There is a fresh tremor running through Africa, where young people – those born in the 1990s and 2000s, the so-called Gen Z – are no longer content to wait for change. The Arab Spring protests that swept North Africa and the Middle East in 2011 may be the reference point, but the shape, speed and stakes of today’s unrest suggest both continuity and mutation.

At the time of writing, Madagascar, off Africa’s south-eastern coast, and Morocco, up at the continent’s crown, were on fire. In the former, protests ignited by serious electricity and water supply issues forced the dissolution of the country’s government on September 30 and the replacement of the Prime Minister with an army general on October 7, a move aimed at “restoring order and the people’s trust”.

But, as local and international media reported, the demonstrators, in their third straight week on the streets when the new Prime Minister was appointed, are now demanding the resignation of President Andry Rajoelina himself – the once wildly popular DJ who remixed his celebrity status into political capital, ultimately ascending to the top job in 2009 in what many observers described as a coup-by-protest. He later legitimised his position, winning the 2018 election with 55% of the vote in a runoff. He secured a first-round victory in 2023, albeit in a contest boycotted by much of the opposition.

The electricity and water shortages are part of a broader breaking point, with hospitals lacking basic medical resources, as a result of which even the most basic procedures could become life threatening, according to media reports. What’s more, unemployment among young people is at stratospheric levels, with those aged 15 to 30 accounting for 70% of the jobless, while the World Bank estimates the poverty rate at 75.2%. Corruption in high places is another flashpoint.

In Morocco, the gripes are much the same: hospitals are under-resourced, unemployment among young people is estimated at 35% to 40% and public-sector corruption is reportedly rampant. The immediate trigger for the latest round of protests – which started on September 27 – was the death of at least ten women following Caesarian operations at a hospital in Agadir, in the Souss-Massa region, reportedly because of poor health services and a shortage of medical staff.

The Madagascar and Morocco unrest echoes the Gen Z-led showdown with police in Kenya in 2024, which forced President William Ruto to withdraw a Finance Bill proposing steep tax increases on essential goods. That concession, however, only came after at least 60 protesters were killed and about 200 injured. There have also been casualties in the Madagascar and Morocco protests.

What unites these movements across the African continent are not just the grievances, but the new profile of those leading the charge. Unlike the more hierarchical, politically tethered uprisings of the past, today’s protests are driven by decentralised, youth-led networks – fluid coalitions formed through social media platforms and grassroots organisations instead of established political parties. These digital natives use TikTok, WhatsApp and X to not only organise but also broadcast their grievances to a global audience, transforming local discontent into global solidarity.

There is a clear continuity with the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011. However, today’s Gen Z movements reflect a mutation of that legacy: the emphasis is increasingly on governance, economic justice and public accountability rather than the immediate toppling of governments. A notable exception, for now, is Madagascar, where protesters are also baying for the President’s blood. In Morocco, while calls have been made for the Prime Minister’s resignation, the king, the ultimate authority, has not been targeted.

This generational momentum is unlikely to fade. My take is that governments that respond with repression risk deeper instability, while those that listen to, and engage with, the new political actors may find in them partners for transformation.

In sum, Africa’s Gen Z protesters are not merely the inheritors of past struggles; they are the architects of a new political landscape. Their demands are a signal that the continent’s future will be shaped by those who refuse to wait quietly for change, choosing instead to make it happen.