The uprisings of citizens in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya have seized the attention of media analysts who have characterized these as 'Arab revolutions', a perspective given weight by popular demonstrations in Yemen, Bahrain, Syria and elsewhere. However, what have been given less attention are the concurrent uprisings in Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Western Sahara and Zimbabwe. The uprisings across Africa and in the Middle East are the result of common experiences of decades of declining living standards, mass unemployment, land dispossessions and impoverishment of the majority, while a few have engorged themselves with riches. Frizoe Manji is editor of Pambazuka News and the editor of the recent book African Awakening: The emerging revolutions. Firoze explains why this is happening now and the prospects for Africa in the future.