Africa Summit Research Articles

SMEs as Agents of Peace and Security: Insights from the 2023 YouthConnekt Africa Summit

This study examines the potential of youth-led Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to contribute significantly to Africa’s peace and security agenda. Drawing on insights from the 2023 YouthConnekt Africa Summit, thepaper highlights the critical role that these enterprises can play in fostering peaceful engagement and addressing the root causes of conflict. By investing in youth leadership capacity, supporting youth-led initiatives, and creating safe spaces for dialogue, governments and stakeholders can leverage on the power of youth-led SMEs to promote positive peacebuilding outcomes. The study further identifies key areas for engagement, including contextual specificity, understanding the root causes of threats and opportunities, going beyond tokenism, andimplementing comprehensive national action plans on youth, peace, and security. While youth-led SMEs offer a promising avenue for peacebuilding. Further research is needed to understand their impact and developeffective strategies for supporting their growth and success.

The contemporary role of the Russian diplomacy regarding the sub-Saharan Africa

The author thanks to his longstanding fi eld experience in the sub-Saharan Africa shares his controversial views about the Russian diplomacy and its role in that part of Africa namely after 2019 when Russia made a drastic change in its partnership with Africa and held the same year in Sochi the fi rst Russia –Africa summit. The author submits his proposals to strengthen drastically the Russian diplomacy human resources on Africa as well in the Foreign Ministry as in the sub-Saharan Africa itself. In this respect he calls the Foreign Ministry to abandon as soon as possible the so-called residual principle in human resources policy regarding the sub-Saharan Africa.

Problems of legal regulation of bilateral investment agreements in the economic community of west african states (ECOWAS)

In the context of Russia’s implementation of a renewed foreign policy, in which new legal concepts like friendly and unfriendly states have emerged, special emphasis has been placed on the development of relations with African countries. Despite active attempts by Western countries to influence our country’s relations with African partners, most countries on the continent have not changed their attitude towards Russia and continue to show considerable interest in strengthening bilateral relations, including in the area of investment with Russia. The outcome of the 2019 Russia–Africa summit showed a high level of trust and expectations of African leaders from Russia. These circumstances should give a significant impetus to the active development by of the Russian Federation of equitable and effective trade relations with African countries, which is impossible without a detailed analysis of the legal framework of the ECOWAS states governing foreign investment.

Status Competition: The BRICS’ Quest for Influence in Global Governance

The 14th Brazil Russia India China South Africa (BRICS) Summit hosted by China on the 23rd and 24th of June 2022 has significance for world politics and global governance. Emerging powers or rising powers have in recent times had significance in terms of global governance. The emergence of rising powers and the subsequent shift in power from the Global North to the Global South can be seen as the new transformations that are occurring in the international order. New groupings such as the G7, G20, BRICS, Malaysia, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Turkiye, Australia (MIKTA) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organizations have now become significant players in the realm of global governance. They can also be seen as catalysers for the shifting of influence in terms of global governance. In this article, the shifting influence of power from the North to the South will be analysed in the context of status competition. The article would subsequently assess the BRICS grouping in terms of its quest for influence in global governance. Additionally, the article would also assess if this choice to achieve influence in global governance could result in the emergence of conflict between established powers and rising powers.

Summitry Diplomacy in Turkey–Africa Relations: Statements, (Non-)Accomplishments and Effectiveness

ABSTRACT Over the last two decades, summits have gained great importance in developing relations with African countries and they have become useful tools to understand intersecting roadmaps on the continent. China, India, Japan, the United States, European countries and Russia conducted various summits and business forums targeting to develop their political, economic and military relations with Africa. In this vein, FOCAC (Forum on China–Africa Cooperation), European Union–Africa Business and Investment Summits, Japan’s Africa Development Summits and Russia–Africa Summit provide some details of these powers’ Africa policy. Turkey has also emerged as a new actor and summit organizer in Africa since it opened a new page for Africa in its foreign policy in 2005. After being a strategic partner to the African Union in 2008, Turkey has conducted three Turkey–Africa summits, Istanbul (2008), Malabo (2014) and Istanbul (2021), to form its roadmap in Africa. This work aims to analyse the role of Africa–Turkey summits in the development of Turkey’s Africa policy and its relationship with African countries. The paper looks at all declarations comprehensively to evaluate Turkey’s foreign policy discourse on Africa. Moreover, it examines Turkey’s Africa policy implementations and achievements on the continent through the lens of summits.

Migration Processes in Africa and the Problem of Security On the Occasion of the Second Russia–Africa Summit

Migration Processes in Africa and the Problem of Security On the Occasion of the Second Russia–Africa Summit

The Second Russia – Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum: New Global Architecture

The article explores issues high on the agenda of the second Russia – Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum. The authors give an overview of thematic sessions, important political agreements, summarize the main results of the Summit and Forum, and discuss the provisions of the final declaration. Guided by Irina Abramova, Director of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the authors took part in the preparation of a number of sessions and materials for the Forum. The article details the most important work of the entire Institute in this area. The authors conclude that the scale of the Second Summit and Forum is determined not only by the number of participants and signed agreements, but also by the geopolitical significance of the event in a broad international context and contribution to the formation and establishment of a more equitable architecture of the world order. African countries, as well as the African Union (AU), are increasingly loudly and clearly declaring their international agency, which is in the interest of Russia. The main political issues raised during the Summit and Forum, such as international agency, fight against neocolonialism and strive for multipolarity, will determine the agenda of Russia – Africa cooperation in the long term.

Russia’s Soft Power in Africa: Potential and Challenges of Russian-speaking Women’s Communities

The article refers to one of the integral parts of the of Russian soft power foreign policy, which lies in its interaction with the Russian-speaking women’s communities on the African continent. This topic has not previously been given an appropriate consideration in the domestic scientific discourse. The processes of current social and political transformations in the African countries require the significant increase in soft power, which could become the instrument of developing and consolidating relations between Russia and new African elites and African people. The Russian-speaking communities in Africa and organizations they create are largely composed of women and are developing thanks to their own initiatives. The potential of Russian-speaking women’s communities in Africa, as well as of associations of African graduates of Soviet/Russian educational institutions as prospective soft power providers is quite significant, yet seriously underestimated and untapped properly. Today a variety of associations, clubs, fraternities, unions comprised of Russian-speaking women is widely occurring in the majority of African countries. There are such associations in Zambia, Cameroon, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Nigeria, Uganda, Togo, Angola, Mauritius, Madagascar, Senegal, Nigeria, Rwanda, Mali, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique, and other countries. Russian-African mixed families are considered as the most probable potential mediators in Russian and African societies, cultures and markets. At the same time, the development of ties with the Russian-speaking diaspora in Africa would contribute not only to supporting the foreign policy activities of the Russian Federation on the continent, but also to the implementation of such important national priorities of our country as supporting compatriots abroad and promoting the “Russian world.” This acquires particular importance on the threshold of the second Russia - Africa summit in 2023.

Indonesia’s African Foreign Policy Shift under President Jokowi

Under President Jokowi’s leadership, Indonesia seems to have made Africa a foreign policy priority. Previously bounded by Bandung romanticism and lacking understanding on the contemporary strategic importance of Africa, Indonesia finally launched its own Africa+1 forum in April 2018 in Bali, the Indonesia Africa Forum (IAF), following an economic diplomacy framework and will to do business with Africa. For Jokowi, Bandung should be leveraged to mean business. Indonesia had previously struggled to institutionalize Asia-Africa intercontinental multilateralism through the New Africa-Asia Strategic Partnership (NAASP) launched during the 2005 Asia Africa Summit in Jakarta organized to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Bandung Conference; while other major Asian powers such as Japan, China, Malaysia, India or South Korea developed their own political, economic and cultural platforms with African countries. Closing a clear research gap, this original study allows a better comprehension of this foreign policy shift and of Indonesia's contemporary foreign policy towards Africa within Global Africa Studies. For more pragmatism and flexibility, this qualitative research, notably based on in-depth interviews with Indonesian and African diplomats, uses an eclectic analysis allowing a holistic approach combining levels of analysis and types of factors; thus increasing explanatory power.

Data-driven framework for delineating urban population dynamic patterns: Case study on Xiamen Island, China

The effective data mining of social media has become increasingly recognized for its value in informing decision makers of public welfare. However, existing studies do not fully exploit the underlying merit of big data. In this study, we develop a data-driven framework that integrates machine learning with spatial statistics, and then use it on Xiamen Island, China to delineate urban population dynamic patterns based on hourly Baidu heat map data collected from August 25 to September 3, 2017. The results showed that hot grids are primarily clustered along the main street through the downtown area during working days, whereas cold grids are often observed at the edge of the city during the weekend. The mixed use (of commercial and life services, restaurants and snack bars, offices, leisure areas and sports complexes) is the most significant contributing factor. A new cold grid emerged near conference venues before the Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa Summit, revealing the strong effects of regulations on population dynamics and its evolving patterns. This study demonstrates that the proposed data-driven framework might offer new insights into urban population dynamics and its driving mechanism in support of sustainable urban development.

Diplomatic Language: An Analysis of Salutations from Speeches used in International Diplomacy

This paper analyzes the core aspects of diplomatic salutations through the discussion of speeches used at international summits. Speeches by heads of states were chosen from two Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summits (1989, 2005), South Summit of Group 77 and China (2005), Islamic-American Summit (2017) and Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit (2018). Examining the context of salutations from the summits mentioned above, this paper aims to provide some insight into the international diplomatic protocol of salutations as applied at international gatherings. Research findings suggest that most leaders use salutations in a way that reflects their position within the political and cultural systems of their respective countries.

African horizons of Russian science and education

Based on the results of the first Russia—Africa Summit and Economic Forum, priority areas of economic cooperation, according to which concrete results can be achieved in the coming years, were identified. These are modern and high-tech mining and processing of minerals, geological exploration, energy (including renewable energy sources), infrastructure development (specifically the construction of railways and housing), agriculture, digital technology, medicine, science and education. Cooperation between Russian universities and African countries occupies a special place. Currently implemented by the Sergo Ordzhonikidze Russian State University for Geological Prospecting (MGRI), the scientific and educational initiative for the development of the mineral resource base of Uganda, presented in June 2019 to the country’s President Yoweri Museveni, is the basis for International cooperation between Russian universities in the East African region.

Comparative Assessment of Investment Attractiveness of African Countries for Russian Capital

In the Russian scientific literature there are no actual works on a comprehensive comparative assessment of the investment attractiveness of African countries for Russian capital. The distinctive feature of the study is the selection of factors and quantitative indicators characterizing investment attractiveness of African countries, reflecting the specifics of Russian-African relations. The role of Africa in Russia’s foreign economic policy has increased significantly in recent years. The number of events aimed at strengthening cooperation between Russia and African countries has increased dramatically in various fields. The Russia – Africa summit co-chaired by the presidents of Russia and Egypt will be held in Sochi in October 2019. Thus, 2019 can rightly be called the year of Africa in Russia. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of these and other measures largely depends on the formation of a specific and detailed agenda (including investment sphere), and its formation requires comprehensive research on this issue. The author collected a significant statistical base of 32 indicators for 54 African countries (22 indicators characterize the investment potential, 10 characterize the investment risk). The geosituational approach developed at the Kazan school of economic geography is used for the collection and analysis of statistical data. The author concludes the most attractive countries for Russian investments characterizing by high potential and moderate risk or moderate potential and low risk; proposes to allocate subregional leaders (less obvious in the macro-regional scale) by the method of «sliding window». Thus, the study can be used for the formation of foreign economic strategies of Russian investors; it can become the basis for further comprehensive studies of the investment attractiveness or investment climate of African countries, as well as for more detailed studies at the specific country level.

La Guinée Équatoriale: en lien entre l’Afrique, la péninsule ibérique et l’Amérique latine

No passado, os intercâmbios entre a África Subsaariana e a América Latina se limitavam ao comércio escravo do Atlântico. A África subsaariana forneceu escravos para plantações na América Latina. A abolição da escravidão, a presença de afrodescendentes, a independência dos países da América Latina e da África mudaram as relações entre as duas regiões do mundo. Por razões históricas e linguísticas, a Guiné Equatorial é um elo entre a África, a Península Ibérica e a América Latina. Em 1984, o Congresso internacional hispânico e africano da cultura teve lugar em Bata. Em 2013, Malabo acolheu a terceira Cúpula da África e América do Sul. Durante o mesmo período, a Guiné Equatorial ingressou na comunidade dos países de língua oficial portuguesa (PALOP). Em 2011, o país adotou o português como terceira língua oficial. Em 2014, a Guiné Equatorial tornou-se membro da organização dos países de língua oficial portuguesa. Este artigo analisa as origens e os impactos do Congresso hispânico e africano internacional da cultura de 1984. Em seguida, estuda as questões e perspectivas da Cúpula da África e da América do Sul de 2013, com base em documentos de arquivo e de entrevistas.

Participation in Improving Clinical Outcomes of Cancer Patients by Nongovernmental Organisations in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Case for Zambia

Amount raised: $8000 Background and context: The Zambian Cancer Society (ZCS) is a nongovernmental organization dedicated to fighting cancer along the continuum of care. Until recently, ZCS had provided nonclinical social support to patients by donating food, toiletries, clothing and transport money. The Society also runs a patient navigation desk at the national Cancer Diseases Hospital, which provides information to patients, cancer survivors and their care givers. In 2017, ZCS in collaboration with Oncocurae Consultancy decided to participate in clinical outcomes by fundraising for service delivery costs. Aim: To improve clinical outcomes of cancer patients by filling in the financial gap in cancer care in Zambia. Strategy/Tactics: The Zambian Cancer Society engaged with technocrats in the field of oncology to understand the barriers to quality care and good outcomes for cancer patients treated at the national Cancer Diseases Hospital. Solutions within realistic budget lines were then proposed. Partners such as the Rotaract Club of Lusaka, Zambia Active Ambassadors, Zambians living in the UK and many more were sensitized to these needs for fundraising. Program process: Three main areas were identified: Knowledge gap in implementation of more conformal radiotherapy techniques. Pathology costs inhibitive for patients (especially pediatric oncology and breast cancer). Lack of organized preventative, screening and surveillance services at the cancer center. Costs and returns: Activity 1: Sponsorship for radiotherapist to attend the European Society of Medical Oncologists (ESMO) Africa Summit, in Cape Town. Cost: $1000 Return: Achieved networking and mentorship relationships with view to enhance skills and training opportunities. Activity 2: Provision of funds to allow for timely diagnosis of disease to enable treatment. Cost: ongoing Return: Immunohistochemistry is an important aspect to enable oncologists to make good treatment decisions but often too costly. Activity 3: Equipment for preventative, screening and surveillance clinic bought. Cost: $2700 Return: Launch of preventative, screening and surveillance clinic at Cancer Diseases Hospital. What was learned: Social support is very important for patients but lack of clinical support can turn a potentially curable disease into an incurable one in the LMICs. Leveraging of relationships between NGOs and goodwill sponsors can bridge financial gaps in poorly funded health care systems.

The Prospects for the Future of European Union–African Union Relations in Uncertain Times

The importance of Africa for Europe was highlighted in the 1950 Schuman Declaration. Although the overarching framework for relations between the European Union and Africa is embedded in the 2000 Cotonou Agreement, cooperation between the European Union and Africa became increasingly institutionalized through the European Union–Africa Summits of 2000, 2007, 2010 and 2014, during which political leaders from both sides made strong rhetorical commitments to a strategic partnership. Yet, for the wider public, the relationship between the European Union and Africa appears to be both obscure and complex. The fifth European Union–Africa Summit is scheduled to take place in Ivory Coast in November 2017. This article will provide an overview of the development of European Union–Africa relations that coincided with the emergence of the African Union, the successor of the Organisation of African Unity. The so-called ‘strategic partnership’ between the European Union and the African Union represents the most comprehensive partnership the African Union has with any non-African actor. By highlighting current challenges affecting both, such as irregular migration, this article will, however, demonstrate that cooperation between the two is limited and somewhat lacking in strategic direction.

MEETING REPORT: UNESCO-MERCK AFRICA RESEARCH SUMMIT 2015- ACCELERATING ACCESS AND SUSTAINING INNOVATION 'FROM AFRICA FOR AFRICA'.

The Ebola virus disease outbreak of 2014 was the largest, longest and most devastating in the history of the disease. It demonstrated the social and economic impact an emerging infectious disease can have in a globalized world. Health systems in affected countries were stretched to the point of near collapse, while social relations and traditional practices were negatively impacted. Heads of African research institutions, African government representatives, leaders of global pharmaceutical companies, global infectious disease experts and close to 100 young African researchers from 25 countries; Assembled in Geneva on 19 and 20th October 2015, for the inaugural UNESCO-Merck Africa Summit sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Science and Culture Organization and Merck KGA. The primary goal of the summit was to develop strategies to increase health research capacity in Africa, with special focus on Ebola and enhancing pandemic preparation for emerging infectious diseases. The summit was also provide a forum to showcase the research taking place in Africa, and provided platform for African researchers to network. Some of the key issues discussed included; strategies for enhancing policy frameworks to promote knowledge translation, strengthening of health systems, enhancing knowledge and data sharing, and increasing innovation in Africa. Summit attendees recognized that Africa still bore the heaviest burden of infectious disease, and increased commitment by African governments to fund health research, offered the best hope for developing health solutions and interventions to improve the health of Africans. Improved health in turn would enhance the productivity of Africans, further supporting the socio-economic transformation currently taking place on the continent.

MEETING REPORT: UNESCO-MERCK AFRICA RESEARCH SUMMIT 2015- ACCELERATING ACCESS AND SUSTAINING INNOVATION 'FROM AFRICA FOR AFRICA

Background:The Ebola virus disease outbreak of 2014 was the largest, longest and most devastating in the history of the disease. It demonstrated the social and economic impact an emerging infectious disease can have in a globalized world. Health systems in affected countries were stretched to the point of near collapse, while social relations and traditional practices were negatively impacted. Heads of African research institutions, African government representatives, leaders of global pharmaceutical companies, global infectious disease experts and close to 100 young African researchers from 25 countries; Assembled in Geneva on 19 and 20th October 2015, for the inaugural UNESCO-Merck Africa Summit sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Science and Culture Organization and Merck KGAGoal of Summit:The primary goal of the summit was to develop strategies to increase health research capacity in Africa, with special focus on Ebola and enhancing pandemic preparation for emerging infectious diseases. The summit was also provide a forum to showcase the research taking place in Africa, and provided platform for African researchers to network. Some of the key issues discussed included; strategies for enhancing policy frameworks to promote knowledge translation, strengthening of health systems, enhancing knowledge and data sharing, and increasing innovation in Africa.Conclusions:Summit attendees recognized that Africa still bore the heaviest burden of infectious disease, and increased commitment by African governments to fund health research, offered the best hope for developing health solutions and interventions to improve the health of Africans. Improved health in turn would enhance the productivity of Africans, further supporting the socio-economic transformation currently taking place on the continent.

MIGRATION: EU - Africa Summit (Valletta)

Africa Research Bulletin: Economic, Financial and Technical SeriesVolume 52, Issue 11 p. 21055A-21056B Continental Developments MIGRATION: EU – Africa Summit (Valletta) First published: 03 January 2016 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6346.2015.06765.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume52, Issue11January 2016Pages 21055A-21056B RelatedInformation

Second Powering Africa Summit 2016

Africa Research Bulletin: Economic, Financial and Technical SeriesVolume 52, Issue 11 p. 21082B-21082B Industries Second Powering Africa Summit 2016 First published: 03 January 2016 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6346.2015.06804.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume52, Issue11January 2016Pages 21082B-21082B RelatedInformation