Nobody asked me, but…detribalised does not mean what most Nigerians think it means

By Temitope Lakisokun“Ah, that man is very detribalised.”In Nigeria, this is almost always a compliment.It is what we say about the politician who has friends from every part of the country, the businessman whose boardroom is a miniature Nigeria, the public servant who does not appoint only people from her village, or the man who married a woman from another ethnic group. He eats everybody’s food, speaks a few Nigerian languages and feels at home anywhere in the country.He is, we say approvingly, so detribalised.Except that detribalised does not mean any of those things.The Cambridge Dictionary defines detribalise as “to make members of

Protest, not revolution. N’est-ce pas?

By Wole OlaoyeThe current wave of demonstrations in 40 French cities, driven by chronic teacher shortages, dilapidated school infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms and anger over iron-fisted policing, peaked nationally in early October. Because 9 October marks the historical date of Che Guevara’s execution in Bolivia, critics, left-wing commentators and historically minded student factions occasionally draw conceptual parallels between the two.As university students several decades ago, we thought there was a romantic link between French radicalism and the Guevara movement. Whenever French youths take to the streets, build blockades and clash with riot police, they consciously or unconsciously evoke the ghosts of

The Kingdom is seen in how we serve

Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”- Matthew 20:26–28 (NIV)“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”The Kingdom of God

Plot Twist: Why Books are the Real “Infrastructure” for Africa’s Growth

By Nkanu EgbeThe National Theatre has seen many reinventions. Once the grandest stage in Lagos — host to heads of state, continental summits, and the full spectacle of Nigerian cultural ambition — the building on Iganmu's waterfront has spent recent decades in a more complicated relationship with its own legend. But on Wednesday 13 May, something fitting will happen inside its reimagined halls.In Cinema Hall 2 of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Creative Arts and Culture, a room of writers, librarians, booksellers, educators, and policy thinkers will gather for what promises to be one of the more quietly significant events

The New African Publishers: Towards the Promised Land

By Olatoun Gabi-WilliamsThis article explores the difficult, entangled, high risk and yet, hopeful journey of publishing on the continent, a journey exemplified by Somali scholar, Jama Musse Jama’s vision of literature and the arts as a site of reconstruction and liberation.Dr. Jama Musse Jama – An Ethno-Mathematical BlueprintAuthor and ethno-mathematician, Jama Musse Jama is also a renowned cultural activist and a “New African Publisher” at Ponte Invisibile, Hargeysa, Somaliland. In our 2021 interview, he asserts the multiple “social tsunamis” Africa has experienced as the single most revealing context for understanding Africa’s development and her struggles – including the struggles around

The role 21st century booksellers play in realising SDG 4—quality, inclusive and equitable education

By Oreoluwa LesiSDG4 focuses on education and aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” It includes seven targets, which cover eliminating disparities in accessing education at the early childhood and primary levels based on gender, ability, and other socio-economic factors and, as much as possible, encouraging all women and men to stay through to the tertiary level; ensuring that all youth and a large proportion of adults are literate and numerate; and ensuring that all learners can get the knowledge and skills needed to gain employment and contribute to sustainable development.When we