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The Covid-19 crisis has been the big story of 2020 but how has Africa handled the pandemic, and amid the serious set backs have there also been some digital and technical gains? What opportunities will the African Continental Free Trade Area bring after it comes into effect in January 2021? How can Africa take charge of its own climate change policies? And is the continent ready for the fourth Industrial Revolution? These are some of the questions that the guest panel of Dr Oby Ezekwesili, Rebecca Enonchong, Professor Ken Opalo and Professor Landry Signé address with presenter Dickens Olewe as they look back at the issues and trends in Africa over the past year, and discuss what 2021 might bring. This episode was first broadcast on the BBC Africa Today podcast

I was interviewed as part of Constructive Institute's 24-hours Future of Journalism Conference. Africa Rising? Africa Hopeless? No, Africa Being. https://constructiveinstitute.org/

Nelson is the Director of Programmes at #DefyHateNow. More about him here https://defyhatenow.org/our-team/#kenya

Akinyi Ochieng is a writer and marketer working in the tech and financial services industries. She is based in New York. More here www.akinyiochieng.com Towards An Anti-Racist Workplace: Tools and Strategies to Support Black Employees https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/towards-an-anti-racist-workplace-tools-and-strategies-to-support-black-employees-a83c4f38c9ef

Dr Richard Ayah: Public Health in times of Covid-19 by Dickens Olewe

Simon Allison - Mail & Guardian South Africa: Reporting Covid-19 & publishing on WhatsApp by Dickens Olewe

Verah Okeyo & Esther Nakkazi: Reporting Covid-19 in Kenya and Uganda by Dickens Olewe

"#Africa🌍has more than 600 confirmed cases of #COVID19 in 34 countries, compared with 147 cases one week ago. While Africa can learn from the experiences of other countries, the response must be adapted to the context of the continent." - WHO 19.03.2020

Lydia Matata is a Kenyan filmmaker and independent journalist.

She’s a multimedia journalist and trainer who spent four years with the BBC and currently is a media consultant. She has been nominated for 3 Annual Journalism Excellence Awards in Kenya. She has worked in East African, England, and Malaysia. Frenny has been a producer, radio presenter and reporter who has covered a variety of specialities, including technology, the environment, arts and culture, business, and politics. She also is an expert in social media trends and strategy. More here: http://frennyjowi.com/

Odanga Madung - Data journalist at OdipoDev - Kenya by Dickens Olewe

Ambassador Wu recently sat down with BBC journalist Dickens Olewe for an interview at the embassy in Nairobi. During the interview, they discussed some of the most sensitive issues that confront the China-Kenya relationship today. Dickens joins Eric to provide a bit of background on how he was able to secure the interview and what he thought of Ambassador Wu’s responses to questions about transparency, racism and whether China is engaging in predatory lending in Africa.

Nanjira Sambuli is a Kenyan researcher, writer, policy analyst, advocacy strategist and musician. She is currently the Digital Equality Advocacy Manager at the World Wide Web Foundation.

So a couple of weeks ago I tried to bring together three of my favourite Kenyans for a special podcast episode. Well, I managed to get two - Ory Okolloh, a well known commentator on matters Kenya, and Nanjala Nyabola, writer and political analyst. We talked about activism, tech, politics, the media in Africa and much more. It's a really good listen. I also managed to speak to Nanjira Sambuli - my other favourite Kenyan - so watch out for that episode as well.

I reached out to Mutuma to discuss this article. Though they gang up against it, Kenyan media will thrive https://www.nation.co.ke/oped/opinion/Kenyan-media-will-thrive/440808-5324026-g3p0w8/index.html

Journalist, documentary filmmaker, speaker, and media innovator. Asha is the Special Projects Editor at Kenya's leading broadcaster; Citizen Television. More about her https://www.ashamwilu.com/

China is Kenya's biggest trading partner but the East African country has been borrowing a lot from the Asian giant to fund its infrastructure projects, this has created a lot of concern that Kenya is borrowing beyond its means. I asked China's Ambassador to Kenya, Wu Peng about the funding for the second phase of the Standard Gauge Railway - China's largest funded project in the country- whose viability is being questioned. The interview also covers debt trap diplomacy, funding for the Lamu coal power plant, trade imbalance and more.

Bonus Episode: Too Early For Birds -Tom Mboya Edition by Dickens Olewe

An expert discussion that addresses the importance of media and communication to development, the roots of the media crisis in developing countries and the impacts on media and society at a country level in the Global South. Chair: Julie Posetti - Senior Research Fellow, University of Oxford Speakers: Dickens Olewe, BBC journalist - JSK Journalism Fellow Stanford University Mira Milosevic, Director, Global Forum For Media Development Thomas Hughes, Executive Director, ARTICLE 19 Gwen Lister, Founding Editor, The Namibian

Loic Forget - La Sentinelle in Mauritius - Drone journalism, business model, press freedom by Dickens Olewe