The Nordic Africa Institute, NAI, is a knowledge centre focused on Africa. It is jointly financed by the governments of Finland, Iceland and Sweden.

Tax on imports to pay for African peacekeeping missions

Security.The African Union intends to increase its influence over conflict-handling in Africa by paying for a larger share of the peacekeeping costs. A proposal for funding from the AU reforms committee is to tax member states' imports from other continents.

Can Uganda use high fertility rates to tackle extreme poverty?

Poverty reduction. Rapid population growth is a concern for sub-Saharan countries battling extreme poverty. However, with the right focus on education, healthcare and economic transformation states such as Uganda could capitalise on the high fertility rates of the last...

Freedoms under attack in East Africa

Human rights. There is democratic progress in many African countries, but we also see increasing threats against journalists, researchers and civil society. A panel at the Swedish Forum for Human Rights discussed the worrying signs of shrinking democratic space in...

Lack of transparency biggest security problem

Conflict. “When the government says there is a national security threat, the discussion is over”, says researcher Akinbode Fasakin, arguing that the Nigerian government uses Boko Haram and other security threats to reinforce its power over people.

Epidemic on Indian Ocean islands increases prejudice about Africa

Medical anthropology. Malaria was eradicated several decades ago on the islands of Mauritius and Réunion in the Indian Ocean. When the tropical disease chikungunya broke out, people and authorities were unprepared. The disease was labelled as "something African" that came...

Reforming the AU to fit its purpose

Agenda 2063. "There is a mismatch between our strategy and the procedures of the African Union" – Cristina Duarte in the AU reforms advisory committee.

Quotas not enough to create gender equality

Feminist peace research. Gender quotas serve a purpose, but they are not enough to break down stereotypical gender roles. Real gender equality requires political will to achieve a general change of attitude in society, according to Heidi Hudson, guest professor at the Nordic...

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