Category: Analysis

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By William G. Moseley, DeWitt Wallace Professor of Geography, Director of Food, Agriculture & Society Program, Macalester College

Rates of hunger in Africa are unacceptably high and getting worse.

The UN State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 report reveals that food insecurity in Africa is the highest of any world region. The prevalence of undernourishment is 20.4% (some 298.4 million Africans) – over twice the global average. The figure has grown steadily since 2015.

Climate change and conflict are contributing to this problem. But I suggest that something more fundamental lies at the heart of the challenge: the ideas and plans used in the postcolonial period to guide how Africa produces food and seeks to reduce malnutrition. While rates of food insecurity vary across the continent, and are worse in central and west Africa, this is a region-wide challenge.

I’m a scholar of African food security and agriculture. In a new book, Decolonising African Agriculture: Food Security, Agroecology and the Need for Radical Transformation, I argue that to feed Africa better, decision-makers and donors ought to:

• reduce the focus on commercial agricultural production as a way to address food insecurity

• stop thinking that agricultural development is solely about commercialising farming and supporting other industries

• adopt an agroecological approach that uses farmer knowledge and natural ecological processes to grow more with fewer external inputs, such as fertilisers.

Conventional approaches have failed across various contexts and countries. I look at what’s going wrong with how governments think about agriculture – and where the focus needs to be instead to tackle Africa’s hunger crisis.

Focus on production agriculture

Many of the core ideas around agriculture date back to the colonial era.

Modern crop science, or agronomy, was developed in Europe to serve colonial interests. The goal was to produce crops that would benefit European economies. Although this approach has been criticised, it still heavily influences agriculture today. The idea is that producing more food will solve food insecurity.

Food security has six dimensions. While increased food production might address one of these dimensions – food availability – it often fails to address the other five: access, stability, utilisation, sustainability and agency.

Food insecurity is not always about an absolute lack of food, but about people’s inability to get the food that is there.

Unstable prices may be one reason. Or people may not have cooking fuel. Agricultural practices may be unsustainable. This often happens when farmers have limited control over how and what they farm.

The west African nation of Mali, for example, has focused on cotton exports based on the idea that it would bolster economic growth and that cotton farmers could use their new equipment and fertiliser to grow more food. Research shows, however, that this led to the destruction of soil resources, indebtedness for farmers, and alarming rates of child malnutrition.

Another example is South Africa’s post-apartheid land reform initiatives, which adopted a large scale commercial agricultural model. This has led to high rates of project failure and has done little to address high rates of malnutrition.

Agriculture as a first step

The second major challenge in addressing Africa’s high malnutrition rates is that many countries and international organisations don’t value agricultural development for itself. It’s seen as the first step towards industrialisation.

Commercial agriculture has become paramount. It tends to focus on a single crop, with expensive inputs (like fertilisers) and with connections to far-away markets. Smaller farms, focused on production for home consumption and local markets, are less valued. These farms may not add to national economic growth in an important way, but they help the poor achieve food security.

For example, the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa funded a rice commercialisation project in Burkina Faso. Women farmers were encouraged to leave traditional practices behind, buy inputs, work with improved seeds, and sell to bigger urban markets. Sadly, research I worked on revealed that this didn’t provide great nutritional gains for the participants.

In another case, as its diamond exports boomed, Botswana largely gave up on pursuing food self sufficiency in the 1980s. Crop agriculture was not seen as a significant contributor to the economy. This undermined the food security of poorer rural inhabitants and women.

Agroecology as the way forward

Mounting evidence of failure suggests it’s time to try a different way of addressing Africa’s food security woes.

Agroecology – farming with nature – is a more decolonial approach. It covers formal research by scientists and informal knowledge of farmers who experiment in their fields.

Agroecologists study the interactions between different crops, crops and insects, and crops and the soil. This can reveal ways to produce more with fewer costly external inputs. It’s a more sustainable and cheaper option.

Common examples of agroecological practices in African farming systems are polycropping – planting different complementary crops in the same field – and agroforestry – mixing trees and crops. These diverse systems tend to have fewer pest problems and are better at maintaining soil fertility.

No African country has fully embraced agroecology yet, but there are promising examples, many unplanned, that point to its potential.

In Mali, for example, farmers briefly abandoned cotton in 2007-2008 due to low prices. There was then an upsurge in sorghum production. This largely saved the country from the social unrest and food price protests that happened in most neighbouring countries.

A few land reform projects in South Africa allowed larger farms to be split into smaller plots, which had higher rates of success and more food security benefits. This suggests that a different, less commercial approach is in order.

The beginning of a revolution

Agroecology is a promising way forward in addressing Africa’s worsening food crisis.

It also has the backing of many African civil society organisations, such as the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa and Network of West African Farmer Organisations and Agricultural Producers.

African government leaders and donors have been slower to recognise the need for a different approach. We are beginning to see signs of change, though. For example, Senegal’s former agriculture minister, Papa Abdoulaye Seck, trained as a traditional agronomist. He now sees agroecology as a better way forward for his country. And the European Union has also begun funding a small number of experimental agroecology programmes.

It’s time for a major shift in perspective. We will hopefully look back on this era as the turning point that ended intellectual colonisation in the agronomic sciences.

William G. Moseley received funding from the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Fulbright-Hays Program. He is affiliated with the Mande Studies Association (MANSA) as president and American Association of Geographers (AAG) as vice president. The views expressed here are entirely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the NSF, Fulbright-Hays, MANSA or AAG.

– ref. Africa’s worsening food crisis – it’s time for an agricultural revolution – https://theconversation.com/africas-worsening-food-crisis-its-time-for-an-agricultural-revolution-244323

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tracy Ledger, Head: Energy and Society Programme, University of Johannesburg

South Africa is one of only 52 countries that guarantee access to water as a human right. “Access” from a human rights perspective means that water is physically accessible, clean and safe for consumption, and affordable. Section 27 of the country’s constitution stipulates that everyone has the right to access sufficient water.

But South Africa is not doing well on meeting the standards of a full human rights approach to water access. In a recent paper, I and my colleagues at the Public Affairs Research Institute’s Just Transition Programme set out the extent of this failure, and mapped out what needs to be done to rectify the situation.

The Just Transition Programme aims to contribute to a successful climate transition that prioritises social justice, equity and poverty reduction.

Part of our research method is ethnography – spending time in communities struggling to access water. We do this to learn what concrete changes are required to improve people’s lives, from their own perspective.

Physical access to water for households has increased significantly since the country’s first democratic elections in 1994. Nevertheless, water quality and safety has declined over the past ten years. Almost half the country’s drinking water is considered unsafe
for human consumption. Water service interruptions – sometimes lasting days – are becoming more common.

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Read more:
Basic water services in South Africa are in decay after years of progress

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South Africa’s household poverty rate (the number of households who live below the upper bound poverty line) is now at 55%. We found that water is becoming more and more unaffordable for impoverished households. The result is that these families have to limit the amount of water they use. This worsens poverty and inequality.

To solve this problem, the South African government needs to embrace a human rights approach to access to water, where people are given enough water to live a full life.

What went wrong?

The first problem is affordability. People cannot access water if they don’t have the money to pay for it, but most clean and safe water in South Africa must be paid for. Poverty is a key barrier to access.

The United Nations special rapporteur on the human rights to water and sanitation has emphasised that it is the responsibility of the state to assess whether households can afford to pay for water, without sacrificing other basic essential items such as food. It is up to governments to take steps to make water affordable.

The country’s Free Basic Water policy was originally intended to address this issue. It guaranteed impoverished households access to a free 6,000 litres of water per month. This is roughly 200 litres per household of eight people per day. However, in practice this policy is not a meaningful solution, for two reasons:

• the amount provided is an average of 25 litres of water per person per day. This is way below the World Health Organization recommendation of a minimum water allowance of between 50 and 100 litres of water per person per day.

• many millions of poor households are excluded from the benefit because of poor implementation of the policy by municipalities.

This situation reflects the failure to create, implement and oversee a regulatory environment that is necessary to realise affordable access to sufficient, clean water for all South Africans.

The policy failures

Firstly, water policy – at both national and municipal levels – has failed to take a human rights approach. A human rights approach requires that access to sufficient, quality and affordable water is the starting point for all policy making and resource allocation decisions. This has not been the case.

Secondly, access to water has been narrowly defined as making water physically available without considering affordability. Most water access policy in South Africa includes statements declaring that water must be affordable for everyone. Unfortunately, all of these policy promises have remained exactly that – just promises.

Meeting the goal of affordability requires more from the government than stating that water should be affordable. The state must develop affordability standards – in other words, calculate a water tariff that everyone can afford – and monitor it. At the moment, there is no national government oversight of water tariffs and so the affordability policy is effectively meaningless.

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Read more:
The lack of water in South Africa is the result of a long history of injustice — and legislation should start there

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The actual state practices of tariff setting and approval, particularly in local municipalities, have not translated any of these promises into reality.

Thirdly, many households are denied access to even the 25 litres of free water per person per day, because municipalities don’t always implement the free basic water policy as intended.

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Read more:
Why ordinary people must have a say in water governance

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Fourthly, the state has failed to acknowledge the contradiction between providing universal access to services, and requiring municipalities to generate enough money to cover 90% of their running costs. Tariffs for water have increased at rates well above inflation over the past 20 years. But in a very impoverished environment where many people cannot afford to pay for water, up to two thirds of South Africa’s municipalities have been classified as being in financial distress.

There is a fundamental – and currently insoluble – conflict between the tariffs that municipalities must charge in order to maintain fully funded budgets, and the tariffs that could be defined as affordable.

What needs to be done?

These actions should be taken in the short term:

• the free basic water allowance must be increased

• the household indigent policy, which determines how households can access free municipal services like water, must be restructured.

• affordability standards must be developed in close consultation with affected communities. This is the only way to set water tariffs that are based on what households are actually able to pay.

• there must be oversight of the provision of sufficient, affordable water for everyone.

In the longer term, these two additional problems must be solved:

• municipalities are losing revenue from water, particularly from leaking pipes and other infrastructure

• the local government fiscal framework requires that municipalities earn a surplus on trading services such as water. This must be changed so that municipal finances prioritise affordability of water instead.

The ethnographic research team for this work was led by Mahlatse Rampedi, who holds a master’s degree and has ten years of experience, together with Ntokozo Ndhlovu, who holds an honours degree.

Tracy Ledger does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. South Africa has failed to deliver access to enough water for millions – a new approach is needed – https://theconversation.com/south-africa-has-failed-to-deliver-access-to-enough-water-for-millions-a-new-approach-is-needed-247831

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Stephen Appiah Takyi, Senior Lecturer, Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)

Urban parks in Kumasi, the capital city of Ghana’s Ashanti region, are fast disappearing or in decline. Kumasi was designed 60 years ago as a “garden city”, with green belts, parks and urban green spaces. These have been encroached on by developments and are in a poor condition.

Like other cities in Ghana, Kumasi has been growing. According to the latest population data from Ghana’s Statistical Service, the population of Kumasi in 1950 and 2024 was 99,479 and 3,903,480 respectively. The city’s current annual population growth rate is 3.59%.
This growth is a challenge for city authorities.

Adding to the challenge is the fact that in Ghana, political authorities and traditional leadership exist together. It’s the capital of the Ashanti Region and the capital of the ancient Ashanti Kingdom. Most of the land is owned by the traditional authority. This makes it difficult sometimes for city authorities to enforce planning regulations.

We are urban planners who have conducted research on environmental planning, urban informality and inclusive city development. We studied the extent to which areas demarcated as urban parks in the Kumasi Metropolis have been rezoned, and why there’s been encroachment into urban parks.

Our study showed that 88% of the 16 parks studied in the Kumasi Metropolis had either been rezoned or encroached upon by other land uses. This was done in an unplanned way. Zoning regulations have not been enforced and urban sprawl has not been controlled. Part of the reason is that land scarcity drives up its value and customary authorities have an incentive to allow other uses. As a result, the city has lost green spaces that are important for their environmental, traditional and recreational functions.

Decline of urban parks in Kumasi Metropolis

To understand why Kumasi has been losing its green spaces, our study looked at 16 parks across six communities within the Kumasi Metropolis.

The World Health Organization recommends there should be 9m² of green space per city dweller. We calculated that Kumasi currently has only 0.17m² of green space per city dweller.

We also noted significant changes in land zoned for parks. This was mainly due to the politics of land ownership and administration. Other social factors played a part too. The results of the research showed that out of the 16 existing parks studied, 14 (88%) had been rezoned to residential or commercial use or encroached upon by other uses.

The rezoning of parks was gradual, unapproved by local planning authorities, and unplanned. Existing land tenure arrangements and laxity in the enforcement of laws are some of the barriers affecting park development and management in the city.

An official of the city’s Physical Planning Department indicated that places zoned as parks were supposed to be owned, controlled, managed and protected by the state. But this was not the case, because of the complex land tenure arrangement of the city, where most land is customarily owned.

Though Ghana’s land tenure system recognises customary ownership, the determination of land use remains the responsibility of local planning authorities. Land sold for physical developments must conform to an approved scheme prepared by the Physical Planning Department. In most cases, the parks rezoned by the customary owners were in contravention with spatial planning laws (such as the Land Use and Spatial Planning Act, 2016).

The representative of the planning department noted that even though it prepared layouts that made provision for parks and open spaces, it was often helpless when it came to enforcement and other land use regulations. We were told that information about the land ownership and transfer process between government agencies and customary landowners was not made available to the department.

Due to poor coordination and increased demand for land for development, about 88% of land demarcated for park development across the study communities had been leased or sold to private developers by the customary landowners.

Our study also revealed a lack of funding for parks development and management. All the agency officials confirmed that parks were planned for but the funds to support their development and management were inadequate. They explained that property values rose as a result of urban development, leading to intense competition among various land uses. We were told that landowners were willing to sell any land available in their community at a higher value without considering its use in the community.

Bringing back the green

The once green city of Kumasi has lost much of its foliage. We suggest that this decline can and should be stopped.

City authorities can incorporate cultural elements that highlight the identity of neighbourhoods to promote ownership and a sense of place in the design of parks. Local planning institutions, custodians of land and residents should collaborate so that plans meet everyone’s needs.

Traditional authorities, together with relevant city authorities, should consciously ensure that parks are developed, protected, managed and sustained. Laws and regulations which guide park use and protection should be enforced strictly.

Finally, parks and green spaces can only survive if there is sustainable funding. City authorities could consider green taxation and charges. For example, they can fine residents whose activities threaten the environment, and use the money to fund parks and green spaces. A percentage of property tax can be dedicated to the protection and development of green spaces in the city.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Kumasi was called the garden city – but green spaces are vanishing in a clash of landuse regulations – https://theconversation.com/kumasi-was-called-the-garden-city-but-green-spaces-are-vanishing-in-a-clash-of-landuse-regulations-248016

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Liani Maasdorp, Senior lecturer in Screen Production and Film and Television Studies, University of Cape Town

When was the last time a film changed the way you saw the world? Or the way you behaved?

Miners Shot Down (2014) countered mainstream media narratives to reveal how striking mine workers were gunned down by police at Marikana in South Africa. Black Fish (2013) made US theme park SeaWorld’s stock prices plummet. And Virunga (2014) stopped the British oil company Soco International from mining in the Congolese national park from which the film takes its name.

These films were all at the centre of impact campaigns designed to move people to act. In filmmaking, “impact” may involve bringing people together around important issues. It could also lead to people changing their minds or behaviour. It might change lives or policies.

Impact is achieved not just by a film’s own power to make people aware of and care about an issue. It requires thinking strategically about how to channel that emotion into meaningful and measurable change.

Although it is a growing field, for which there are numerous funding opportunities, impact producing is seldom taught at film schools or in university film programmes. Teaching tends to be ad hoc or superficial.

As scholars who study and teach film, we wanted to know more about where and how people are learning about impact producing; the benefits of learning – and teaching – impact production; and the barriers that prevent emerging filmmakers and film students in Africa and the rest of the majority world from learning this discipline. (Also called the “global south” or the “developing world”, majority world is a term used to challenge the idea that the west is the centre of the world.)

So, for a recent article in Film Education Journal, we conducted desk research, a survey shared with the members of the Global Impact Producers Alliance and interviews with a sample of stakeholders, selected based on their knowledge of teaching impact or experience of learning about it.

We found that there are university and college courses that focus on social issue filmmaking, but hardly any that prioritise social impact distribution. Access to free in-person training is highly competitive, generally requiring a film in production. We also found that free online resources – though numerous – can be overwhelming to those new to the field. And the majority of the courses, labs and resources available have been created in the west.

We believe it is important for film students and emerging filmmakers to know at least the basics of impact producing, for a range of reasons. Film is a powerful tool that can be used to influence audience beliefs and behaviour. Students need to know how they are being influenced by the media – and also how they can use it to advance causes that make the world more just and sustainable. The skills are transferable to other story forms, which empowers students to work in different contexts, in both the commercial and independent film sectors. It can benefit a student’s career progression and future job prospects.

Existing opportunities

We found that current impact learning opportunities range in depth and accessibility.

Many webinars, masterclasses and short one-off training opportunities are freely available online. But some are not recorded: you have to be there in person. Many form part of film festivals and film market programmes, which charge registration fees.

Impact “labs” are on offer around the world. They usually run for less than a week and are offered by different organisations, often in collaboration with Doc Society (the leading proponent of impact production worldwide). Although they are almost all free of charge, the barrier to entry is high: they are aimed at filmmakers with social impact films already in the making.

We found that the postgraduate programmes (MA and PhD) most aligned with this field are offered by a health sciences university in the US, Saybrook Univerity, and are very expensive.

African content, global reach

In our journal article we presented two impact learning opportunities from the majority world as case studies. One, the Aflamuna Fellowship, is an eight-month in-person programme based in Beirut, Lebanon. It combines theoretical learning, “job shadowing” on existing impact campaigns, and in-service learning through designing and running impact campaigns for new films. This programme has proven very helpful to filmmakers approaching topics that are particularly sensitive within the Middle East and north Africa regions, such as LGBTQ+ rights.

The other, the UCT/Sunshine Cinema Film Screening Impact Facilitator short course, is based in South Africa but is hosted entirely online. It was developed by the University of Cape Town Centre for Film and Media Studies and the mobile cinema distribution NGO Sunshine Cinema and launched in 2021. We are both connected to it – one as course convenor (Maasdorp) and the other (Loader) as one of the 2023 alumni.

Self-directed learning (including learning videos, prescribed films, readings and case studies) is followed by discussions with peers in small groups and live online classes with filmmakers, movement builders and impact strategists. The final course assignment is to plan, market, host and report on a film screening and facilitate an issue-centred discussion with the audience. Topics addressed by students in these impact screenings are diverse, ranging from voter rights, to addiction, to climate change, to gender-based violence.

Both case studies offer powerful good practice models in impact education. Projects developed as part of these programmes go on to be successful examples of impact productions within the industry. The documentary Lobola, A Bride’s True Price? (2022, directed by Sihle Hlophe), for instance, got wide reaching festival acclaim, walking away with several prizes across Africa. Both programmes combine theoretical learning; discussion of case studies relevant to the local context; engagements with experienced impact workers; and application of the learning in practice.

It is clear from this study that there is a hunger for more structured impact learning opportunities globally, and for local, context specific case studies from around the world.

Liani Maasdorp is the convenor of the UCT/Sunshine Cinema Impact Facilitator short course. She has in the past received funding from Doc Society and their affiliate projects.

Reina-Marie Loader does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Films can change the world – why universities and film schools should teach impact strategies – https://theconversation.com/films-can-change-the-world-why-universities-and-film-schools-should-teach-impact-strategies-242043

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Herkulaas MvE Combrink, Senior lecturer/ Co-Director, University of the Free State

You’ll be hearing a great deal about artificial intelligence (AI) and education in 2025.

The UK government unveiled its “AI opportunities action plan” in mid-January. As part of the plan it has awarded funding of £1 million (about US$1.2 million) to 16 educational technology companies to “build teacher AI tools for feedback and marking, driving high and rising education standards”. Schools in some US states are testing AI tools in their classrooms. A Moroccan university has become the first in Africa to introduce an AI-powered learning system across the institution.

And the theme for this year’s United Nations International Day of Education, observed annually on 24 January, is “AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation”.

But what does AI mean in this context? It’s often used as a catch-all term in education, frequently mixed with digital skills, online learning platforms, software development, or even basic digital automation.

This mischaracterisation can warp perceptions and obscure the true potential and meaning of AI-driven technologies. These technologies were developed by scientists and experts in the field, and brought to scale through big tech companies. For many people, the term AI reminds them of systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which is capable of writing essays or answering complex queries. However, AI’s capabilities extend far beyond these applications – and each has unique implications for education.

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ChatGPT is the push higher education needs to rethink assessment

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I am an expert in AI, machine learning, infodemiology – where I study large amounts of information using AI to combat misinformation – knowledge mapping (discovering and visualising the contents of different areas of knowledge), and Human Language Technology (building) models that use AI to advance human language, such as live translation tools. I do all of this as the head of the Knowledge Mapping Lab, a research group within the Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences, and co-director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures at the University of the Free State.

In this article I explain the technologies and science behind the buzzwords to shed light on what terms like machine learning and deep learning mean in education, how such technologies can be – or are already being – used in education, and their benefits and pitfalls.

Machine learning: personalisation in action

Machine learning is a subset of AI involving algorithms that learn from data to make predictions or decisions. In education, this can be used to adapt content to individual learners – what’s known as adaptive learning platforms. These can, for example, assess students’ strengths and weaknesses, tailoring lessons to their pace and style.

Imagine a mathematics app that asks questions based on the curriculum, then uses a learner’s answers to identify where they struggle and adjusts its curriculum to focus on foundational skills before advancing. Although the science is still being explored, that level of personalisation could improve educational outcomes.

Deep learning: assessment and accessibility

Deep learning is a branch of machine learning. It mimics the human brain through neural networks, enabling more complex tasks such as image and speech recognition. In education, this technology has opened new avenues for assessment and accessibility.

When it comes to assessment, AI-driven tools can assist in marking, analyse handwritten assignments, evaluate speech patterns in language learning, or translate content into multiple languages in real time. Such technologies can both help teachers to lessen their administrative loads and contribute to the learning journey.

Then there’s inclusivity. Speech-to-text and text-to-speech applications allow students with disabilities to engage with material in ways that were previously impossible.

Natural language processing: beyond ChatGPT

Natural language processing is a branch of AI that allows computers to aid in the understanding, interpretation and generation of human language. ChatGPT is the most familiar example but it is just one of many such applications.

The field’s potential for education is huge.

Natural language processing can be used to:

• analyse student writing for sentiment and style to provide real time feedback into the thinking, tone and quality of writing. This extends beyond syntax and semantics

• identify plagiarism

• provide pre-class feedback to learners, which will deepen classroom discussions

• summarise papers

• translate complex texts into more digestible formats.

Reinforcement learning: simulating and gamifying education

In reinforcement learning, computer systems learn through trial and error.

This is particularly promising in gamified educational environments. These are platforms where the principles of gamification and education are applied in a virtual world that students “play” through. They learn through playing. Over time, the system learns how to adapt itself to make the content more challenging based on what the student has already learned.

Challenges

Of course, these technologies aren’t without their flaws and ethical issues. They raise questions about equity, for instance: what happens when students without access to such tools fall further behind? How can algorithms be prevented from reinforcing biases already present in educational data? In the earlier mathematical example this might not be as much of an issue – but imagine the unintended consequences of reinforcing bias in subjects like history.

Accuracy and fairness are key concerns, too. A poorly designed model could misinterpret accents or dialects, disadvantaging specific groups of learners.

An over-reliance on such tools could also lead to an erosion of critical thinking skills among both students and educators. How do we strike the right balance between assistance and autonomy?

And, from an ethical point of view, what if AI is allowed to track and adapt to a student’s emotional state? How do we ensure that the data collected in such systems is used responsibly and securely?

Experimentation

AI’s potential needs to be explored through experimentation. But this works best if managed under controlled environments. One way to do this is through regulatory AI “sandboxes” – spaces in which educators and designers can experiment with new tools and explore applications.

This approach has been used at the University of the Free State since 2023. As part of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures, the sandboxes serve as open educational resources, offering videos, guides and tools to help educators and institutional leaders understand and responsibly implement AI technologies. The resource is open to both students and educators at the university, but our primary focus is on improving educators’ skills.

AI in education is here to stay. If its components are properly understood, and its implementation is driven by good research and experimentation, it has the potential to augment learning while education remains human-centred, inclusive and empowering.

This work is part of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital Futures (ICDF) research in the AI4ED focus area as well as a research focus of Herkulaas Combrink who is employed at the University of the Free State as a Senior Lecturer and Co Director. Inputs on this work come from a variety of different collaborators, including the Digital Scholarship Centre within the UFS Sasol Library. Additionally, some of the AI4ED principles were part of a PhD and ongoing investigations into the application of AI in Education, Infodemic, and other societal domains. The ICDF does receive funding for different research projects.

– ref. AI in education: what those buzzwords mean – https://theconversation.com/ai-in-education-what-those-buzzwords-mean-247587

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Tebeje Molla, Senior Lecturer, School of Education, Deakin University

More than nine million Ethiopian children are currently out of school. They are caught in the crossfire of armed conflicts, natural disasters, tribal tensions and economic hardships.

In 2023, Ethiopia had a total school-aged population of 35,444,482 children, about 52% of them primary school-aged. In the same year, only 22,949,597 children were enrolled in schools, leaving over 35% of school-aged children out of school. In the past year, the ongoing humanitarian crisis has worsened the situation, forcing even more children out of school.

Armed conflict erupted in 2020 between the federal government and Tigray regional government. The crisis was compounded by armed resistance to the government in the two largest regional states, Amhara and Oromia. There are also ongoing conflicts between the pastoralist communities of the Afar and Somali regions.

The Tigray war drained the nation’s economic resources. The destruction of infrastructure, particularly schools, in this conflict forced over a million children out of school. Since then conflict in the nine regions has also undermined government control, causing widespread disruptions to essential services, including education and healthcare.

Most recently, natural disasters, including earthquakes in the eastern parts of the country, have displaced tens of thousands of civilians, including children.

Scale of the crisis

The numbers tell the story. As of November 2024, around 10,000 schools were damaged and over 6,000 schools were closed due to conflict, violence and natural disasters. The worst hit regions are Amhara, Oromia, Tigray, Somali and Afar.

In three of these – Amhara, Oromia and Tigray – a total of 8,910,000 children are out of school. Amhara is particularly hard hit with only 2.3 million students enrolling for the current academic year out of 7 million.

I am a scholar of education policy with close to 15 years of research on Ethiopia’s education sector. It’s my view that children have borne the heaviest burden from the challenges that have overwhelmed the country’s capacity to provide essential services.

Leaving millions of children out of school has devastating consequences. There is a well documented increased risk of child labour, early marriage, and other forms of exploitation. Children who miss out on early education also face lifelong disadvantages, including limited employment opportunities and greater vulnerability to poverty and social exclusion.

When children are not in school and miss out on learning, the consequences are far-reaching. At a personal level, disrupted education hinders their cognitive, social and emotional development. It limits their ability to acquire skills needed for personal growth and future employment. At the societal level, a lack of education drives cycles of poverty, reduces economic productivity and weakens social cohesion. Under-educated citizens are less equipped to take an active part in civic life. It also stifles innovation, worsens inequalities and holds back national progress and stability.

Despair and hopelessness have driven countless young people from Ethiopia to risk their lives on dangerous migration routes to the Middle East. The loss of educational opportunities for millions of children also undermines the nation’s capacity to develop the human capital needed for its growth. An uneducated population is more susceptible to being drawn into ongoing conflict.

What can be done?

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in April 2018 with a pledge of change for Ethiopia. But Abiy’s government often sidesteps critical challenges, choosing to amplify positive narratives over confronting pressing issues.

Instead of tackling the crisis directly, Abiy has left regional state governments to find resources. For example, in November 2024, it was left to an advocacy group formed by Amhara’s ten public universities to appeal to donors for aid for education.

In early January 2025, the Amhara regional state government also asked stakeholders to help reopen closed schools. In Ethiopia’s federal structure, the education ministry sets national policies and standards, and manages higher education. Regional governments carry out these policies, oversee primary and secondary education, and adapt curricula to local contexts. Budgets are shared based mainly on the population size of each regional state.

Denying the reality of the crisis only deepens the wounds of the nation and delays the necessary actions for peace and recovery. It’s now time for Abiy’s government to take action. It must:

• confront the crisis

• engage in dialogue to resolve conflicts

• appeal for international support.

The scale of the disruption demands a coordinated and comprehensive humanitarian response. Global development aid partners need to recognise that the education crisis in Ethiopia deserves immediate and sustained attention. Another round of global funds dedicated to education in emergencies is urgently needed.

The collective duty should extend beyond providing immediate relief. It should also encourage the Ethiopian government to resolve its various internal conflicts through peaceful dialogue. Diplomacy, negotiation and reconciliation should take precedence over war and violence.

Tebeje Molla does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. 9 million Ethiopian children have been forced out of school: what the government must do – https://theconversation.com/9-million-ethiopian-children-have-been-forced-out-of-school-what-the-government-must-do-247697

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Hannah J. Dawson, Senior Lecturer, Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg

South Africa’s young people, aged 15 to 34, who make up more than 50% of the country’s working age population, bear a disproportionate burden of unemployment. They have done so for more than a decade. Of this group, those aged 15-24 face the highest barriers to the job market, according to data from Statistics South Africa. The majority of these young people live in the townships and informal settlements.

A new book, Making a Life: Young Men on Johannesburg’s Urban Margins, examines how young people in Zandspruit, an informal settlement on the outskirts of Johannesburg, make a life. Anthropologist Hannah Dawson explains why she chose Zandspruit for her research and shares her findings about the sociopolitical landscape of urban settlements.

Why the choice of Zandspruit for your research?

It started with my arrival there in 2011 to study a wave of political protests during local elections. This sparked a much longer research journey spanning more than a decade, which this book traces.

The settlement was established in the early 1990s and has grown into a densely populated area of around 50,000 people, across 14 pieces of land.

The expansion of Zandspruit reflects broader trends in post-apartheid South Africa: rapid urbanisation, inadequate urban housing, rising unemployment and underemployment — including a shift from permanent to casual work, and from formal to informal employment.

What sets Zandspruit apart is its location. It is near post-apartheid economic hubs such as Kya Sands, with its light industries and business parks, and Lanseria Airport, a growing freight and logistics hub earmarked for expansion under the Greater Lanseria Masterplan. It also borders affluent suburbs and golf estates. This makes it distinct from older, more isolated settlements in Johannesburg’s south. Its proximity to shopping malls, townhouse complexes, warehouses and commercial zones makes it a destination of choice for migrants. They include people seeking a foothold in the urban market from rural areas of South Africa as well as people from other parts of the African continent.

This proximity makes Zandspruit a case study for understanding how residents access urban job markets, and the connections between wage and non-wage economic activities.

What do your findings tell us about the lives of young people?

The book draws on research primarily with young men, whose work and lives I followed over ten years. It shows how young men on the urban margins navigate structural unemployment and inequality by forging social ties, asserting belonging, and pursuing alternative livelihoods within what I call Zandspruit’s “redistributive economy”. I use the phrase “making a life” to move beyond survival or income generation. A life is not only about securing food and shelter. It involves the pursuit of social connection, identity, place and dignity.

For many of the young men I came to know, this often involved turning down demeaning jobs in favour of self-initiated income strategies that offered greater autonomy. These included renting out shacks, running internet cafes or car washes, or operating as mashonisas (unregistered loan sharks). Such efforts reflect more than personal resilience – they reveal how men’s social position and connections within the settlement shape access to the more lucrative niches of the local economy.

These dynamics point to a broader condition facing young people in South Africa: deep and persistent material insecurity. Yet, they also show the ways in which young people, especially young men, are actively building lives in the face of profound uncertainty. They are crafting meaning and striving for something more in a context marked by chronic unemployment and inequality.

What did you learn about urban inequality and living on the urban margins?

The residents of Zandspruit are not equally poor or marginalised. A focus of the book is the division between “insiders” – long-term residents with access to property who earn rental income – and “outsiders” – new arrivals and immigrants who, as tenants, are more dependent on low-paid jobs. These distinctions shape access to land, housing, livelihoods and local recognition.

Most immigrants form a precarious tenant class, while landlords tend to be established residents with long-standing ties to the settlement. Zandspruit is a deeply stratified space where social connections, property access and local citizenship determine who belongs and who benefits. By tracing men’s positions as insiders or outsiders, the book shows how these inequalities shape their economic strategies and capacity to build a life on the urban margins.

What do you recommend in terms of public policy?

The book doesn’t make policy recommendations. However, it speaks to key public and policy debates. Media and policy narratives often portray unemployed youth as idle and disconnected from society, ignoring the complex, often invisible, economic activities and arrangements that structure their lives. While informal and unstable, these pursuits reflect resourcefulness, local knowledge, and a conscious rejection of degrading labour.

It challenges the idea that informal entrepreneurship can solve youth unemployment. Most enterprises are too precarious to lift young people out of poverty. It also questions the notion that informal settlements are simply ghettos of exclusion and poverty. Instead, it highlights the inequalities within the settlement and calls for greater attention to be paid to the local economies and social orders being forged within these spaces. Understanding these dynamics is crucial to rethinking how we respond to unemployment, the urban housing crisis and inequality in South Africa.

Hannah J. Dawson received funding from the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission and the National Research Foundation.

– ref. Young men on South Africa’s urban margins: new book follows their lives over 10 years – https://theconversation.com/young-men-on-south-africas-urban-margins-new-book-follows-their-lives-over-10-years-257026

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Lauren Graham, Professor at the Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg, University of Johannesburg

More than a third of young South Africans are not in employment, education or training. This cohort of 3.4 million (37.1% of those aged 15–24) risks long-term joblessness. Discouragement – giving up looking for work – is also a risk, as the latest data show.

This has serious social and economic implications. Social and economic exclusion can lead to declining mental health, social drift, long-term dependence on grants and lost economic potential.

To help break this cycle, a research team we were part of piloted a Basic Package of Support programme that offered personalised coaching and referrals to services to tackle the barriers young people face. Between 2022 and 2024 we worked with 1,700 young people in three of South Africa’s nine provinces – Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape. The team worked in peri-urban areas where there were high rates of young people not in education, employment or training.

The initiative aimed to help young people clarify their goals and find pathways into relevant learning and earning an income.

The results of the programme showed improved mental health, reduced distress and a stronger sense of belonging. The findings show the power of targeted and multifaceted support to prevent social drift.

The programme and its participants

The pilot took place in three peri-urban communities with limited job and learning opportunities, and high rates of poverty and unemployment. We chose these areas for their high rates of young people who are not in education, employment or training.

Over half of the participants (51%) were aged 18-20, 43% were 21-24 and just under 6% were aged 25-27. While 51% had completed high school, 30% had grade 9-11, and under 2% had less than grade 9. A further 17% held a university degree. Most (77%) had been actively seeking work, or opportunities in training or volunteering (73%), when they started the programme.

Data were collected at intake and after three sessions. A monitoring survey after each coaching session was used to determine whether the participant was in any earning or learning opportunity.

The qualitative component included in-depth interviews with young people who had completed multiple coaching sessions. Interviews were conducted six to eight months after pilot sites were opened to explore participants’ situations, experiences of coaching, and any shifts in perspective.

The primary objective of this pilot phase was to assess the programme’s capability to:

• engage and support disconnected young people

• achieve anticipated outcomes, including improved sense of belonging, wellbeing and connection to learning or earning opportunities.

In general, feelings of being supported and having access to resources in their community were low among the participants: 18.33% reported having had low levels of support in general, from adults and from peers. Young men reported considerably higher access to peer support than women (9% of men rated peer support as low relative to 24% of women).

One-third of young people reported a lack of access to, or availability of, resources in their community. These resources included health, psychosocial, or training resources.

Changes in well-being and mental health

Emotional wellbeing and psychosocial factors are critical precursors to engagement in the labour market. Having a sense of control, positive sense of self-esteem, and future orientation promote resilience, which is critical to searching for and taking up opportunities.

Research has also shown that spending a long time without learning or earning creates disillusionment and poor mental health, creating a cycle of chronic unemployment and social drift.

For these reasons we felt it was important to examine how the young people’s well-being had changed as they progressed through the programme. The programme involved:

• reaching out to young people

• conducting an assessment to understand where they wanted to go and the barriers they faced

• coaching sessions

• referrals to relevant services to overcome barriers

• opportunites to take steps towards their planned objectives.

The research team saw positive changes in all emotional well-being indicators, including quality of life, anxiety, emotional distress, and sense of belonging. Participants also showed an interest in taking up available training and work opportunities. They showed improvements in the three key outcomes we examined for this pilot phase.

Firstly, participants felt supported, were more resilient, and had better mental health outcomes than before they completed three coaching sessions.

Secondly, they showed increased capacity, knowledge and resources to navigate and access the systems and services needed to realise their aspirations.

Thirdly, 40% of them took up available opportunities to learn and earn income after just three coaching sessions. Larger numbers of these young people connected to training or education opportunities than to job opportunities. This is hardly surprising in the context of low job growth.

Taken together, these findings showed that the young people felt more positive about their lives after completing three coaching sessions. They indicated that, prior to starting the programme, they had been feeling unhappy about life and lost about how to move forward in their lives.

Part of their frustration was not having anyone to talk to about how they were feeling.

A 21-year-old female participant said after completing round two:

I didn’t know where I was going in life, what I was going to do, I didn’t know where to start. It was a whole blank page for me.

A young man said after round one:

Before I got here, the way I was feeling I didn’t think I can do anything progressive about my life. I had finished high school, but I didn’t know what step to take from there and … I did try but nothing worked … Coaching helped me cope and feel more optimistic.

Next steps

The programme is based on the idea that some young people need more time and support to find their way back into work or education. This might mean connecting them to counselling, childcare, nutrition or social grants.

The pilot revealed high levels of emotional distress, echoing recent labour force data that shows growing discouragement in the working age population. It’s clear that skills training alone isn’t enough; many young people need broader, deeper support to reconnect and thrive.

Efforts to help young people become employable need to offer more support than simply skills training. People involved in the youth employability/youth employment policy and programming sector have to understand young people from a holistic point of view and take into account the significant barriers that poverty and deprivation continue to create. This is the only way to achieve employability programmes that make an impact.

Lauren Graham receives funding from the DSTI/NRF as the Interim Research Chair in Welfare and Social Development. The Basic Package of Support programme is funded by the Standard Bank Tutuwa Community Foundation, UNICEF, and the National Pathway Manager (Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator). Lauren Graham, in her capacity as co-project lead on the BPS, is a member of the National Pathway Management Network.

Ariane De Lannoy is affiliated with the University of Cape Town. Her research portfolio has a strong focus on youth unemployment and youth well-being. She is one of the principal investigators on the Basic Package of Support for youth who are NEET programme.

– ref. Jobless young South Africans often lose hope: new study proves the power of mentorship – https://theconversation.com/jobless-young-south-africans-often-lose-hope-new-study-proves-the-power-of-mentorship-259168

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Claire Ricard, Research Fellow at CERDI, Université Clermont Auvergne (UCA)

In recent years, the term “eldest daughter syndrome” has gained traction on social media, as many firstborn daughters share how they had to grow up faster. They often took on caregiving and supportive roles in their families.

In high-income countries, research shows that these responsibilities often bring long-term benefits. Firstborn daughters – and sons – tend to have higher educational attainment and stronger cognitive skills. They also enjoy better job prospects and salaries.

Some studies in low- and middle-income countries have found similar positive effects of being the eldest. But others have found the opposite.

In low-income contexts, economic constraints, cultural practices – such as the involvement of extended families in child-rearing – and inheritance norms may produce very different effects.

Our research brings new insights by examining these dynamics in Madagascar. It is one of the world’s poorest countries. Birth order there strongly shapes the transition to adulthood, especially for firstborn children.

Progress in understanding birth order effects in low-income countries is held back by the lack of detailed, sibling-level data. Our study used a dataset that followed individuals from the ages of 10 to 22, capturing their transition from adolescence to adulthood. It collected detailed information on education, work, health, marriage, and migration. The dataset also captured key demographic and educational details for all living full siblings of each respondent.

We found that firstborns in Madagascar transition into adulthood earlier than their younger siblings. They are more likely to leave school early. They enter the workforce sooner and marry at younger ages. For example, fourth-born children are 1.5 percentage points less likely than firstborns to have never attended school, and 1.1 percentage points more likely to complete post-secondary education.
Or, third-borns are 23% less likely to marry at age 19 than firstborns.

Our findings suggest that later-born children benefit from greater parental investment in education. This leads to better schooling outcomes and delayed entry into the labour market.

Birth order and the transition to adulthood

In Madagascar, early marriage can be a way for families to ease financial pressure. This is especially true since daughters typically join their husband’s household.

When it comes to marriage, we find that later-born children are less likely to marry early than their firstborn siblings – especially after age 17. This trend holds for both boys and girls. The difference appears earlier for girls, which aligns with their younger average age at marriage.

Interestingly, second-born girls are not significantly less likely to marry than their older sisters. This suggests that the eldest daughter does not always bear the full brunt of early marriage risk.
Firstborn daughters often take on caregiving and household roles. These responsibilities may delay their marriage slightly, as families rely on them for day-to-day support.

What explains these birth order effects?

We did not observe significant differences in cognitive skills (like reasoning) or non-cognitive traits (like personality) between firstborns and their younger siblings. Cognitive abilities were assessed through oral and written math and French tests administered at home. These findings contrast with evidence from wealthier countries, where firstborns often outperform their siblings in both cognitive and non-cognitive domains. This may result from greater early parental investment.

In Madagascar, child development may rely less on direct parental input and more on interactions within the extended family. This is consistent with the concept of fihavanana, a cultural principle that emphasises solidarity and mutual support within the extended family.
Rather than benefiting mostly from parental quality time, children – especially later-borns – may develop their cognitive and non-cognitive skills through broader social networks. These include relatives and older siblings.

We also explored whether gender preferences might help explain the differences in outcomes. For instance, if later-born children were disproportionately boys, it could suggest that parents continued having children in hopes of having a son. This could lead to more resources being allocated to that later-born boy. However, our data show an even distribution of boys and girls among later-born children. This suggests that gender-based stopping rules are unlikely to explain the patterns we observe.

Instead, our findings point to economic constraints as the main driver for firstborns transitioning into adulthood earlier than their younger siblings.

In poorer households, particularly in rural areas, firstborn children are often asked to help out financially. This often comes at the cost of their own education. Later-born children, by contrast, receive more investment in their schooling. This may compensate for their limited access to other resources, such as land.

We find no birth order advantage in wealthier households or among families where parents have some education. This again highlights poverty as a key factor shaping these patterns.

The double burden of being firstborn

To sum up, our research shows that, in Madagascar, both male and female firstborns face an earlier transition into adulthood. They leave school and enter the labour market sooner. They marry earlier, although firstborn girls may be at slightly lower risk of early marriage than their younger sisters.

This suggests that, in poor countries, the eldest daughter syndrome is not just about emotional and care-giving responsibilities. It may also come with fewer educational opportunities, greater economic pressure, and an earlier end to childhood. A true double burden for disadvantaged girls. Economic constraints within households largely explain this pattern.

But the story is not only one of constraint. The absence of differences in cognitive and non-cognitive skills suggests that broader community ties, rooted in fihavanana and extended kinship networks, help cushion the impact of early responsibility. These collective structures may not erase inequality, but they offer a vital source of resilience.

As policymakers and practitioners look for ways to promote educational equity, it’s worth remembering that some of the most overlooked trade-offs happen within households. Reducing the weight of those trade-offs – through financial support, community-based programmes, or school retention efforts – could help ensure that the future of one child doesn’t come at the expense of another.

Claire’s work was supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche of the French government through the program “France 2030” ANR-16-IDEX-0001

Francesca’s work was supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche of the French government through the program “France 2030” ANR-16-IDEX-0001.

– ref. Eldest daughters often carry the heaviest burdens – insights from Madagascar – https://theconversation.com/eldest-daughters-often-carry-the-heaviest-burdens-insights-from-madagascar-255785

Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Wycliffe W. Njororai Simiyu, Professor and Chair of Kinesiology and Health Science, Stephen F. Austin State University

Relations between China and Africa are increasingly important in understanding the dynamics that shape our world. But until now, the role of sport was overlooked.

A new book, Global China and the Global Game in Africa, explores the role of football in relations between China and Africa – culturally, politically and economically.

Wycliffe W. Njororai Simiyu chatted to us about his chapter in the book. It’s a study of African football migration, how players fare in the popular China Super League, and what their experiences of the country are.

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What’s the history of African players working in China?

A growing number of African male football players moved abroad to play professionally after the Bosman ruling in 1995. This European Court of Justice decision related to freedom of movement for workers. It triggered sports migration around the globe, and African players were major beneficiaries.

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Read more:
The fighting spirit of young African footballers who migrate overseas

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Historically, aspiring African professional footballers mostly looked for opportunities in Europe. Leagues in France, England, Belgium, Germany, Spain and Portugal were popular because of their colonial ties to Africa. They offered established footballing structures and higher wages. The Middle East, the US and south-east Asia also became options.

However, China’s sustained economic growth over the last three decades has contributed to an intense and multifaceted global engagement that includes the game of football. The Chinese Super League (CSL) began to invest heavily in attracting international talent. It became a viable and often lucrative alternative for African players. This coincided with China’s growing economic influence in Africa.

African players are sought after for their athleticism and speed. And often they make lower transfer fee and wage demands than players from Europe or South America.

How have the African players performed?

Between 2006 and 2023, over 141 African players played in the Chinese Super League. They came from west Africa (59.57%), central Africa (19.5 %), southern Africa (10.64%), north Africa (8.51%) and east Africa (2.13%). Research shows that these players have generally performed well, often making significant contributions to their teams. Match statistics indicate that many African strikers and attacking midfielders have been key playmakers. Many have emerged as top scorers in the league.

Their physical attributes often give African footballers an edge, and many have quickly adapted to the playing style in China. Chinese players, often lacking international exposure, and constrained athletically, tend to rely on technical finesse. Migrant players bring athleticism, cosmopolitan technical-tactical awareness, and levels of intensity that make the league more exciting.

African players are enriching the Chinese game significantly, just as they have done to the European game. They’ve increased the number of tactical choices and game plans for Chinese teams and, in the process, upped the quality of the league.

Of course, performance can vary greatly depending on individual players, team tactics, and the overall level of competition in the league at different periods.

What are players’ common experiences of China?

Players’ experiences in the CSL vary. Many report positive experiences when it comes to the financial rewards and the opportunity to play professional football at a high level. But cultural and linguistic barriers can present challenges. African players must adapt to Chinese food and social customs. Language and communication within the team can take time and effort.

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Read more:
How African diaspora footballers juggle the identity question

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Some players have also reported issues of racism or feeling isolated because of these cultural differences and the transient nature of their contracts. Some feel lonely. Research on African football migration generally highlights that the social and cultural integration process is crucial for the overall well-being and success of African players abroad.

How does football fit into labour migration trends?

Sport, particularly football with its global appeal and professional structures, is a significant avenue for transnational movement. Fifa, as the global governing body of football, facilitates this movement through regulations and transfer systems.

It’s the mission of Fifa to establish and grow the game of football into a truly global sport. This, however, continues to be undermined by the enduring global inequalities and disparities that shape the world.

For many African men, professional football represents a pathway to economic advancement and social mobility. These opportunities are often limited in their home countries due to economic constraints or lack of well-developed professional leagues. So, migration to leagues like the Chinese Super League is driven by both push factors (limited opportunities at home) and pull factors (better financial rewards and professional experiences abroad).

What does all this do for China’s image in Africa?

The presence and performance of African players in the Chinese Super League can contribute to China’s soft power and image in Africa. Seeing African athletes succeed in China can foster a sense of connection and goodwill between the two regions.

It showcases China as a global player in the world of football and can be interpreted as a sign of growing ties and mutual engagement beyond economic and political spheres. Apart from being players, African footballers act as cultural ambassadors for their respective countries and the African continent.

At the level of people-to-people exchange, African players interact with their Chinese teammates, fans and communities. This enhances and sustains cultural exchange and understanding.

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Read more:
China-Africa relations: new priorities have driven major shifts over the last 24 years – 5 essential reads

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However, it’s my considered opinion that, unlike the western countries where many former players settle and raise families, many Africans in China seem not to see it as being a friendly place to settle down.

Even so, the presence of African players in China is helping to develop a greater familiarity and affinity between the people of China and Africa, with the promise of lasting influence socially, economically and culturally.

Wycliffe W. Njororai Simiyu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. African footballers in China: what’s behind the sport migration trend – https://theconversation.com/african-footballers-in-china-whats-behind-the-sport-migration-trend-256520