david pilling

Rwanda, by making its own clothes, is doing what we pretend we want of poor nations: to wean themselves off charity ft.com/content/44b5cb…

Nigeria’s economic shock plan on trial via @FT as.ft.com/r/95ac30e0-ec9…

Back with my occasional toilets of the world series. Let it never be said I’m not serious

The ANC’s sudden embrace of South African business via @FT as.ft.com/r/76a6aa4e-a60…

What an incredible career. I still remember the raw beauty of Letter to Daniel like it was yesterday. Keane: veteran Irish foreign correspondent leaves BBC after 37 years irishtimes.com/media/2026/02/…

The British Museum’s Samurai show proves the brush is mightier than the sword via @FT as.ft.com/r/a0b0abae-5b2…

Belgian museum caught in row over trove of DR Congo mineral records via ⁦@CamillaHodgson⁩ ⁦@davidpilling⁩ as.ft.com/r/f0f695db-120…

@EdPaiceARI @FT Much more to it than that - but difficult to explain in a short post

@davidpilling @FT ‘Just add people’ theory, to apply your (excellent) phrase? Or more to it than that?

My review of this thought-provoking book: How Africa Works by Joe Studwell — how to change the economic trajectory ft.com/content/a92696… via @ft

@TioKauma @FT I’m quite sympathetic to that view though I don’t know enough about it. I guess Studwell is talking about what you might call “ethno-linguistic” groups where the distinction might plausibly be more meaningful

@davidpilling @FT The view that Africa is made of multiple differentiated ethnicities is a myth when you consider that almost one third of the population belongs to one ethnolingusitic group (the bantu) and the other two thirds also generally belong to three or four other ethnolingustic groups.

Koko to declare bankruptcy- scoop: Kenyan clean cooking start-up on the brink after carbon credit clash via @FT as.ft.com/r/7adaedd6-7c4…

Every town should have one

Academic Dean @dandrezner comments to @FT about how events in Venezuela reflect shifts in global norms. @davidpilling @lesliehook ft.com/content/7be42e…

Please meet the new cohort of African STARS Fellows! Let me introduce Dr Kamau Yvonne N. from Kenya. Dr. Kamau is a public health and pharmacy professional with over eight years of experience leading health innovations across Sub-Saharan Africa. More info: starsfellows.africa/2025/11/24/dr-… 🇰🇪

Spheres of (resource) influence don't neatly overlap with geography. Building supply chain networks is crucial to successful grand strategy. Enjoyed this discussion with @davidpilling for his long read in the @FT: ft.com/content/7be42e…

The new era of resource imperialism - excellent FT Big Read by @davidpilling and @lesliehook ft.com/content/7be42e…

In this week’s @FT “Big Read” by @davidpilling & @lesliehook, I am quoted defending @POTUS’s foreign policy of securing #USA🇺🇸 access to #energy & #CriticalMinerals, including backing U.S. firms in #Africa faced with #China🇨🇳 #SupplyChain dominance.../1 ft.com/content/7be42e…

@PerneInAGyre @FT Thank you. Congratulations on your book

Still in shock that the legendary @FT @davidpilling read and reviewed "The Elements of Power" (and so graciously too). His work has long been an inspiration and "Bending Adversity" is my favorite book on contemporary Japan: ft.com/content/7f02cd…

Great to see this early review of @PerneInAGyre THE ELEMENTS OF POWER by @davidpilling "cuts like a fast-paced action film from battery labs in California, Tokyo and the backstreets of Shenzhen … to mines in Africa and elsewhere..." @WmCollinsBooks

Learning Yoruba with my daughter via @FT as.ft.com/r/584bc057-1f4…