Abstract This study reviews developments in Burkina Faso from 2020 to 2025 to understand how its leader, Ibrahim Traoré, has approached resource governance through legal action, public policy and institutional change. The research focuses on the application of international legal principles, such as the UNGA Resolution 1803 ( XVII ) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, alongside responses from international investors and arbitration bodies. The findings show that although Traoré’s policies are a strong push for permanent control over natural resources, their implementation is made difficult by weak institutions, binding investment treaties and limited support from regional partners. Moreover, although public discourse and youth mobilisation around resource justice have increased, risks related to authoritarianism, corruption and exclusion remain. We believe that sustainable resource governance in Africa requires not only political will but also institutional reform, transparent legal frameworks and inclusive policymaking. It concludes that international law must evolve to better reflect the developmental priorities and sovereignty claims of resource-rich but economically marginalised states.

Abstract During the identity formation stage of adolescents, the social world is described as extremely complex. The stakes are even higher for those who develop non-normative sexual and gender identities. The study sought to investigate the identity developmental experiences of LGBTI+ adolescents in African communities. Through a qualitative inquiry, adopting a life histories approach as a data collection method, this study used in-depth interviews and focus groups to collect data in Zimbabwe. Data was analysed thematically through the lens of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory. We found that the participants did not experience conventional or ordinary homophobia during their adolescence. However, they suffered from the cumulative effect of long-established, deep-rooted and engrained heterosexism and cisheteropatriarchy, and strived for a positive personal and collective identity to the exclusion of their LGBTI+ identity and with the attendant psychosocial consequences. Therefore, it is vital to create awareness about the diversities of sexual and gender identities in social environments where individuals’ identities develop.

Abstract This article examines the prospects and challenges of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) in West Africa, using alliance theory as the theoretical basis. Methodologically, it is a review paper, using keywords to search through online databases, such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, Science Direct, Google and others. Some keywords and phrases included “Alliance of Sahel States”, “West Africa”, “coups in West Africa”, “military takeovers in West Africa”, “West African democracy”, “ECOWAS stand on coups”, “ECOWAS reactions”, “ECOWAS sanctions” and “regional integration”. The study findings were analysed thematically. Two main themes that emerged were the prospects and challenges of the alliance formation in West Africa. The study concludes that West African states’ political leaders must not take their people for granted in the governance of their states. It recommends that ECOWAS be proactive and act swiftly on warning signs from internal politics rather than reacting after military takeovers.

Abstract Land has been influential in the political discourse and policymaking of both apartheid and post-apartheid democratic South Africa. Currently, considering certain conflicts and recent calls for land expropriation in South Africa, it would seem that the land issue persists despite all efforts by the democratic government in South Africa to address it through various land reform policies. For this reason, interrogating land reform in South Africa and the prospects of peace and national unity in the country becomes pertinent. Using qualitative desktop methods and adopting a self-categorisation theoretical lens, the article interrogates the question of land reform in South Africa. The paper argues that resolving the land question will demand a diversified approach that strikes a balance between social fairness, economic progress and political stability. Achieving this will entail constructive discourse, inclusive decision-making processes, transparent governance, and targeted interventions towards addressing land-related conflicts while encouraging reconciliation and social cohesion in South Africa.

Abstract The study investigates adaptation to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) among the rural youth in Qunu, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The broad focus on 4IR in job creation is its impact on youth skills development, and an important question is how rural youth benefit from 4IR opportunities. With few studies conducted on the topic of youth skills development in the context of 4IR, an investigation of the problems faced by the rural youth in Qunu in accessing emerging technologies was deemed to be of value. Mixed-method research was employed with a sample of 44 young people living in Qunu. Data was analysed using themes. The findings of this study indicate that the respondents had inadequate knowledge about 4IR and the opportunities it offers. Also, little is being done to improve the skills of the youth, though they show interest in improving their IT skills.

Abstract This article explores the “violence–politics of patronage” nexus of land redistribution and ownership after land reform in Zimbabwe. Foregrounding an analysis of the violence on farms, which has been explored by many scholars in other dimensions, the article presents hard evidence of what happened on these farms post the Fast Track Land Reform Programme. Deploying Gramsci’s theory of hegemony, this article interrogates the sociocultural and political linkages of violence, patronage and farm ownership to illuminate the dark realities of land distribution after “jambanja” (farm invasions). The violent behaviour around resettled lands is a manifestation of a well-entrenched patronage system in which those whose political views diverge from the “hegemonic power” lose their land through unscrupulous acts. The violence of the jambanja era, initially targeted at white farmers within the context of a “nativist land revolution”, continues to manifest itself in communities, albeit differently. It is, as the French thinker, Jacques Mallet du Pan, said of the French Revolution, “the revolution devouring its own children”.

Abstract Two geological fault lines mark the southernmost tip of the Great East African Rift Valley. An ancient tectonic uplift, or superswell, caused rifting down the spine of the African continent, which created the Okavango Delta, an endorheic (enclosed) wetland in Botswana. The huge and biodiverse waterbody is an anomaly, as it is surrounded by the otherwise arid Kalahari Desert. Part of this delta is known as the Panhandle. Despite evidence of the Anthropocene, the area teems with massive concentrations of wildlife. It is also home to a diverse post/colonial concentration of human inhabitants, some Indigenous. Each segment of this population has a unique relationship with the environment, informed by Indigenous knowledge systems (IKS), geopolitical hierarchies and the misogynistic politics of the post/colonial nation-state in which hegemonic patriarchies produce gendered ecologies. Through a breaking rank methodology, this paper explores the gendered ecologies and IKS of the post/colonial Panhandle community.

Abstract South African land matters today emanate from the past racially based land dispossession of black communities, which furthered white settler capitalism. Post-apartheid regimes have developed many policies to reverse this legacy, but with little effect. Political parties have blamed the Constitution for the slow pace of land reform, arguing for the need to amend it to clarify ‘expropriation without compensation’. Based on a broad literature review, this article suggests some political, economic and social lessons for South Africa’s land reform. It aims to understand how other countries have dealt with land acquisition for land reform and urban housing development projects, the post-acquisition stage and the reasons for failure and success of some land reforms. This article calls for an alignment of land stakeholders, inclusion of urban land in land reform policies and increasing the powers of provincial officers to improve support for beneficiaries and the subdivision of large farms.