Fossil and genetic evidence increasingly suggests that our species did not emerge from one isolated corner of the continent. Instead, different populations across Africa appear to have remained separated at times and connected at others, meeting, migrating and interbreeding over many thousands of years. East Africa played an enormously important role in this story, but…

There was considerable euphoria across the country when it was reported in April 2026 that plans were under way to build an oil refinery in Tanga. The refinery was expected to be jointly owned by oil-producing countries in the region in collaboration with Dangote. Our hopes, however, dissipated after the location of the project was…

Few will disagree that one of Mwalimu Nyerere’s lasting legacies was his unwavering support for Africa’s liberation struggle against colonialism and white minority rule in Southern Africa. Angola, which emerged from that struggle with independence in 1975, recently honoured his legacy by naming its newest health facility the President Julius Kambarage Nyerere Burns Hospital. The…

Across Africa, millions have been forced from their homes by conflict, persecution and instability. They did not choose exile. They chose survival. Africa has a proud tradition of asylum. Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and many others have long opened their doors to those fleeing danger, hosting millions of refugees and asylum-seekers. This solidarity must be…

You know that friend who says, “Don’t worry, just put the company in my name”? Well, the law may soon have a few questions for both of you! Tanzania is proposing new requirement aimed at strengthening transparency around beneficial ownership. The idea is simple: The person whose name appears on company documents may not always…

Whenever I drive past the imposing Catholic Cathedral in Njombe, an iconic landmark in this regional town, my eyes fill with tears as I remember the hospitality the church extended to me and several other young boys and girls 61 years ago, in 1965. I was 11 years old and had completed Standard IV a…

That saying by Native Americans reminds me of what we learned in science in our primary school days. We were told that there are living things and non-living things. In that trend of thought, no one would ever believe that plants can talk. In fact, we were made to believe that only human beings have…