Back to barracks: Building democracy after the military coup in Sudan
Sudan needs a viable political pathway to end the military coup of 2021. European states should support pro-democracy actors while encouraging a comprehensive peace process
Africa
ECFR’s Africa Programme analyses the geopolitics of the Africa-Europe relationship. This includes relations between the African Union and the European Union; foreign policy tools and strategies; and opportunities to find creative policy solutions. The Programme also focuses on two regions that are particularly relevant for Europe: the Horn of Africa and the Sahel.
Featured
Trading aims: The value of Africa’s deep integration trade agreement
Africa’s new trade agreement promises deep economic integration on the continent – and offers the opportunity for greater African-European cooperation, including on the role trade can play in the green and digital transitions
Shared fortunes: Why Britain, the European Union, and Africa need one another
A closer relationship between Britain, Africa, and the EU would benefit all sides. But this would require the British government to change its approach to Europe as well as to Africa.
6 Dec
Securing Critical Raw Materials: Europe’s strategy to compete
The event will convene a select group of European decision-makers and opinion-shapers from across business, civil society, European governments and the European Commission
The Clash of Orders with Comfort Ero on Nigeria
Mark Leonard is joined by Comfort Ero to learn more about the Nigerian perspective on global order
Principles for global order: How Europeans and the global south can shape the international order together
The experience of 2022 is a sharp reminder to Europeans that the states of the global south want to reform existing international arrangements. They should begin to negotiate on how this could look
Back to barracks: Building democracy after the military coup in Sudan
Sudan needs a viable political pathway to end the military coup of 2021. European states should support pro-democracy actors while encouraging a comprehensive peace process
Seats at the table: How Europe can address the international democratic deficit
The US and Japan have responded positively to developing countries’ calls for greater representation. Europe is lagging behind and losing credibility.
15 Oct
Making multilateralism work for Africa
This event takes place in the context of the 10th Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa
What the Ruto government could mean for Kenya-Europe relations
“Kenya First” may sound Trumpian. But if the new president can deliver on his promise to strengthen governance in the country, Kenya could prove an even more valuable partner for Europe.
Lone changer: Germany, Mali, and Russian influence in Africa’s arc of instability
Russia is exploiting weaknesses in Europe’s relationships with states across Africa. Germany will need to set a precedent in Mali if it is to respond to this challenge effectively.
29 Sep
Berlin Africa Forum
ECFR is launching a series of high-level convenings, with a view to defining a shared concept of the Africa-Europe strategic partnership in the emerging new global order
Court in transition: Kenya’s contested presidential election
A dispute over Kenya’s recent presidential election threatens the country’s political stability. Europeans should respect the election result and support a peaceful resolution of the situation in the courts.
Publications
Back to barracks: Building democracy after the military coup in Sudan
Sudan needs a viable political pathway to end the military coup of 2021. European states should support pro-democracy actors while encouraging a comprehensive peace process
Trading aims: The value of Africa’s deep integration trade agreement
Africa’s new trade agreement promises deep economic integration on the continent – and offers the opportunity for greater African-European cooperation, including on the role trade can play in the green and digital transitions
Shared fortunes: Why Britain, the European Union, and Africa need one another
A closer relationship between Britain, Africa, and the EU would benefit all sides. But this would require the British government to change its approach to Europe as well as to Africa.
Gateway to growth: How the European Green Deal can strengthen Africa’s and Europe’s economies
Africa’s burgeoning innovation economies offer huge opportunities for the continent – and for Europe as it looks to tackle the climate crisis and respond to China’s BRI global connectivity programme
The fall of the Afghan government and what it means for Europe
ECFR’s policy experts examine what the Taliban takeover means for countries and regions around the world: Europe, the US, the Middle East, Russia, China, Iran, Turkey, and the Sahel
Mapping African regional cooperation: How to navigate Africa’s institutional landscape
Regional organisations have proliferated in Africa, with many organisations attempting to address similar issues in similar parts of the continent. Europeans should take stock of the situation they have helped create.
Disorder from Chaos: Why Europeans fail to promote stability in the Sahel
The Alliance aimed to integrate security, development, and governance perspectives but has struggled to find coherence and effectiveness
A return to Africa: Why North African states are looking south
North African countries, each for their own reasons, are increasingly turning their attention towards sub-Saharan Africa
Bad company: How dark money threatens Sudan’s transition
The transition will only succeed if the government stabilises the economy and civilians work hard to tilt the balance of power away from the military
Halting ambition: EU migration and security policy in the Sahel
Some European leaders see stabilisation of the region – through curbing migration and counter terror threats – as key to the future of the European project
Articles
Principles for global order: How Europeans and the global south can shape the international order together
The experience of 2022 is a sharp reminder to Europeans that the states of the global south want to reform existing international arrangements. They should begin to negotiate on how this could look
Seats at the table: How Europe can address the international democratic deficit
The US and Japan have responded positively to developing countries’ calls for greater representation. Europe is lagging behind and losing credibility.
What the Ruto government could mean for Kenya-Europe relations
“Kenya First” may sound Trumpian. But if the new president can deliver on his promise to strengthen governance in the country, Kenya could prove an even more valuable partner for Europe.
Lone changer: Germany, Mali, and Russian influence in Africa’s arc of instability
Russia is exploiting weaknesses in Europe’s relationships with states across Africa. Germany will need to set a precedent in Mali if it is to respond to this challenge effectively.
Court in transition: Kenya’s contested presidential election
A dispute over Kenya’s recent presidential election threatens the country’s political stability. Europeans should respect the election result and support a peaceful resolution of the situation in the courts.
Demand swerve: Lavrov in Africa
By making new offers of partnership to African countries, Russia is setting a trap for the West
No cold war, please: How Europeans should engage non-aligned states
The Non-Aligned Movement is one of the largest international forums in the world. As the European Union finds its geopolitical feet, it should work to treat developing countries as individual states with their own interests and objectives.
Russia’s long shadow in the Sahel
The EU’s values-led foreign policy and its stabilisation objectives in the Sahel are in tension with each other. Russia is now waiting to exploit that tension.
Partnership through crisis: The real meaning of Scholz’s Africa trip
Stronger relationships with African states can help Europe address the immediate energy and food crises – and help counter Russian efforts to destabilise both continents
Bloc chains: Europe’s partnerships on the food crisis in Africa
Russia will politicise its food aid to Africa as it did covid-19 vaccines. Europe needs to learn from this experience of being outmanoeuvred as it responds to the global food crisis.
Specials
Mapping African regional cooperation
This project maps African regional initiatives in west and central Africa and provides a data-based and a geographical overview of the ‘à la carte’ nature of African regional cooperation
Mapping armed groups in Mali and the Sahel
Violence is tearing Mali and the Sahel apart. But who are the armed groups behind the bloodshed? Where are international actors stationed in the region? And what motivates them all?
Podcasts
The Clash of Orders with Comfort Ero on Nigeria
Mark Leonard is joined by Comfort Ero to learn more about the Nigerian perspective on global order
The EU and France in the Sahel
What does the end of Operation Barkhane in its current form mean for the Sahel?
All eyes on Ethiopia: What the EU and the US can do
What are the regional implications of the Tigray conflict and the prospects for transatlantic cooperation around the issue?
Europe’s pivot to Africa
Where do we stand now in building a “strategic partnership” between the European and African continent?
Events
6 Dec
Securing Critical Raw Materials: Europe’s strategy to compete
The event will convene a select group of European decision-makers and opinion-shapers from across business, civil society, European governments and the European Commission
15 Oct
Making multilateralism work for Africa
This event takes place in the context of the 10th Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa
29 Sep
Berlin Africa Forum
ECFR is launching a series of high-level convenings, with a view to defining a shared concept of the Africa-Europe strategic partnership in the emerging new global order
27 Jun
Europe and Africa in a time of crisis
European officials and thinkers to talk about challenges and opportunities presented by today’s political, security and economic crises
15 Feb
What way forward for Europe in the Sahel?
The European Council on Foreign Relations is delighted to invite you to our webinar on what the latest developments mean for Europe’s engagement in the Sahel.
15 Feb
EU-African Union Summit: making the most of the European Green Deal and Global Gateway
To what extent can the European Green Deal and Global Gateway be shaped to satisfy both European and African interests?
3 May
Rebalancing security and governance in the Sahel: Possible avenues for German intervention
This event is part of the German Forum on Security Policy #DFS2021
17 Feb
Virtual Roundtable: After Barkhane? Future prospects for the Sahel
The European Council on Foreign Relations, the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, and the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes are delighted to invite you…
25 Jan
Africa-Europe Relations in 2021
The roundtable will focus on the state of the Africa-Europe relationship with its challenges and opportunities, and the role that Southern Europe could play in the process
20 Nov
How to navigate Africa’s institutional landscape
Online discussion on ECFR’s recent policy brief African regional cooperation: How to navigate Africa’s institutional landscape and mapping project by Amandine Gnanguênon
In the media
In the Sahel countries, besides social and economic problems, there also are the interests of international actors, who are using disinformation as a tool, especially against the EU
Emanuela Del Re, EU Special Representative for the Sahel and ECFR Council Member, analyzes developments in the Sahel, and the EU’s strategy towards the region
In the future, should a Sahel country hosting European military support start flirting with Russia, Europe’s preparedness to leave will be a proven fact
Theodore Murphy comments on Germany’s decision to withdraw its troops from the UN mission in Mali by May 2024
European leaders should champion a permanent G20 seat for the African Union ahead of the G20 leaders’ summit in November
How Europe can address the international democratic deficit, describes ECFR Council Member David McNair
Selling energy to Europe an opportunity for growth, but also a chance to find other people to be corrupt with
Gwamaka Kifukwe explains how selling energy to Europe could be an opportunity for Africa’s growth
The Kremlin has put the Europeans in a quandary: staying in Mali is becoming increasingly difficult
Where Europe takes on peacekeeping in Africa, the Kremlin uses tension to push its way to the front. This has consequences for Berlin politics, writes Theo Murphy.