Inspiration Hunts

7 ‘Lost’ African Countries

In the last fifty years alone, the independence of the Republic of Ambazonia has been declared thrice. The fight to get it recognised is still ongoing.

Listicles • Quick Reads|

7 Most Interesting But Obscure Kenyan Laws

There's only one building in Kenya protected by a specific law, although there was once a bridge too. Back when it was illegal to be broke and unemployed. You could still, then, get your own coat of arms for your banners.

Listicles|

Rusinga Festival: A Photo Essay

The Rusinga Festival celebrates the colorful history of the Subanese, descendants of a dynastic war for the Buganda throne.

Adventures|

Roughly 100 Fantastic Pieces of Kenyan Journalism

A reading list of some of the best works of Kenyan journalism available online. And a chance for you to join this curation project.

Listicles • Projects|

The First Computers in East Africa –and what became of them

One of them ended up at the bottom of the ocean, because of a snake, a gun, and bureaucracy. Another ended up in China, somehow.

Features|

Monica Njeri’s Killer Killed Again

In August 1980, Kenya arrested a US sailor for the murder of Monica Njeri in a drunken brawl. 32 years later, he killed three more women.

Profiles • Quick Reads|

Why France Created the French Foreign Legion

The main reason the Legion exists was simple, to get rid of them. Or rather, put them to work outside France so they would not mess things up again. But to do so in a way that both served Paris’ global goals, and provided a route, albeit a very dangerous one, for them to become …

Features • Quick Reads|

Why South Sudan Has Five Vice Presidents

South Sudan is one of several countries in the world that have multiple Vice Presidents, and it is often for the same reasons. The briefest answer is: War. The short answer is that it is not just any 5 Vice Presidents, they are mainly representatives of different armies/militias involved in the South Sudan conflict. It …

Profiles • Quick Reads|

The Weirdest Flag in the World

While there are many contenders for the title of the “weirdest flag in the world” depending on which metrics you choose, the Flag of Nepal stands out for the simple reason that it is the only national flag in the world that is not rectangular. It is not unusual just for the sake of it. …

Quick Reads|

Why Britain Opposed Ethiopia’s Entrance into the League of Nations

101 years ago this week, Ethiopia formally joined the League of Nations, the precursor to the modern-day United Nations. Ethiopia is famously the only country in Africa that was never colonised. It defeated Italy’s first excursions in 1896, and was occupied during World War II because regaining Italy’s standing as a colonial power was important …

Features • Quick Reads|

The Case Against the Intellectual Dishonesty of David Ndii

David Ndii is an unkind man who should not be in a position of responsibility in these hard times. Because as a whisperer to kings, if what he shows the world is what he truly is, then it is clear why we have wasted so much time, so many precious lives, and so much peace, …

Profiles • Quick Reads|

‘If Gays Didn’t Exist’ Part II

II Read Part I here. In November of 2019, the world descended on Nairobi for an important but highly controversial UN conference. By then, the United Nations had become a major arena for religious and social groups opposed to comprehensive sex education, and everything that fell within the “family values” container. In many UN gatherings, …

Projects|

‘If Gays Didn’t Exist: Inside Kenya’s Dalliance with Homophobia

I In November 1999, Dr. Margaret Ogola, a renowned Kenyan author and paediatrician, walked onto a podium in Geneva, Switzerland. She was there to receive an award, the World Congress of Families (WCF) Award for Humanitarian Service, at the WCF’s second congress. Dressed in a white dress and a white doek, Dr. Ogola’s acceptance speech …

Features • Projects|

The City of No Contradictions

Cape Town owns its identity. There’s something almost aspirational about the imbalance and (lack of) contradictions in this particular city, and they are clear to me when I explore it on foot, on different days and times, and try to understand why my basic feeling is absolute discomfort.

Adventures|