Editor's Note: One of the founding members of the Japan Society for Afrasian Studies (JSAS), Professor Adem Seifudein , has also become one of the most thoughtful and consistent contributors to this Newsletter. We are therefore delighted to share with our readers a book review he recently wrote for the Journal of International Relations of the Asia-Pacific. The review, which follows, is both insightful in its own right and an excellent gateway to the book it discusses. Reading Professor...

African countries are experiencing a significant number of election-related conflicts, many of which lead to large-scale violence. (Photo by Reuters) Editor's Note: No Shortcuts for Africa’s Political Renewal Africa stands at a crossroads. Across much of the continent, political life remains trapped in a cycle of predictable dysfunction: staged and manipulated elections, persecution of opposition colleagues, leaders clinging to power for decades,  and political institutions hollowed out by...

By Wakiko Ohira and Kithinji Kinyua We were honored to represent the Japan Society for Afrasian Studies (JSAS) at the 6th Biennial Conference of the African Studies Association of Africa (ASAA), held from September 24 to 27, 2025, at the University of Cape Verde in Praia. This year’s theme, “African Responses to Global Vulnerabilities: Building Hope for the Future,”  provided an expansive and urgent frame through which scholars from across the continent and the diaspora could reflect on...