Journal of African Studies

This paper examines the 2025 general elections in Tanzania, which mark a crucial stage in the country’s democratic transition. It explores the democratic experience that Tanzania has undergone from 1992 to 2025, highlighting this period as a significant phase in the evolution of its political system and governance structures.
The study analyzes the constitutional and legal frameworks governing the electoral process, the role of the National Electoral Commission, and evaluates the programs and platforms of the competing political parties participating in the 2025 electoral race.
The paper concludes that the 2025 elections represent an important democratic milestone aimed at consolidating political stability and reaffirming Tanzania’s commitment to international standards of good governance. It further emphasizes the dominant victory and continued rule of the ruling party, reflecting both the continuity and challenges of Tanzania’s democratic trajectory

The study dealt with the history of Moroccan-Mauritanian relations as one people and one state until the end of the 1960s after the entry of French and Spanish colonizers. There are historical, geographical, and social ties, but problems still appear with every internal problem or political tension. Economically, the two countries enjoy a stable position despite political tensions. The history of the two countries has gone through stages of ups and downs in peace and conflict in accordance with internal and foreign policy during the period from independence to 2011. Mauritania is a link between the Maghreb countries and West Africa. Most points of disagreement go back to the nature of the two ruling systems (Moroccan monarchy and Mauritanian republic) and differing strategic visions. The study adopted the historical and analytical method and produced results and recommendations hoping to contribute to future research.

This study aims to explore the nature and development of Ethiopian diplomacy during the period following the Second World War, by examining its position and strategies in managing the crisis related to the redistribution of the Italian colonies in Africa. The study highlights Ethiopia’s diplomatic role in reinforcing its regional standing and its steadfast efforts during a highly sensitive phase of international and regional negotiations. The study adopts the historical methodology, seeking to trace the events and developments related to the management of the case over time. It also employs a case-study approach to uncover the nature of Ethiopian diplomacy and analytical methods to examine Ethiopia’s political discourse, its decisions, and the positions of the major powers. Additionally, the study relies on diverse primary sources and documents, supported by secondary references and academic works. Among the key findings of the study is that Ethiopian diplomacy succeeded in reshaping the international debate around the issue of the Italian colonies and managed to influence the course of the crisis through strategic and dynamic diplomatic tools. This enabled Ethiopia to secure outcomes aligned with its national interests and security considerations.

Water security in Africa represents one of the most critical strategic challenges affecting sustainable development and regional stability. The continent hosts over sixty transboundary rivers, making cooperation among riparian states essential to prevent conflicts and ensure equitable and reasonable utilization of shared water resources. This study examines the international legal framework governing water management in Africa, focusing on the 1997 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses and relevant regional agreements. It also addresses the challenges in applying international law to Africa’s shared basins—such as the Nile River—and proposes legal and institutional solutions to strengthen water governance across the continent.

Boko Haram originated in 2002 in northeastern Nigeria and remains active despite counterterrorism efforts. This article discusses how the group distorts Islam’s image and threatens security in Central and West Africa. It explores the group’s origins, funding, susceptibility to penetration, and potential counter-strategies. Originally named "Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad," the Hausa nickname "Boko Haram" means "Western education is forbidden." The group rejects Western education and culture, aiming to establish an Islamic state. It became a jihadist movement in 2009, affiliated with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, and began coordinating with ISIS in 2015. The group holds a fanatical interpretation of Islam, accusing mainstream Muslims of apostasy. It kills Muslims in mosques, kidnaps girls for forced marriage, and claims to defend Islam, gaining local support in northern Nigeria by exploiting religious sentiment. The paper recommends using soft power to counter the group—promoting authentic Islamic teachings that emphasize tolerance, peaceful coexistence, and the sanctity of human life. Muslims must learn that killing any person without just cause is strictly forbidden in Islam and leads to hell.

The concept of "partnership diplomacy" is one of the modern concepts in the literature of political science and international relations. However, the rapid changes and multi-track challenges witnessed in the international environment have provided some strategies and mechanisms capable of confronting these evolving forms of challenges and crises, while potentially providing a more dynamic space for states attempting to rethink their behavior or foreign orientation.
In this study, we will attempt to present a new vision of partnership diplomacy in general, and then clarify the mechanisms of Chinese partnership diplomacy toward the African continent in particular. We will also examine the objectives China has achieved or could achieve on the African continent and internationally through the application of this model of diplomacy.
The study focuses on the problematic aspects related to the goals China's partnership diplomacy will achieve in various fields, whether those related to interests, objectives, and influence on the one hand, or those related to status and role on the other.
Arguing that "China's partnership diplomacy represents a clear Chinese strategy to achieve many of the country's supreme goals and interests in the economic, investment, political, military, and other fields, while providing additional opportunities to achieve broader and more important goals related to influence, role, and status."

Several arguments have emerged regarding the extent to which governments acquire their political legitimacy. Since the 1960s, the African continent has witnessed the formation of formal and informal institutions with legal and constitutional foundations.
However, many African countries have faced the challenge of having institutions with political and legal legitimacy, given the existence of political systems that do not distinguish between a state with institutions and a state without institutions, and that do not recognize political and legal legitimacy. There is a difference between a state based on institutions, founded on legitimacy, constitutionality, and the rule of law, and a state lacking institutions, based on close ties to tribal and ethnic affiliations and the absence of balance and separation of powers. This difference has widened in many African countries, particularly since the beginning of the 21st century and the subsequent developments in the international system. Consequently, many African countries still suffer from a fundamental problem their inability to determine the required direction in their political practices to achieve stability. This is due to the numerous challenges facing their political systems. However, there are also supportive opportunities that African countries can capitalize on to achieve stability across the continent.

This paper aimed to demonstrate the history of the emergence and development of hawker (land ownership) in Darfur between 2008 and 2018. Its aim is to understand the concept of hawakir in Darfur and study it in terms of land value, ownership methods, and expropriation. The study focuses on the history of hawakir grants, identifying the grantor and recipient, and the customary and legal frameworks that underpin these grants. It also considers the social, economic, and security value of hawakir (land), as the main research problem is the conflict surrounding hawakir. Therefore, the research adopts two main axes: the first addresses the nature of hawakir, and the second explores the types of hawakir and the causes of conflict. The research employs a historical and descriptive methodology. The study concludes with several findings, including that conflict over hawakir (land) is a major factor in the Darfur crisis, and that the clash of global and regional interests has exacerbated the conflict, leading to displacement and refuge in safer areas. The paper concluded several recommendations, such as revising the 1995 Land Law to align it with contemporary realities, and raising awareness among local administrations and defining their legal role. The paper concludes with a summary, findings ,recommendation ,and a list of source and reference .

Absrract
Maritime security is an important component of both national and global security, on the one hand, and international trade, on the other. The stability of a nation's maritime security contributes to development and commercial and economic prosperity. Furthermore, maritime security is closely linked to global energy security, given that a significant volume of energy trade and transportation occurs by sea.
The Mozambique Channel is one of the world's most important maritime corridors, given its significant strategic importance for global maritime and energy security. The importance of the Mozambique Channel stems not only from its status as a transit point for 30% of the world's oil tankers annually, for example, but also from the security and political fluidity surrounding both banks of the channel, making it an area easily vulnerable to all regional and global security and geopolitical threats. This is evident in the halting of billions of dollars in investments and the failure of major global energy companies, such as Total Energies, Exxon Mobil, and others, to continue exploring and extracting fossil fuels in Mozambique. This is despite the region's extremely promising reserves, which make Mozambique the third-largest natural gas reserve in Africa after Algeria and Nigeria, and are capable of generating revenues estimated at double the country's GDP for decades to come. This is due to the unstable security situation and the limited capabilities of local security forces, both on land and at sea

This study aims to identify the roots of the Sudanese war, its actors, and its development during the period (2023–2025), while analyzing its repercussions on Libyan security and possible approaches to address them. The research employs a combination of decision-making, case study, historical, and legal approaches. Data were collected from both primary and secondary sources, including scholarly books, peer-reviewed journals, academic theses, official reports, conference papers, and credible electronic resources. The findings reveal that the Sudanese war has negatively impacted Libya through the escalation of smuggling, organized crime, and increased displacement toward the south, in addition to the fragmentation of authority in Sudan and its implications for border stability. The study recommends strengthening border security and coordination, providing effective humanitarian responses, and supporting peace and stability in Sudan through regional and international cooperation.

Kwame Nkrumah is considered one of the most prominent figures of national liberation in Africa during the 20th century, a founding leader of modern Ghana, and a key theorist of Pan-Africanism. He combined radical anti-colonial political thought with organizational prowess and a pan-African ambition that transcended borders, making him a pivotal figure in African political history. Nkrumah represents a unique case of the intersection of liberation thought and state-building, and he embodies a model of a leader who attempted to transition from resisting colonialism to establishing an independent civilizational project, despite facing internal and external challenges that culminated in a coup that overthrew his rule in 1966.
This study aims to provide a coherent academic analysis of Nkrumah's life and work by examining his intellectual and political background, reviewing his role in Ghana's independence, evaluating his state-building and development project, and exploring his impact on Pan-Africanism and his place in the continent's political memory

This academic review presents a critical analysis of the second volume of Inside Africa by American journalist John Gunther (1955), translated into Arabic by Jalal al-Din al-Arusi in 1957. The book is part of Gunther’s famous series combining fieldwork and political analysis. The second volume covers East, Central, Southern, and West Africa, as well as Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia. Gunther describes the continent on the eve of decolonization, highlighting disparities between European colonies, criticizing the exploitation of natural resources, and addressing liberation movements such as the Mau Mau in Kenya and Kwame Nkrumah’s rise in Ghana. He provides a harsh depiction of apartheid in South Africa, yet occasionally reveals a paternalistic Western bias, justifying slow change through notions of “civilizational disparity.” Despite these limitations, the book remains a valuable document of Western perceptions of Africa in the 1950s. Its Arabic translation contributed significantly to early Arab awareness of African affairs, especially during the peak of anti-colonial struggles.