1980 – 1999
Post-Independence & the Cold War
Nation-building, Cold War proxy conflicts, structural adjustment, the end of apartheid, and the democratic transitions of the 1990s.
- More than 10,000 African municipal workers staged the largest strike in Johannesburg's history to that point. (1980)
- Zimbabwe joined the United Nations, five months after gaining independence from Britain. (1980)
- The El Asnam earthquake struck Algeria's Chelif valley, killing about 2,500 people and destroying tens of t… (1980)
- Colonel Saye Zerbo overthrew President Sangoulé Lamizana in a bloodless military coup in Upper Volta (prese… (1980)
- Lomana LuaLua, the Congolese-English footballer known for his acrobatic goal celebrations in the Premier Le… (1980)
- Joy Adamson, Austrian-born Kenyan naturalist and author of Born Free, was killed near Shaba National Reserv… (1980)
- Robert Ardrey, American-South African playwright and author of The African Genesis, died at age 71. (1980)
- Egypt and Israel establish full diplomatic relations following the Camp David Accords. (1980)
- Robert Mugabe won a sweeping election victory to become Zimbabwe's first black prime minister. (1980)
- Liberian President William Tolbert was overthrown and killed in a violent coup led by Master Sergeant Samue… (1980)
- The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) came into being, with Canaan Banana as its first President and… (1980)
- Nigerian singer D'banj, who helped popularize Afrobeats internationally, was born. (1980)
- The African National Congress published a call to arms from its imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela, smuggled… (1980)
- South African singer and actress Zolani Mahola was born in Bhisho, Eastern Cape. (1981)
- Somali Airlines Flight 40 crashed in Balad, Somalia, killing 50 people. (1981)
- The first game of the South African rugby union team's controversial tour of New Zealand was held in Gisbor… (1981)
- South African anti-apartheid activist Fatima Meer was banned for a second time and barred from public gathe… (1981)
- US Navy F-14 fighters shot down two Libyan jets over the Gulf of Sidra after being fired upon, an incident… (1981)
- Central African Republic President David Dacko was ousted in a bloodless military coup led by General André… (1981)
- Hazel Scott, Trinidadian-American jazz pianist, singer and civil rights activist, died. (1981)
- Egyptian President Anwar Sadat was assassinated by Islamist militants during a military parade in Cairo. (1981)
- Hosni Mubarak was elected President of Egypt, a week after the assassination of Anwar Sadat. (1981)
- Goldie Harvey, Nigerian singer and reality television personality, was born. (1981)
- Antigua and Barbuda gained independence from the United Kingdom, ending nearly 350 years of British rule, w… (1981)
- A group of South African mercenaries led by Colonel "Mad Mike" Hoare, disguised as tourists, attempted a co… (1981)
- South Africa granted independence to the Ciskei "homeland," a Bantustan not recognized by any government ou… (1981)
- A coup d'état in Ghana led by Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings removed President Hilla Limann's government… (1981)
- The National Resistance Army launches an attack on a Ugandan army installation, beginning the Ugandan Bush… (1981)
- Steve Gohouri, Ivorian international footballer, is born. (1981)
- Rita Jeptoo, Kenyan marathon runner, is born. (1981)
- Samuel Eto'o, Cameroonian footballer and one of Africa's greatest players, was born. (1981)
- Ruth Negga, Ethiopian-Irish actress, was born. (1981)
- Eric Djemba-Djemba, Cameroonian midfielder, was born. (1981)
- Bob Marley, the Jamaican reggae musician whose Pan-Africanist message and songs like 'Africa Unite' resonat… (1981)
- Mahamadou Diarra, Malian international footballer and former captain, was born. (1981)
- Charles Robberts Swart, South African lawyer and politician who served as the country's first State Preside… (1982)
- Junior officers of the Kenya Air Force attempted to overthrow President Daniel arap Moi's government in a c… (1982)
- Ruth First, the South African anti-apartheid journalist and academic, was killed by a letter bomb sent by S… (1982)
- Louis Oosthuizen, South African golfer who won the 2010 Open Championship, was born. (1982)
- Michael Essien, one of the most decorated Ghanaian footballers of all time and a Chelsea and Real Madrid st… (1982)
- Thomas Longosiwa, Kenyan middle-distance runner and world indoor 3000m champion, was born. (1982)
- Neil Aggett, a Kenyan-born South African physician and anti-apartheid trade union organiser, dies in police… (1982)
- The South African apartheid government bombed the London headquarters of the African National Congress. (1982)
- Issah Gabriel Ahmed, Ghanaian footballer, was born. (1982)
- Ezekiel Kemboi, Kenyan runner and three-time Olympic steeplechase medalist, was born. (1982)
- Kenenisa Bekele, the Ethiopian distance runner who won multiple Olympic gold medals and set world records,… (1982)
- Guion "Guy" Bluford became the first African American to travel into space, serving as a mission specialist… (1983)
- A coup d'état in Nigeria led by Major General Muhammadu Buhari ended the Second Nigerian Republic. (1983)
- Mido, Egyptian international footballer, is born. (1983)
- Lupita Nyong'o, Kenyan-Mexican Academy Award-winning actress, was born in Mexico City. (1983)
- Mo Farah, Somali-born British long-distance runner and multiple Olympic champion, was born. (1983)
- Hashim Amla, South African cricketer and one of the sport's most prolific batsmen, was born. (1983)
- A car bomb planted by Umkhonto we Sizwe, the ANC's armed wing, exploded on Church Street in Pretoria, South… (1983)
- Idris of Libya, the country's only king, who was deposed by Muammar Gaddafi in 1969, died in exile. (1983)
- Dale Steyn, one of the fastest and most successful fast bowlers in South African cricket history, was born. (1983)
- President Thomas Sankara renamed the Republic of Upper Volta to Burkina Faso, meaning "land of upright/hone… (1984)
- Ladi Kwali, the celebrated Nigerian potter whose traditional Gwari pottery techniques gained international… (1984)
- Morocco and Libya signed the Oujda Treaty establishing the short-lived Arab-African Union between the two N… (1984)
- Muhammad Naguib, the army general who became Egypt's first president after the 1952 revolution before being… (1984)
- Charl Schwartzel, the South African golfer who won the 2011 Masters Tournament, was born in Johannesburg. (1984)