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| New African | |
|---|---|
| Title | New African |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Category | News magazine |
| Firstdate | 1966 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
New African
New African is a monthly pan-African news magazine published in the United Kingdom with an editorial remit covering African politics, diplomacy, business, culture, and development across the continent and its global diasporas. Founded in the 1960s, the title has tracked decolonization, independence movements, regional organisations, and contemporary statecraft while engaging with leaders, intellectuals, entrepreneurs, and cultural figures. The magazine serves readers among policy makers, diplomats, investors, and African diasporic communities in London, Paris, Lagos, Johannesburg, and beyond.
Founded in 1966 amid the wave of post-colonial transitions following the Algerian War, the magazine emerged alongside publications such as Jeune Afrique and African Affairs to document liberation movements and nation-building. Early coverage highlighted leaders and events including Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta, Julius Nyerere, Léopold Sédar Senghor, Haile Selassie, Nelson Mandela, and episodes such as the Congo Crisis and the Biafran War. During the Cold War, editorial pages debated alignments involving the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organisation of African Unity, the Soviet Union, and the United States. In the 1980s and 1990s, reportage shifted to topics linked to structural adjustment programs under the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, civil conflicts like the Rwandan genocide and the Liberian Civil War, and transitions to multiparty politics exemplified by events in Ghana and Zambia.
Throughout the 2000s and 2010s the magazine chronicled continental integration initiatives such as the African Union, the African Continental Free Trade Area, peace processes including mediation by Thabo Mbeki and Olusegun Obasanjo, and the rise of new economic players like China and India in Africa. The title has navigated digital transformation alongside print peers such as The Africa Report and Mail & Guardian.
The magazine’s coverage spans diplomatic summits like the African Union Summit, elections in countries such as Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Ethiopia, and security issues involving AMISOM, Multinational Joint Task Force, and United Nations peacekeeping missions. Business pages examine corporations and investors including MTN Group, Dangote Group, Safaricom, Naspers, and sovereign actors like Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority. Cultural pages profile figures such as Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Fela Kuti, and actors involved in the Nollywood and Ghanaian cinema scenes. Features explore infrastructure projects exemplified by the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, technology narratives around M-Pesa and innovation hubs in Nairobi and Lagos, and health campaigns tied to organizations like Doctors Without Borders and World Health Organization responses to epidemics such as Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa.
The magazine runs opinion columns by economists, former heads of state, and scholars connected to institutions like Institute of Development Studies, Chatham House, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, and leading universities including University of Oxford, Harvard University, and University of Cape Town.
Published monthly from editorial offices in London, the magazine ships to subscribers across cities such as Paris, Abuja, Accra, Addis Ababa, Johannesburg, and New York City. It is available in print through newsstands and subscriptions and online via a digital edition that complements coverage by peers including The Economist and Financial Times. Distribution partnerships and agreements have been struck with airlines operating routes to African capitals, libraries at institutions like the British Library and university libraries, and diplomatic missions such as various embassies and consulates.
Circulation figures have varied with print-media trends; the title has expanded multimedia output through podcasts, webinars, and events held at venues like Royal Institute of International Affairs and during conferences including Africa Investment Forum.
Contributors have ranged from investigative journalists and foreign correspondents to academics and former statesmen. The magazine has published pieces by or interviews with figures such as Kofi Annan, Robert Mugabe, Paul Kagame, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Mwai Kibaki, Muammar Gaddafi, Idriss Déby, Wangari Maathai, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Aliko Dangote, Strive Masiyiwa, Ousmane Sembène, Youssou N'Dour, and Nadine Gordimer. It has featured reportage by correspondents covering crises in regions including the Sahel, the Horn of Africa, the Great Lakes region, and the Maghreb.
The editorial team has included editors and columnists with experience at institutions such as BBC News, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Al Jazeera, and academic affiliations with London School of Economics and King's College London.
The magazine is cited in policy debates and academic works addressing continental governance, trade, and security, and is read by officials attending meetings of bodies such as the African Union Commission, Economic Community of West African States, and Southern African Development Community. Its profiles have influenced public perceptions of leaders and business magnates, and investigative pieces have spurred parliamentary questions in legislatures such as the United Kingdom Parliament and prompted responses from corporations headquartered in Lagos and Johannesburg. The title has received recognition in media circles alongside awards like the CNN African Journalist Awards and regional journalism prizes.
Critics have accused the magazine at times of editorial biases favoring establishment perspectives or particular economic interests, drawing scrutiny similar to controversies faced by outlets such as Al Jazeera English and BBC. Skeptics have challenged specific reports on topics including resource extraction in the Congo Basin, regime coverage in Zimbabwe, and business dealings involving conglomerates like Vermilion Energy and Glencore. Debates have arisen over representation of francophone and lusophone Africa compared with anglophone coverage, prompting internal editorial adjustments and outreach to contributors across networks in Dakar, Maputo, and Luanda.
Category:Magazines published in the United Kingdom