Experts & Staff

Michaël Tanchum

ECFR Alumni · Associate Senior Policy Fellow

Areas of expertise

Energy; strategic resources; Sub-Saharan Africa

Languages

English, Arabic, French, Kiswahili

Biography

Michaël Tanchum is a visiting fellow in the Africa programme at the European Council of Foreign Relations, where he researches the emerging nexus of energy, strategic resources, and manufacturing value chains that connect Sub Saharan Africa with Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Analysing newly emerging patterns in Sub Saharan commercial connectivity, Tanchum examines the political economy and geopolitics of Sub Saharan Africa’s partnerships with the European Union, the North African nations, China, India, Russia, Turkey, and the Arab Gulf states.

His recent publications include: “Turkey’s Maghreb-West Africa Economic Architecture: Opportunities And Challenges” (Berlin – Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, 2021); “Europe–Africa Connectivity Outlook 2021: Post-Covid-19 Challenges and Strategic Opportunities” (Rome – Istituto Affari Internazionale, 2021); “Greece’s Rise as a Trans-Mediterranean Power: Greece’s Eastern Mediterranean strategic shift to Europe-to-Africa and Europe-to-Middle East connectivity” (Athens – ELIAMEP, 2021).

Tanchum teaches international relations and political economy at Universidad de Navarra, Spain. He is also senior fellow at the Austrian Institute for European and Security Policy (AIES) and non-resident fellow at the Middle East Institute (MEI). He holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University and was a fellow at Harvard’s Olin Institute for Strategic Studies and its Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. He did his undergraduate and master’s level training in African studies at Cornell University.

The EU’s Global Gateway and a new foundation for partnerships in Africa

The EU should conceive of the Global Gateway and the international aspect of the European Green Deal as mutually reinforcing parts of a single strategy. This would make Europe a key partner in Africa’s green transformation – to the benefit of both continents

In the media