When Lydia Polgreen sat down with Howard W. French for The New York Times podcast The Opinions, they confronted one of the most important questions facing Africa and the world today: Can the world afford to turn its back on Africa? French’s answer, grounded in history and moral realism, is an emphatic no. A retreat from Africa would not only…
From the 10th to the 21st of this month, world leaders gather in Belém, Brazil, for COP30—the defining climate summit of the year. More than 190 countries are represented. The theme, “Global Mutirão,” meaning collective effort, calls on leaders for global mobilization to defend the rights of Indigenous peoples and promote shared well-being. Curiously, the president of the “Land of…
The post-election protests in Tanzania shook many across Africa, exposing once again the deep wounds of governance and democracy on the continent. They reminded us that when elections are stripped of fairness, they become instruments of domination rather than expressions of the people’s will. President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared the winner of the national election, “winning” by a staggering…
❝ Insecurity has become one of Nigeria’s most urgent and brutal challenges. It has marred the political and socio-economic life of the country, disrupted education, and unsettled the daily and pastoral lives of countless citizens.” — Augustine Ikenna Anwuchie As violence, kidnappings, and displacement continue to threaten millions across northern Nigeria, faith communities stand at a crossroads of fear and…
The accusation is stark: the spectre of genocide against Christians. This inflammatory claim, initially levelled by the United States government against Nigeria, has ricocheted across international media, amplified by figures like U.S. Senator Ted Cruz. The concern is not new; it dates back at least to President Donald Trump’s 2018 White House meeting with then-President Muhammadu Buhari, where Trump reportedly…
One of the earliest disappointments I experienced as a newly ordained priest was that the first three sick people I anointed never recovered. They all died. I was then serving in a rural community in Eastern Nigeria where many had no access to good healthcare. The visit of a priest was not only for spiritual healing but also, in faith,…
The recent reflections of Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah in Rome and Bishop Wilfred Anagbe’s powerful testimony before the U.S. Congress in Washington have reopened one of the most urgent moral questions of our time: Are Nigerian Christians persecuted? Their differing tones—Bishop Anagbe’s cry from the valley of suffering and Bishop Kukah’s call for nuance and hope, reflect the two sides…
The Nigerian Christian community has been shaken by a recent address given in Rome by Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah during the launch of Aid to the Church in Need’s 2025 Religious Freedom in the World Report. In his remarks, the Bishop of Sokoto acknowledged the widespread violence and insecurity ravaging Nigeria but questioned whether Christians in the country are being…
A Voice Afrique Interview with Rev. Fr. Lawrence C. Emehel, Director, Department of Mission and Dialogue, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria Rev. Fr. Lawrence Chukwunweike Emehel is a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, in northwestern Nigeria — a region known for its rich Islamic heritage and complex interreligious dynamics. Nearly a year into his tenure as Director of the…
In a world marked by conflict and humanitarian fatigue, the story of one priest from Sierra Leone reminds us that faith can still rebuild nations, one wounded heart at a time. From the Ashes of War In a world where humanitarian crises multiply and faith often retreats before violence, the story of Fr. Peter Konteh, a Sierra Leonean priest, offers…