China and Africa have enjoyed a strong relationship since the wave of African independences in the 1960s. Nevertheless, relations between China and Africa have significantly expanded since the late 1990s and have been fueled by a growing discourse centered on a “win-win” partnership between...

Sub-Saharan Africa

Founded in 2007, the Sub-Saharan Africa Center of the French Institute of International Relations - Ifri works to address the cross-disciplinary issues that the African continent is facing. The Center achieves its mission through quality analyses available in various formats.
Aimed at renewing interpretative frameworks and nurturing public debate, the Center’s expertise offers helpful tools for policy-makers in Africa. The Center also provides analyses for some key actors in Africa such as the French Ministry of the Armed Forces (Ministère des Armées), the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (Ministère de l'Europe et des Affaires étrangères), International Crisis Group, the OECD or the World Bank.
Launched in 2008, l’Afrique en questions covers topics of broad and current interest. In addition, the Policy Papers and Reports published by the Center provide more comprehensive analyses. These publications are combined with public events where politicians, academics, companies and civil society can promote dialogue about Africa and share analytical tools.
Afrique Décryptages, the Sub-Saharan Africa Center’s blog, provides information regarding the Center's activities, publication announcements, conference reports, and links to the Center's research fellows’ public appearances. Afrique Décryptages also works as a forum where the research fellows share their opinions about topical issues and stimulate debates and discussions.
Research Fellow, Director of Ifri's Sub-Saharan Africa Center
...Research Fellow, Coordinator of the Governing the Urban Transition in Africa research programme, Ifri's Sub-Saharan Africa Center
Project Officer at the Sub-Saharan Africa Center and Turkey/Middle East Program
...Associate Research Fellow, Sub-Saharan Africa Center / Center for Energy and Climate
...Associate Research Fellow, Sub-Saharan Africa Center
...Associate Research Fellow, Sub-Saharan Africa Center
...Associate Research Fellow,Sub-Saharan Africa Center
...The Mbororo are Fulani who, unlike the Fulbe, have not become sedentary and have practiced nomadic herding for a long time. However, over the past several decades, they have been undergoing a sedentarization process in northern Cameroon (Septentrion), to the point that many of them have become...
A “New Africa-France Summit” was held on October, 8 at Arena Sud de France in Montpellier.
The relationship between Namibia and its historical partners has evolved over the last thirty years since Namibian independence. As in many countries, Namibia has been going through transformation, influenced by the process of globalization. This created new sets of geopolitical challenges and...
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has long-standing ties with African countries, but the implementation of a genuine Africa policy dates back only about 15 years.
In Kenya, corruption results from a confusion of public and private interests that is specific to the neo-patrimonial logic in place since British colonization. The strong moral and political ethnicity that characterizes the country fuels an ambiguous relationship between the population and...
Since the post-colonial period, China and Tanzania have maintained a close diplomatic relationship. This note offers a subtle analysis of the changing relationship between both countries since the 1960s. It assesses the economic ties and studies the collaboration of both countries in the...
Between 2020 and 2050, Africa’s population is expected to double, and the continent will be home to 2.5 billion people. Almost half of this population will be living in urban agglomerations. Metropolitan cities, such as Lagos, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam or Abidjan will host several tens of...
If sub-Saharan Africa followed the same model of economic development as the rest of the world, focused on the growth of carbon intensive industries, cities and infrastructures, it would seal the planet's climate future. Africa’s emissions today are among the lowest per capita in the world: 0...
The year 2020 was to be a pivotal year for (re)formulating Europe's Africa strategy. Germany and France were committed to strengthening relations between the two continents and to consolidating them at the sixth summit of the African Union and the European Union, which was postponed because of...
LNG and Gas-to-Power in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges Ifri’s webinar series on Sub-Saharan power sectors
With the recent discoveries of large gas resources in Sub-Saharan Africa, cheap renewable energy sources, loose LNG markets with competitive prices, there is a unique momentum to accelerate the electrification of the continent with gas/LNG to power, solar and hydro as backbones.
Europe Needs an Africa policy – Defining French and German Stances on Africa Webinar, Institut français Bonn, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Büro Bonn
Online Seminar - French-German Workshop for the Future
The Africa policies of France and Germany
As demonstrated by the current negotiations over the new European Africa strategy, 2020 is a milestone for the relationship between the two continents.
The digital transformation of sub-Saharan electricity networks: Smart Grids for sustainable cities Closed Seminar
Affordable and reliable electricity access is a prerequisite for the development of sustainable cities in sub-Saharan Africa. Improving the financial and operational viability of the region’s power sectors is a prerequisite for the multiplication of solar projects.
China in Africa: From Political Presence to Environmental Footprint Les Jeudis de l'Ifri
A "Les Jeudis de l'Ifri" videoconference around Thierry VIRCOULON, Associate Research Fellow at Ifri's Center for African Studies.
How can Sub-Saharan African countries cope with COVID-19? Les Jeudis de l'Ifri
A "Les jeudis de l'Ifri" videoconférence around Alain ANTIL, Director of Ifri's African Studies Center.
4x4 Directors Forum 2020 African-European Think Tank Dialogue
The Franco-Japanese Cooperation in Africa after the G7 and TICAD 7
If some African countries are on their way to achieving dynamic economic growth, many are also still struggling with a lack of economic and social infrastructure, latent governance issues and often complex and risky security environments.
G7 / Think Tank7 Summit G7 Engagement Group
The Think Thank 7 (T7) is an engagement group that brings together the leading Think Tanks from the G7 countries in order to analyze and make recommendations on key issues of the G7 presidency.
Political and economic reconfigurations under Abiy Ahmed in Ethiopia
Since taking over as head of the Ethiopian government in April 2018, Abiy Ahmed has increased his openness: the lifting of the state of emergency, the release of political prisoners, the announcements of economic openness and privatization of national enterprises. Regarding foreign policy,...
The Sub-Saharan Africa program and its Associate Fellows are accustomed to sharing their expertise with the media. Our experts mainly speak French, but they can also intervene in English. Consult our researchers’ geographic and thematic specialties on their profile.
Russia and China are muscling their way into the Central African Republic as Western clout in the mineral-rich, strategically important nation seems to wane, analysts say.
It's a watershed moment for South Africa and the party of Nelson Mandela. The leadership of the African National Congress is expected to force out Jacob Zuma. Will the president go quietly? Can he negotiate a deal in the face of long-looming corruption allegations?
What is the role of international NGOs regarding the sanctions process?
How to explain the decline of the ANC during the last election? Why 2017 is a decisive year for the ANC? How to explain the student protests during the past two years?
Angola is expected to formally announce the end of President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos' controversial 37-year rule Saturday, and name a successor to lead the ailing African oil-producing country.
Trade is the focus of a three-day visit to France that Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang started on Tuesday. Beyond deals with French companies, China and France are expected to sign an agreement on joint infrastructure projects in Asia and Africa.
Aljazeera Center for Studies, March 2015
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