The new scramble for Africa’s mind

Today, no one needs to redraw Botswana’s borders to diminish its sovereignty. All it takes is a smartphone, a fabricated headline, a network of anonymous social media accounts, and, in some cases, a few well-placed brown envelopes.

Now picture this. On May 4, Zambia’s Daily Nation published a sensational report on its Facebook page alleging that Botswana had cut electricity exports to South Africa and sealed its borders in response to xenophobic attacks against Batswana. To give the story emotional force, it attributed a dramatic quote to President Duma Boko: “We helped you fight oppression, and today our children are being humiliated”.