Published January 7, 2019

Who is the media?

Mail & Guardian

Published December 20, 2018

Africa for pessimists and optimists: 2018 in review

Intractable conflicts, terrible presidents, climate change ... if you are looking for bad news from Africa, this year has provided it, but there are many good news stories from the continent, writes Simon Allison

Mail & Guardian

Published November 23, 2018

Offline horrors hit home affairs

One of the department’s centres was unavailable for 130 out of South Africa’s 248 working days in the past year

One of the department’s centres was unavailable for 130 out of South Africa’s 248 working days in the past year

Mail & Guardian

Published November 22, 2018

Africa's best inventions

The shortlist for the 2019 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation was announced this week. Here it is.

Meet Africa’s best and brightest

Mail & Guardian

Published October 25, 2018

Boy Scouts in a war zone

There are more boy scouts than peacekeepers in the Central African Republic. Even in the midst of a civil war, the scouts are arguably more effective

There are more boy scouts than peacekeepers in the Central African Republic. Even in the midst of a civil war, the scouts are arguably more effective

Moussa Abdoulaye, Simon Allison, Will Baxter and Amy Niang

Published October 11, 2018

Border kids search for a better life

Although there are no official statistics, one policeman said, “between one and five” Mozambican children are caught every week trying to cross, unaccompanied and without proper documentation into South Africa

Unaccompanied Mozambican teenagers regularly attempt to cross into South Africa

Mail & Guardian

Published August 20, 2018

Hated at home, queer exiles find cold comfort in SA

Queer asylum seekers from all over Africa hope to find refuge in South Africa, a country whose Constitution famously forbids discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. But they don’t always receive the welcome they are expecting.

Mail & Guardian

Published July 5, 2018

The Promised Land

South Africa begins the arduous task of grappling with its past and future as hearings into the proposed amendment of Section 25 of the Constitution show

The land. The land. The land.

Mail & Guardian

Published February 8, 2018

Finding Rhapta

Kevin Davie goes on a journey to find a Roman-era city off the East African coast, using a captain’s log written 2 000 years ago.

Forgotten by history, the ancient city of Rhapta is among Africa’s most enduring archaeological mysteries.

Published December 15, 2017

Bending the curves

In South Africa, as in many other countries, men test for HIV at lower rates than women. The country’s latest national HIV survey found that about 72% of women 15 years and older said they had tested for HIV, according to 2012 data from the HSCR.

Mail & Guardian

Published December 7, 2017

Inside the Sudanese courts that put profit above principle

An investigation into the lucrative business of morality policing in Sudan, and its disproportionate impact on women

Mail & Guardian

Published November 2, 2017

How South Sudan’s elite looted its foreign reserves

EXCLUSIVE: Leaked audit report shows how family and friends of top government officials benefited from letters of credit scam.

Simona Foltyn’s painstaking investigation into how South Sudan’s ruling elite have stolen and squandered the country’s reserves of foreign currency is an extraordinary insight into the mechanics of looting on a grand, almost unimaginable scale.

Mail & Guardian

Published September 14, 2017

The only way was murder

This is the story of a mother who made a deadly decision in defence of her daughter

The killing of an alleged rapist reveals a history of a village living in fear of rape and murder

Mail & Guardian

Published August 31, 2017

Ghosts of the past linger between the walls of 18 Norman Street

From being a home for a family then a spaza shop frequented by neighbours, then an inconspicuous brothel to becoming a popular drug den, 18 Norman street has ghosts of the past lingering between its walls.

Mail & Guardian

Published August 29, 2017

Make health, not war: Drones for life in Africa

Rural towns in Rwanda and Malawi are using the aircraft to improve access to health.

Rwanda and Malawi have begun using tech-savvy solutions to improve healthcare.

Mail & Guardian

Published August 4, 2017

Election Season: Rwanda, Kenya and Angola

Three August votes highlight three very different democracies

Long read

Mail & Guardian