Ahead of the 2023 general polls, the chairman of Nigeria’s electoral commission, Mahmood Yakubu, was sworn in for a second term nearly six months ago. Following criticisms that trailed the 2019 general elections, which Yakubu supervised, it is clear that his second term will be defined by the integrity of the country’s election system. Emmanuel Remi Aiyede unpacks what urgently needs to be fixed to achieve free and fair polls in 2023. His recommendations include strengthening the channels for the distribution and retrieval of election materials, improvement in the transparency of the collation and transmission of election results and greater use of technology, especially electronic accreditation and verification of voters.

In Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, it is estimated that over 70% of the population live in informal settlements. Many of these settlements have a history rooted in colonial policies whereby the “African native” was a temporary resident of the city and wasn’t formally allowed to live outside their working quarters. As these informal settlements grew over the years, their names – and the names of places within them – have grown to encapsulate their history. Melissa Wanjiru-Mwita reveals how residents came up with the names of the settlements and the places and roads within them. These names gave them a voice, representing the issues that they struggle with every day.

Today marks the 27th anniversary of the day Nelson Mandela became the first president of a democratic South Africa. He was also the country’s first black head of state. Here is a selection of previously published articles:

• What’s left of the “1994 miracle”

• Contradictory views about democracy

• South Africa has failed Mandela on human rights

• The flawed icon who saved a country

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