Late last year South African scientists identified a rapidly spreading new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The announcement of the discovery was greeted with consternation because of fears that SARS-CoV-2 might be mutating. This, however, was not the case and since the South African discovery a number of other variants have been identified in other countries. While they can spread more quickly, none have been shown to be more deadly and they appear to respond to the same treatment. Two of the scientists involved in the South African study, Willem Hanekom and Tulio de Oliveira, explain the complex terrain of virus variants.

Tributes began to pour in from around the world as South Africa prepared to honour one of its legendary jazz heroes, Jonas Gwangwa. A trombonist, composer and political stalwart, Gwangwa was a vastly talented artist who spent his life in service both of South African culture and of the people. Gwen Ansell, who is working on a forthcoming authorised biography on Gwangwa, writes about the extraordinary role he played in the country’s liberation culture - and on the world’s music stages.

Collapsed buildings are worryingly common in African cities. The default explanation is that this is due to building regulations not being enforced. Godwin Boateng sets out why this only a partial explanation. The underlying and more intractable problem is the inefficient allocation of public resources, which favours the well-off and leaves low-income people - the majority - to fend for themselves.

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