A farmer works in his wheat field in the Sebt Meghchouch region of Morocco. Wheat, used for bread and couscous, is a staple here. Drought-resistant varieties are being trialled to withstand arid conditions.
Photo: Abdel Majid Bziouat/AFP
The atmosphere last weekend was electric at Elite High School in Entebbe, Uganda. By 11am, many of the students celebrating their prom were already dressed to impress, but the organising team was still working frantically to ensure everything ran smoothly.
“We should be trending! Please create the best content,” one organiser told the 20-person camera and publicity crew. Her voice was already hoarse. “Mummy, the boda guy delivering my dress is not here yet and the occasion has started,” another distraught student was overheard saying on her phone.
Prom, an American coming-of-age tradition, has become a significant phenomenon in Uganda too. Elite High School has developed a reputation for its students’ lavish approach. On a past occasion, a couple of students went beyond being chauffeured in luxurious cars by hiring a helicopter for their grand entrance.
The government was not impressed. It banned luxury SUVs and helicopters for prom. The students have since shifted emphasis from opulence to creativity. This year, the chosen theme was “Bridgerton Affairs”.
“After the ban, we had to innovate and provide something colourful,” said Denis Erungati, a member of the organising committee. “It took me a week to source my outfit from a local designer, and I am proud to support local talent,” said Ainstey Adraako.
She is one of the 300 prom students showcasing their best take on Regency-era style. The aesthetic was thrust back into global pop culture by Bridgerton, a Netflix show produced by African-American screenwriter Shonda Rhimes. The night unfolded with all its pomp and glamour. A professional Latin and ballroom dancer, Valentino Richard Kabenge, guided guests through ballroom steps.
One thing was clear: Elite High School students know how to make their final high school memories truly unforgettable. It might even go deeper than burning their parents’ money for conspicuous consumption. “I can envision starting my own business in event styling in the future,” Adraako said.
Words and photos: Badru Katumba/The Continent
Sapeurs dance in Brazzaville. Sapology is a fashion counter-culture that originated in the Congo (Brazzaville and Kinshasa), with colourful, eccentric suits celebrating elegance, colour harmony and joie de vivre.
Photo: Daniel Beloumo/AFP
Every Sunday, more than 50 skaters gather at Goma’s Kin Market, across from the town hall, to roller-skate on some of the few tarred roads in the city in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They share the roads with the citys’ many motorcycle taxis, chukudus and charcoal lorries.
The Goma Roller Club has existed for more than a decade, navigating conflict and Mount Nyiragongo, Goma’s active volcano. The skaters in the club are almost evenly split between juniors and seniors. Some aspire to play the sport professionally. But even for hobbyists, the training sessions are a respite from the violence and uncertainty that pervades the air in the city.
Words and photos: Moses Sawasawa/The Continent
A fleet of pirogues – the small, handpainted wooden boats favoured by many of the fisherfolk of Mauritania – bob buoyantly in their assigned berths at Port Artisanal in Nouadhibou.
Photo: Patrick Meinhardt/AFP
Small red-and-yellow Nissan Micra taxis are a visual shorthand for Ibadan city in Nigeria.
These affordable and adaptable cars are the backbone of the city’s informal urban mobility system. Ibadan’s Nissan Micras are often 1990s models that have passed through multiple owners and survived years of improvised repairs.
Their compact size suits the city’s narrow streets. And their fuel efficiency and low maintenance costs make them viable in a low-margin fare system. They have become inseparable from the city’s identity.
Words and photos: Temiloluwa Johnson in Ibadan/VII Foundation