Richard dowden Blog

As the deadline for the Millennium Development Goals approaches what is happening to the UK Government’s aid ministry and its impact on Africa? An overseas aid ministry is an anomaly. How does a government account for taxpayers’ money spent on

Read the rest of Faces change at DfID, but does aid to Africa really matter any more? – By Richard Dowden »

Why are there still so many monarchies among the 193 states of the world? 44 countries have heads of state from a single family under a primogeniture system. But it is hard to find any common thread that explains their

Read the rest of The future Kingdoms of Africa? – By Richard Dowden »

Earlier this year I wrote that ‘Meles Zenawi is the cleverest and most engaging Prime Minister in Africa’ but I always felt that when I talked to Ethiopians about him it seemed like I was speaking about a different person.

Read the rest of Meles Zenawi: two-sided man who took the Long March to power – By Richard Dowden »

The killing of 34 striking miners by police at the Marikana mine in South Africa last Friday is a tragedy that touches more than just the families and communities of the dead. It also highlights the failure of post-apartheid South

Read the rest of Lonmin-Marikana: the end of South Africa’s post-Apartheid settlement? – By Richard Dowden »

Three tell tale signs. Firstly it was discovered that the 16-strong Uganda Olympic team was outnumbered by the officials accompanying it, many of whom are paid five times what the athletes receive. Much of the money that was supposed to

Read the rest of Uganda in trouble: Museveni should now enjoy a well-earned retirement – By Richard Dowden »

Questioned last week on the BBC’s Hardtalk about the connection between Rwanda and the M23 rebel movement in eastern Congo, President Paul Kagame denied all involvement. He said: “We are not connected at all with the cause of the uprising

Read the rest of Kagame and Congo: how long can he deny Rwandan involvement in the East? – By Richard Dowden »

When I was asked to write the programme notes for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of an African Julius Caesar at Stratford-upon-Avon, I tried to imagine what it would be like. My first image was of African actors struggling to

Read the rest of Shakespeare and Africa – Richard Dowden reviews an Africanised production of Julius Caesar »

The death of George Saitoti in a helicopter crash on June 10th removes one of the most important players in Kenya’s piranha pool politics. Saitoti served as a senior minister in the presidencies of Daniel arap Moi and Mwai Kibaki

Read the rest of Kenya: Saitoti’s death and the coming battle – By Richard Dowden »

RAS Director Richard Dowden interviewed Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles on May 12th 2012. What follows is a selection of quotes from the interview on subjects ranging from democracy to the demise of Muammar Gadaffi and ‘land grabbing.’ To read Richard’s

Read the rest of Meles Zenawi interview excerpts: “Unlike all previous governments our writ runs in every village” – By Richard Dowden »

Meles Zenawi is the cleverest and most engaging Prime Minister in Africa – at least when he talks to visiting outsiders. When he speaks to his fellow Ethiopians, he is severe and dogmatic. But he entertains western visitors with humour

Read the rest of How Meles Zenawi rules Ethiopia – By Richard Dowden »