Sound Africa

By engaging with politics, citizens can demand justice and good governance from their governments and leaders. But women political activists face unique challenges. Fatima speaks about why she continues to push for space for citizens voices and women’s recognition in governance. Follow Fatima on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fatima.mimbire Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/fatima_f2m?lang=en

Student leader Ruth Yitbarek wants more Ethiopian women to understand their rights and speak up for themselves. She speaks about the Yellow Movement that continues to grow in Ethiopia’s universities and how it challenges abusive societal norms. Read about the Yellow Movement here: http://www.aau.edu.et/the-yellow-movement/ Follow Ruth here: https://twitter.com/ruth_yitbarek

How do you prove that the home you fled was unsafe, if you could never report the violence you faced there? Thomars Shamuyarira is a Zimbabwean migrant rights activist living in South Africa. He speaks on South Africa’s restrictive asylum process and the experiences of LGBT people from elsewhere in Africa seeking asylum there. You can follow the Fruit Basket on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The Fruit Basket won a prestigious award, read about it here.

What’s it like being a vocal African woman online? Entrepreneur Carol Ndosi discusses the importance of women’s voices on the internet in Tanzania, and how her work led to the creation of support systems for women who are trolled on social media. Check out Women at Web’s work on Twitter using #WomenatWeb Check out the Carol and the Launch Pad’s work here: thelaunchpad.or.tz/ Follow Carol Ndosi here: twitter.com/CarolNdosi More information on Carol Ndosi’s startup, Nyama Choma Festival here:...

It’s not easy standing up to the most powerful man in the country, but that is what Toufah Jallow did when she accused Gambia’s former president Yahya Jammeh of raping her. Toufah talks about her journey, from healing to activism. · Check out Toufah’s foundation here: web.facebook.com/iamtoufahmovement/?_rdc=1&_rdr · Watch HRW’s reporting on Toufah here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P0mQJyzosc

Ugandan writer Rosebell Kagumire edits an African feminist blog. She discusses the importance of curating these voices and how allies with large platforms influence the current movement. This discussion looks at the media’s role in trivializing sexual violence and the growth of support for survivors. Follow Rosebell on Twitter: twitter.com/RosebellK Instagram: www.instagram.com/rosebellk/ Follow the blog African Feminism here: africanfeminism.com/ To access the transcript of the show or find...

As a young girl, when Lusungu Kalanga saw inequalities in her community, she didn’t have a language for it. Today, she creates safe spaces for girls in Malawi. We talk about how online activism rallied offline organizing in Malawi’s #MeToo movement. Lusungu on Twitter: twitter.com/Lusukalanga Growing Ambitions: twitter.com/GrowingAmbition Feministing while Malawian: anchor.fm/feministingwhilemalawian Transcript of this available at: www.hrw.org/video-photos/podcas…ower-of-the-streets

Visual storyteller Kiki Mordi produced an award-winning documentary about sex for grades in Nigerian and Ghanaian universities. As part of a feminist collective there, Kiki continues to speak out against the violence women and queer people face. • Watch the documentary ‘Sex for Grades’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we-F0Gi0Lqs • Check out Kiki’s latest project Document Women here: https://documentwomen.com • Follow Kiki here: https://twitter.com/kikimordi?s=20

Naked Protest: Public nakedness has been documented as a means of political protest worldwide in vastly different cultural contexts. We explore naked protests in Africa, their origins and contemporary impact with the Associate Prof of Comparative Literature from Cornell University, Naminata Diabate, the author of Naked Agency; Genital Cursing and Biopolitics in Africa (2020).

A Leadership Revolution: African states are often described as “irremediably corrupt; ‘hopeless’; ‘criminal’; ‘ungovernable’ or generally in ‘chaos’. But is the cause of these maladies an inherent inadequacy of leadership and governance? If not, what is? For the season finale of Think African, Dr. Ayak Chol Deng Alak joined the conversation. She is the Head of Research at the Strategic Defence and Security Review Board, an implementation mechanism of the revitalised South Sudan Peace...

Joy As Resistance: It’s a curious feature of autocratic regimes that forms of joy are usually banned. We explore how democratic governments in Africa are continuing in that same tradition. In this weeks episode we speak to Wanuri Kahiu a Kenyan Film Director and founder of AfroBubblegum whose film about same sex love, Rafiki (2018) was banned in Kenya. Podcast Credits Think African is brought to you in cooperation with the Heinrich Boell Foundation and African Arguments. Graphics and...

Research on legal and judicial processes has revealed biases in the treatment of women in courts both as witnesses, and accused. We explore how African women lawyers in West Africa are working to change those biases. We speak to Criminal Justice and Human Rights Lawyer, Sabrina Mahtani who has been at the forefront of changing those biases. EPISODE CREDITS: Think African is brought to you by Sound Africa in cooperation with Heinrich Böll Stiftung Cape Town and African Arguments Graphics and...

Rule of Law: Given the importance of the rule of law as an instrument for promoting social, political, and economic development all of which are critical to peace and stability. The ominous decline of the rule of law in Africa cannot be ignored. But, what alternatives does Africa have? We speak to Okechukwu Nwanguma the Executive Director, Rule of Law and Accountability, Advocacy Centre, an organization that promotes justice and for victims of human rights violation and has handled several...

So Where to From Here: Covid-19 has brought with it an increase in homelessness and loss of shelter across the continent. Can the courts protect them? We speak to Khululekile Banzi, the media spokesperson for Residents of Singabalapha (we belong here) informal settlement who won a court order prohibiting the City of Cape Town officials to stop trying to evict them without proper court process. In March 2020 the city issued “compliance notices” warning them that they were contravening the...

We See You: Access to land, property and housing rights continue to be contentious conflict riddled issues on the continent. But, is Anarchy the only viable alternative? We speak to Kelly-Eve Koopman, an Author and community leader who uses diverse discipline to propel social change. She has worked in both the theatre and film industry and has used these creative skills to develop, implement initiatives that drive social transformation. She is the co-creator of Coloured Mentality, a platform...

There’s a huge global political debate about food production, profit and sustainability. We explore some of the challenges farmers face on the continent. Who is feeding Africa? We speak to Ruramiso Mashumba a Zimbabwean Commercial Farmer, 2020 Global Farmer Kleckner Award Winner from Marondera, Zimbabwe. Podcast Credits: Think African is brought to you by Sound Africa in cooperation with Heinrich Böll Stiftung Cape Town and African Arguments. Graphics and Artwork: Neo Rakgajane Script...

The Cost of Power: In this episode we dive into how Africa’s natural resources are managed and the implications of mismanagement on democracy. Is Nuclear power the answer to power generation in Africa? We speak to Environmental Activist, Human Rights Defender and Director of Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, Makoma Lekalakala.

This introductory episode starts from the very beginning by asking if Africa is headed in the right direction? It also asks what type of seeds are we planting for the Future? We speak to Elizabeth Wathuti is a Kenyan environment and climate change activist and founder of the Green Generation Initiative, which nurtures young people to love nature and be environmentally conscious from a young age. She has now planted 30,000 tree seedlings in Kenya through her Green Generation Initiative....

Bi-Monthly seasonal podcast engaging African thinkers and doers on what it means to Think, African. Produced in Cooperation with Heinrich Boll Stiftung, Cape Town and African Arguments.

Meet the team who made One Night in Snake Park. Jedi Ramalapa hosts a discussion that takes you behind the scenes of the making of the podcast series. We discuss what happened, what we learned and the status of xenophobia in South Africa right now.