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The African Gourmet

The African Gourmet: Explore African Culture & Recipes

One bowl of fufu can explain a war. One proverb can outsmart a drought.
Welcome to the real Africa—told through food, memory, and truth.

Christmas & New Year in Africa

Christmas & New Year Across Africa

Holiday traditions, recipes, and celebrations

Christmas across Africa

Merry Christmas in African Languages

Traditions
Krampus dessert

Krampus's Favorite African Dessert

Recipes
New Year fireworks in Africa

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Celebrations
Black eyed pea casserole

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Luck & Prosperity

FOOD PROVERBS

African Food Proverbs

Culinary wisdom passed down through generations

African food sayings and proverb

Best Ten African Food Sayings & Proverbs

Culinary Wisdom
Meat stew representing animal wisdom

Honoring Animal: African Wisdom of Thankfulness

Gratitude
Diverse hands placing food on shared table

Bring Something to the Table

Community
Lemon varieties representing spice of life

6 African Proverbs That Will Spice Up Your Cooking

Transformation

Port Harcourt in Southern Nigeria is one of the most polluted places on earth and the center of the largest oil spill on earth.

Nigeria's oil industry has been a major source of environmental damage. Shell is to pay 15.9 million USD to Nigerian farmers over oil damage where oil pollution continues to damage the health and livelihoods of many in the area. Nigeria’s crude oil and natural gas exports earned $55 billion in 2018.

Port Harcourt in Southern Nigeria is one of the most polluted places on earth

Land soaked in oil, oil companies are accused of negligence in the Niger Delta that has deep oil and gas reserves. Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa, there are hundreds of oil fields in the Niger Delta, one of the largest in the world. After suffering the effects of major pollution for decades, people have turned to the courts for justice. 

Since 2008, the Netherlands branch of Milieudefensie also known as Friends of the Earth along with four Nigerian farmers have been fighting the oil spill case against Shell. In 2021 a Dutch court in the Hague ruled that the Nigerian branch of Shell must compensate farmers and the community. The money will be going to communities in Oruma, Goi and Ikot Ada Udo in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. The oil spills in this case happened between 2004 to 2007.

For over 50 years Port Harcourt in Southern Nigeria has been the center of Nigeria’s petroleum industry. Oil spills have left a 27,000 square-mile region of swamps, creeks and mangrove forests in southeastern Nigeria one of the most polluted places on earth. The bulk of Nigeria’s oil production has been coming from deep-water fields. 

Oil spill after oil spill has turned the Niger Delta, in southern Nigeria into one of the most polluted places on Earth where oil spills create chemicals and heavy metals like mercury, lead and chromium and leak into the farmland. 

Shell has agreed to pay nearly 16 million USD Nigerian farmers and their communities to compensate for damage presumably caused by pollution coming from multiple oil pipeline leaks in its oil pipelines. Nigeria has been the stage of the largest oil spill on earth.

The four farmers who began the case - Barizaa Dooh, Elder Friday Alfred Akpan, Chief Fidelis A Oguru and Alali Efanga - said the leaks from underground oil pipelines had cost them their livelihoods by contaminating their fields and their fish farming ponds.

As well as compensation, last year's court ruling ordered Shell to set up a leak early detection system and the use of bioremediation technology. Bioremediation is the use of either naturally occurring or deliberately introduced microorganisms or other forms of life to consume and break down environmental pollutants to help clean-up polluted land and water.

Alali Efanga, one of the Nigerian farmers who, along with Friends of the Earth Netherlands, brought the case against Shell: “This ruling offers hope that Shell will finally begin to restore the soil around my village so that I will once again be able to take up farming and fishing on my own land .”

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DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17329200

African Recipes Organized by Meal Time

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Ivy, founder and author of The African Gourmet

About the Author

Ivy is the founder and lead writer of The African Gourmet. For over 19 years, she has been dedicated to researching, preserving, and sharing the rich culinary heritage and food stories from across the African continent.

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Recipes as Revolution

Recipes as Revolution

When food becomes protest and meals carry political meaning

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African woman farmer

She Feeds Africa

Before sunrise, after sunset, seven days a week — she grows the food that keeps the continent alive.

60–80 % of Africa’s calories come from her hands.
Yet the land, the credit, and the recognition still belong to someone else.

Read her story →

To every mother of millet and miracles —
thank you.

Working Hands of Africa

The labor and love that feeds a continent

Hands holding African fruit

African Culture & Traditions

Harvest & Heritage
Hands preparing fufu

How Fufu Explains Politics

Food & Power
Farming hands in Africa

Slow Food Disappearance

Farming & Tradition
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The Universal Plantain

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African Gourmet FAQ

Archive Inquiries

Why "The African Gourmet" if you're an archive?

The name reflects our origin in 2006 as a culinary anthropology project. Over 18 years, we've evolved into a comprehensive digital archive preserving Africa's cultural narratives. "Gourmet" now signifies our curated approach to cultural preservation—each entry carefully selected and contextualized.

What distinguishes this archive from other cultural resources?

We maintain 18 years of continuous cultural documentation—a living timeline of African expression. Unlike static repositories, our archive connects historical traditions with contemporary developments, showing cultural evolution in real time.

How is content selected for the archive?

Our curation follows archival principles: significance, context, and enduring value. We preserve both foundational cultural elements and timely analyses, ensuring future generations understand Africa's complex cultural landscape.

What geographic scope does the archive cover?

The archive spans all 54 African nations, with particular attention to preserving underrepresented cultural narratives. Our mission is comprehensive cultural preservation across the entire continent.

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Yes. As a digital archive, we're committed to accessibility. Our 18-year collection is fully searchable and organized for both public education and academic research.

How does this archive ensure cultural preservation?

Through consistent documentation since 2006, we've created an irreplaceable cultural record. Each entry is contextualized within broader African cultural frameworks, preserving not just content but meaning.