Zambia only just missed declaring a default on its national bond, with Chinese debt a worrying factor also for other countries. South African President Ramaphosa launched a major new initiative to restart the economy in the face of bare Treasury cupboards. Critics point out that public sector salaries are already taking up most taxes with little left for operational expenses and that debt is reaching unsustainable levels.

The IMF warned of a gloomy outlook with falling revenues and limited fiscal space. Poverty is looming in Africa and a ‘debt quagmire may hamper recovery.

In the meantime elections are rolling by: Guinea has just seen the incumbent President, Alpha Conde, win by a landslide, according to the Electoral Commission. The opposition candidate, Callou Diallo, declared victory and planned to challenge the official results in court, while nine people are reported to have died in post-election violence.

Conde, 82, would serve a third term, made possible by a change in the Constitution, an example for Alassane Ouattara in nearby Cote D’Ivoire’s Presidential elections later this year.

Tanzania’s incumbent President, who has declared victory over the Coronavirus with divine assistance, is seeking a second term in two weeks’ time. He opposed social distancing and mask wearing, projecting an image of efficiency and incorruptibility. After being elected he cancelled the extravagant inauguration ceremony for a public cleaning-up, getting his hands dirty picking up trash near State House. Opponents have been arrested, criticism of Government punished, and all non-Government data outlawed. An opponent, Tundu Lissu, survived an assassination attempt for whom nobody had yet been arrested. In September 2020 Lissu’s campaign was suspended for seven days on charges of sedition. He plans, if elected, re-starting the review of the Constitution, freeing political prisoners and compensating those ‘hurt’ by Government.

And in the Seychelles this weekend will be devoted to choosing between three Presidential candidates. In a televised debate on 16 October the availability of housing, cost of living, and the sovereignty of the islands in the face of strategic threats were raised. Maritime security and ecological awareness in the Indian ocean were debated. Despite political tension and the importance of the choice facing them the tenor seemed to be calm and deliberate.

The pandemic has placed an increasing strain on the African economy. Defaults are a growing possibility, and the role of foreign political influence is a rising problem. The strategic importance of the Indian Ocean as well as the Bight of Benin makes political debate difficult. Is it just a memory, then, that an old lady told a Presidential candidates in the market to stop slandering his opponent otherwise she would tell his mother?