Chatham House Africa Programme

04/09/2026

🎙️ | By 2050, many of the world’s largest cities will be in Africa. As one of the leaders considering this future, HE Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu reflects on lessons learned from governing a megacity like Lagos.

Listen in full on : https://chathamhouse.org/2026/08/africa-aware-what-can-lagos-teach-us-about-africas-emerging-megacities?utm_medium=organic-social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=afr

02/09/2026

⛏️ | More than half of critical minerals worldwide are located under or near Indigenous lands. Protests have interrupted production and the business case for taking human rights seriously is becoming stronger, write Christopher Vandome and Bennett Freeman for Chatham House:

More than half of critical minerals worldwide are located under or near Indigenous lands. Community protests have interrupted production, so the business case for taking human rights seriously is becoming stronger and stronger.

02/09/2026

📣 On 17 September, Vice President Ndaba Gaolathe of the Republic of Botswana joins Chatham House’s Tighisti Amare to set out Botswana’s priorities for inclusive economic reform.

🔗Register: https://www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/standard-event/botswanas-future-vice-president-gaolathe-economic-resilience-amid-global?utm_medium=organic-social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=afr

01/09/2026

🌍 | In this article for Forbes Africa, Joshua Z. Walker discusses what it means as Africa’s first commercial direct-to-phone satellite service arrives in the :

There’s a good chance the device you’re using is being powered by Congolese minerals: cobalt almost certainly, and likely tantalum, tin, or tungsten. Many of the resources required for telecom towers, fiber optic cables, and mobile phones derive from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), y...

27/08/2026

🇳🇬 | The Nigerian Army only has approximately 100,000 active personnel according to recent estimates. Its vast and growing population requires a larger military.

Matthew Page argues accompanying reforms are needed in his latest Chatham House analysis: https://www.chathamhouse.org/2026/08/nigeria-will-need-more-bigger-army-tackle-security-challenges?utm_medium=organic-social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=afr

26/08/2026

🎙️ | HE Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu governs one of the world’s fastest growing cities, Lagos – distinguished in a growing class of megacities in Africa.

He discusses how the city is developing solutions to cater to the needs of its growing population on : https://www.chathamhouse.org/2026/08/africa-aware-what-can-lagos-teach-us-about-africas-emerging-megacities?utm_medium=organic-social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=afr

25/08/2026

🇳🇬 | Without accompanying reforms, the risk is that President Tinubu’s plan only makes Nigeria’s army bigger but not better, writes Matthew Page in his latest Chatham House expert comment:

21/08/2026

🎙️| By 2050, many of the world’s fastest-growing cities will be in .

HE Babajide Sanwo-Olu joins Chatham House’s Tighisti Amare to discuss how Lagos is developing solutions to manage rapid population growth and deliver infrastructure at scale: https://www.chathamhouse.org/2026/08/africa-aware-what-can-lagos-teach-us-about-africas-emerging-megacities?utm_medium=organic-social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=afr

18/08/2026

🌍 | “China increasingly sees Africa as one of the few remaining large-scale spaces where industrial expansion, urbanisation, infrastructure deployment and consumer growth can still unfold simultaneously over decades,” Prof Carlos Lopes tells South China Morning Post:

Countries including Zimbabwe and Guinea are ending the pit-to-ship model that saw them exporting raw minerals with limited local gains.

14/08/2026

🇿🇲 | The state of democracy and human rights concerns many voters in .

Chatham House’s Christopher Vandome discusses what’s at stake in the elections on Al Jazeera English’s Inside Story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2DCVP53vYY