The 18th century satirist and poet Jonathan Swift once wrote: “So geographers, in Afric maps, With savage pictures fill their gaps, And o’er uninhabitable downs, Place elephants for want of towns.” Mapmakers’ ability to chart Africa has come a long way since those words were penned in 1733, but in many ways popular perceptions of the continent have not. More often than not, when referring to Africa, people in developed countries fill their mental image with Swift’s “savage pictures” and “uninhabitable downs”.
It is not hard to see why. Press coverage of the continent is dominated by negative news. Strife, war, famine and corruption dominate the headlines, whereas little is said of the great strides that some countries have taken towards political and financial stability.
