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Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni plans to seek reelection in January and extend his near four-decade rule of the East African nation.

The octogenarian president’s determination to hold onto office is a common theme across Africa, home to more than half the world’s 10 longest-serving political leaders — sobering testament to the continent’s continuing struggle with political renewal.

Yoweri Museveni. Photographer: Jack Taylor/Getty Images

Museveni has held power longer than four-fifths of Africans have been alive, with his first term overlapping Ronald Reagan’s tenure as US president.

In Central Africa, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has led Equatorial Guinea since 1979, the year the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. And the Gnassingbe dynasty’s control of Togo in West Africa dates back to 1967, two years before the first moon landing.

These leaders largely endure by gaming the system — rewriting constitutions, abolishing term and age limits, and exploiting institutional weaknesses.

Museveni has amended laws to extend his rule, a playbook used by leaders including Paul Kagame in Rwanda, Paul Biya in Cameroon and Denis Sassou Nguesso in the Republic of Congo. Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara, who controversially secured a third term in office in 2020, is now considering a fourth.

The effects have been destabilizing.

Prolonged rule has eroded democratic institutions, fomented political violence and alienated the continent’s youth. Disillusioned citizens increasingly seek change through protest, migration or resistance — instead of the ballot box.

Still, pressure for reform is growing. Civil-rights groups, youth-led movements and regional bodies like the Economic Community of West African States are challenging the normalization of indefinite rule. 

The realization of Africa’s potential to unleash its vast human and economic resources hinges on this inflection point. 

Perpetuating the cult-of-personality politics risks deeper instability and democratic decay. — Paul Richardson

Key stories and opinion:
Uganda’s Octogenarian President Seeks to Extend Four-Decade Rule 
East African Countries Face Broad Crackdown on Political Dissent
Togo’s Dynasty Faces Mounting Protests Over Decades-Long Rule 
Ivory Coast Leader Ouattara Delays Decision on Fourth Term Bid
Light of Democracy Is Dimming Across East Africa: Justice Malala

Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda agreed to a US-backed peace deal that aims to end decades of conflict and promote development in Congo’s volatile eastern region. The two African nations’ foreign ministers signed the accord Friday in Washington. Here’s an explainer that looks at the terms of the deal, which commits the protagonists to cease hostilities and halt support for armed groups, and why there is skepticism over whether it will hold. 

Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Congolese Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner in Washington. Photographer: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

A temporary pause on US tariffs has brought little relief to Lesotho’s key textile industry, which shuttered factories after orders dried up. “It’s very, very dire,” Mokhethi Shelile, the southern African nation’s trade minister, said in an interview. “US buyers are not placing orders because they don’t understand what is going  to happen,” he said. President Donald Trump’s administration slapped 50% reciprocal tariffs on Lesotho in April — the highest in the world — before delaying them until July 9.

South Africa’s currency gained after the nation’s fractious ruling coalition weathered its latest storm. It was triggered by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s firing of a deputy minister from the Democratic Alliance, the second-biggest party in his administration. DA leader John Steenhuisen demanded that Ramaphosa dismiss ministers from his own party who’ve been implicated in wrongdoing. Although the president rejected the ultimatum, the DA decided against leaving the government. The rand’s rally gathered momentum after the central bank governor said a review of South Africa’s inflation target is almost complete.

DA supporters at an election rally in Benoni in May 2024.  Photographer: Leon Sadiki/Bloomberg

Guinea’s interim parliament proposed extending presidential term limits, months before the country is due to hold elections after four years of military rule. The National Transitional Council wants the West African nation’s constitution to allow the president to serve for seven years, instead of five, with a two-term cap, Speaker Dansa Kourouma said. The proposal will be put to a referendum in September. Guinea has been ruled by General Mamadi Doumbouya since President Alpha Conde was ousted in 2021. 

Supply agreements for critical minerals will dominate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to Ghana, Namibia and three other nations. China, the world’s biggest producer of rare-earth elements, has begun restricting exports as it increasingly uses its market dominance for geopolitical leverage. Rare-earth magnets are used in everything from mobile phones to electric vehicles, and Indian automakers fear supply disruptions.  

Narendra Modi. Photographer: Prakash Singh/Bloomberg

The African Export-Import Bank named George Elombi as its next president, entrusting the former legal officer with the reins as it faces a dispute with borrowers over debt repayments. The lender’s shareholders approved the appointment of the Cameroonian, who will replace Benedict Oramah in September. Zambia and Ghana want their loans from the Cairo-based bank to be restructured, but the lender says its preferred-creditor status means borrowers can’t compel it to do so.

Thank you for your responses to our weekly Next Africa Quiz and congratulations to Evans Munyoki who was first to correctly identify Rwanda and Congo as the two African nations that signed a peace deal last week after three decades of fighting. 

The outlook for the worst-performing dollar bonds in emerging markets just got a lot bleaker. The ratio of Senegal’s government debt to gross domestic product unexpectedly rose to 119% last year, Barclays said in a report, citing the latest budget data. That’s well above the 99.7% for 2023 indicated in a recent audit of the nation’s finances.

Thanks for reading. We’ll be back in your inbox with the next edition on Friday. Send any feedback to mcohen21@bloomberg.net