Zuma’s critics within the ANC are vocal. But will they act?
Are those ANC members critical of Zuma willing to stand up and be counted? Will Pravin Gordhan, popular hero of the hour, provide one further great service to the nation?
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
South Africa has lost a key line of defence against corruption. What now?
The removal of South Africa's finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, is the greatest threat to public finances experienced in the post 1994 era.
Stakes for South Africa’s democracy are high as Zuma plunges the knife
The focus will now be on how the social democratic and left-leaning members of South Africa's cabinet -- the "constitutionalists" -- will respond to the reshuffle.
Zuma’s cabinet reshuffle opens the door for nuclear deal in South Africa
South Africa's energy sector is perhaps at its most fluid and unpredictable stage it has ever been in.
Analysis and Comment
Ethiopia’s inhospitable Danakil Depression gives us clues about life on Mars
A study is being done in Ethiopia's Danakil Depression - a natural environment like no other on earth - to understand how microbes thrive in extreme environments such as those found on Mars.
Decades old tensions are driving the conflict in Kenya’s Laikipia region
For over 20 years, Kenya’s Laikipia region and its neighbours have witnessed violence between January and April over location and geography.
Why Malawi’s case against the Tanzanian eight is a travesty of justice
Eight Tanzanians have been arrested in Malawi after looking into a uranium mine. They say the country has no right to flout the rule of law and to harass groups acting in the public interest.
Why South Africa’s social grants aren’t eradicating malnutrition
South Africa's social grants, which benefit a third of the country's population, are widely celebrated. But these grants fall far short of addressing the country's malnutrition challenge.
Why South Africa’s courts cannot rein in a delinquent government
The social grant saga shows how South African courts are doomed to fail to protect the public from its government.
African countries say they support women’s rights. But where’s the money?
African countries are bound by continental law to put aside funds for the protection of women's rights, but very few have managed to put their gender-budgeting guidelines into practice
School feeding schemes can fill children’s tummies and farmers’ pockets
Getting local farmers involved in school feeding schemes has the potential to boost livelihoods and revitalise rural economies in Africa.
The Kenyan doctors’ strike is over, but there’s a lot of unfinished business
Kenya's doctors embarked on a strike for a 100 days to push the government to implement a collective bargaining agreement signed in June 2013.
The ‘fourth industrial revolution’: potential and risks for Africa
New technologies are developing with exponential velocity, breadth and depth. Their systemic impact is likely to be profound.
Can the relationship between Europe and Africa stand the test of time?
Sixty years on, the European Union is facing unprecedented challenges among member states. Can its relationship with Africa survive the storm?
Ahmed Kathrada: a simple life full of love after 26 years of incarceration
Amed Kathrada's legacy can be used as an example for a good life. South Africans will miss his unwavering courage to speak out on matters of national interest.
Ahmed Kathrada: exhibit A of the values imbued in South Africa’s Freedom Charter
South African struggle stalwart Ahmed Kathrada believed in non-racialism to his core, even as others around him began to argue for an Africanist approach.
Public health
How animals can help autistic children
Spending time with pets can lead to significantly improved social skills and motivation for learning.
Time to see TB patients as true champions in the fight against the disease
Drug-resistant TB is increasingly being transmitted, indicating that beating the problem requires public health interventions and support from communities.
International news
Is Brexit the beginning of the end for international cooperation?
Trump’s agenda to pull America from key global alliances is more evidence that suggests it is. A law professor probes the unknown of what a world without such cooperation might look like.
Why Russia gave up Alaska, America’s gateway to the Arctic
The tale of how and why Russia ceded its control over Alaska to the U.S. 150 years ago is actually two tales and two intertwining histories.
Article 50 triggered: here’s what happens now
The two-year period for withdrawing from the EU has been launched, so what happens next?
Research and Expert Database
Editors’ Picks
Elon Musk wants to merge man and machine – here’s what he’ll need to work out
It's a slow process, but billionaires like Musk push boundaries and help researchers set long-term goals for developing brain-computer interfaces.
Aliens, very strange universes and Brexit – Martin Rees Q&A
The Astronomer Royal answers some of the world's – and the universe's – biggest questions.
Earthworms are more important than pandas (if you want to save the planet)
We focus on large, charismatic animals at the expense of these crucial 'lowly creatures'.
How WhatsApp encryption works – and why there shouldn’t be a backdoor
A way in for government would also allow hackers access.
Scientists have a word for studying the post-truth world: agnotology
There's never been greater need for the study of what we don't know, and why we're not supposed to know it.
What is fiction good for in a post-truth world?
Whether the ubiquity of fiction has devalued truth or enhanced morality has been in doubt for over 2,000 years.
Something big exploded in a galaxy far, far away: what was it?
A burst of gamma rays in a distant part of the universe reveals the birth of another black hole.
Is this the most secure coin in the world?
The UK's new £1 coin is touted as being the most-secure in the world. Its dodecagonal shape harks back to an old threepenny forebear.
How did celibacy become mandatory for priests?
Recent comments of Pope Francis suggest an openness to priestly marriage. A scholar shows how early church practices did not include mandatory celibacy for priests.
New powerful telescopes allow direct imaging of nascent galaxies 12 billion light years away
Astronomers are surprised by what they're finding out about galaxies that formed in the early days of our universe, now that sensitive telescopes allow direct observation, not the inference of old.
We might have to completely redraw the dinosaur family tree
A new fossil study challenges 130 years of thinking about how dinosaurs evolved.
How 19th century fairy tales expressed anxieties about ecological devastation
The Industrial Revolution choked English cities in smog, filled rivers with waste and spread disease in crowded cities. At the same time, fairy tales about humans destroying nature proliferated.
Video games encourage Indigenous cultural expression
A strengthening movement of Indigenous designers and developers is working to show Indigenous cultures, teachings, languages and ways of knowing through video games.
How do you remember a rock god? The complicated legacy of Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry has died age 90, rightly remembered as the legend who shaped rock and roll. But his misdeeds can't be ignored in the rush to glorify an icon.
Stop obsessing over talent—everyone can sing
Children with difficulty singing can be labelled as 'nonmusical' by parents, teachers and pop culture. This toxic idea of 'talent' can deprive people of music's benefits for the rest of their lives.
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- Women in Ghana pay a heavy social price for not having children
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