Politics & Economy

Ethiopia’s US$12.5 billion Bishoftu airport is emerging as a major test of US-China commercial competition in Africa, spanning construction, aviation technology and finance. Its scale is attracting companies and lenders from across the world to one of the continent’s biggest planned aviation projects.

The three major credit rating agencies – Moody’s, S&P Global and Fitch – have often differed among themselves when rating African institutions and countries. Their opinions don’t have to be aligned, but a huge gap in the ratings suggests inaccuracies in the analyses.

Everything changed in August 2021. When the Taliban took over, my father—the bedrock of our family, the one who made us feel safe and loved—lost his job as a government prosecutor.

Official development assistance, the technical term for foreign aid, fell by 23.1% in 2025, the largest annual contraction on record. It’s projected to decline by a further 5.8% in 2026.

In an analysis piece republished by bird story agency, veteran Somali reporter Abdi Guled unpacks the high-stakes struggle unfolding along Somalia’s 2,000-mile coastline, a contest over sea access that could redefine the Horn of Africa.

We are political scientists who have researched the security situation in Mali and the Sahel. Our recently published paper showed that non-state armed groups in the Sahel, particularly in Mali, have emerged as key power brokers, shaping local governance by filling gaps left by weak state institutions.

China recently pledged to expand military support to Somalia in its fight against al-Shabaab militants. Beijing has promised equipment, training and closer security cooperation with Mogadishu. This marks a shift from China’s traditionally cautious and small presence in the country. Brendon J. Cannon has researched how external powers – including China – engage with sub-Saharan Africa. He explains how these dynamics are converging in Somalia.

The model has become more important since formal approval of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Deep Cooperation Pilot Zone in early 2024 and the growth of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Exhibition since launch in 2019.