feminism(s) in our uniquely uncertain times, plus more.

 

Save up to 50% by purchasing 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. 1

An African Feminist Manifesto

Our latest issue, An African Feminist Manifesto, considers the imperatives for Black African feminism(s) in our uniquely uncertain times, plus more.
Save up to 50% by purchasing 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.

Saro-Wiwa

the latest online / EDITOR’S FOREWORD: V8, N2

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.

Museum of West African Art

THE REPUBLIC INTERVIEWS

Making the Museum of West African Art

Ahead of the official, public launch of the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) in Benin City, Edo state, set for 2025, MOWAA director Ore Disu discusses her vision for Africa’s most ambitious cultural institution yet.

Ndidi Dike

THE MINISTRY OF ARTS / VISUAL ART DEPT.

Ndidi Dike’s Thesis on the Nigerian Condition

‘Nigeria Imaginary’, the theme of the Nigeria Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale, is a daring call to not just imagine Nigeria as a restored entity but to also dream its future into reality. Through Ndidi Dike, viewers experience the distinctly Nigerian desire to connect what Nigeria once was, what it is now and what it might become.

Toyin Ojih Odutola

the MINISTRY OF ARTS / VISUAL ART DEPT.

Toyin Ojih Odutola’s Theories of Place

The Nigeria Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale brings together artists who are diverse in their styles, influences, affiliations with place, and interpretations of nationhood and history. Among them is Toyin Ojih Odutola, whose artistic instincts already bypass easy conceptions of place, belonging and history.

Charlie Muhumuza

DISPATCH FROM UGANDA

Nigerian Hair

JOIN THE REPUBLIC

Portraits of Nigerian Hair

Obidike Arinze Nnanyelu, who created the Visual History of Nigerian Hair illustration series, discusses what it means as an artist to document hair-making in Nigeria and unpack its cultural significance.

Black Historiography

the MINISTRY OF MEMORIES

Did Africans Arrive in America Before Christopher Columbus?

The controversial hypothesis that Africans arrived in America before Christopher Columbus further complicates the historical relations between Africans and the Ameri-indigenous. The goal of either people, however, is a point of convergence—to decentre Columbus as an emblem of imperial history.

Frida Orupabo

THE MINISTRY OF ARTs / PHOTO DEPT.

Books

THE REPUBLIC INTERVIEWS / FIRST DRAFT

Books

REPUBLIC READING

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.

Federalism

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

record found here

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

A Potent Tool of Remembrance

record found here, lanaire aderemi’s film exploration of the Egba Women’s Revolt, beautifully examines the impact of the movement on those who weren’t old enough to participate in it but were conscious enough to bear witness to its brilliance.

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. 1
AN AFRICAN FEMINIST MANIFESTO

Now Available: Our February – April 2024 Print Issue

Featuring: 
Ololade Faniyi on decolonial African feminism; Kéchi Nne Nnomu on Frida Orupabo; Kai Mora on African Women in Abrahamic history; Peace Onafuye on Buchi Emecheta; plus more.

THE LATEST IN PRINT
VOL. 8, NO. 1
AN AFRICAN FEMINIST MANIFESTO

Now Available: Our February – April 2024 Print Issue

Featuring: 
Ololade Faniyi on decolonial African feminism; Kéchi Nne Nnomu on Frida Orupabo; Kai Mora on African Women in Abrahamic history; Peace Onafuye on Buchi Emecheta; plus 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.

Strange Departures

A 40-Year-Old Japa Story

From the ‘Checking Out’ of the 80s to today’s ‘Japa’ wave, Nigeria’s enduring struggle with brain drain has lasted far too long. Despite promises of change, the nation continues to grapple with familiar challenges that drive its citizens abroad in search of more; more opportunities, more peace of mind, and the ability to be more.

record found here

A Potent Tool of Remembrance

record found here, lanaire aderemi’s film exploration of the Egba Women’s Revolt, beautifully examines the impact of the movement on those who weren’t old enough to participate in it but were conscious enough to bear witness to its brilliance.

continue reading

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

ARTS & CULTURE

ADVERTISEMENT

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...

Shop The Republic

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

ADVERTISEMENT

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,...

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THE REPUBLIC © THE REPUBLIC KNOWLEDGE COMPANY, 2016-2024