African Studies
Utafiti: Journal of African Perspectives
Call for Papers: Utafiti is inviting you to submit your manuscript – any topic in the humanities - for consideration in the next issues.
Highlights
News & Announcements
Stay up-to-date with the Brill African Studies Community and sign up to our newsletter!
Sign upNew at Brill: Afrika Focus
This journal promotes critical and worldly debates with Africa at the centre.
New Series: Africa Futures / Afrique Futurs
Published in association with the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA), Africa Futures features cutting-edge research that critically reflects on some of the big questions relevant to imagining Africa’s future as a place.
Listen to our podcast on Africa and Climate Change
Robin Attfield talks about how Africa finds itself vulnerable to drought but also the flooding of its coastline, among other untoward environmental effects of climate change and civil war.
Developments in Burundi during the year confirmed the trend that had set in during the previous year. Navigating both domestic and external pressures related to the aftermath of the 2015 crisis, the ruling ‘Conseil National pour la Défense de la Démocratie-Forces pour la Défense de la Démocratie’ (cndd-fdd) managed to further consolidate its domination and control over the domestic political field. President Pierre Nkurunziza and his party offensively started preparing the field of play for the 2020 elections, and the party displayed its capacity to mobilise and contain dissent in the run-up to the year’s most important event, the constitutional referendum in May. Other political parties and actors also started manoeuvring in view of approaching elections but were forced to adapt to the rules set out by the government and the cndd-fdd. While in general, Burundi remained relatively stable, several violent incidents continued to occur, and there were frequent reports of human rights abuses and political intimidation by ruling party activists. These reports remained a source of tension in Bujumbura’s relations with the un and major international partners, and whereas the domestic political situation was under control, the economy and international relations were fields that remained fraught with challenges and tensions.