In the far northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the province of Ituri experienced a decade of relative peace between 2007 and 2017 and is nowadays victim of the resurgence of its historic inter-communal conflict between the Hema and the Lendu.

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 sharp rebound in oil prices since the second half of 2020, to nearly $70 per barrel in May 2021, represents only a temporary respite for oil-dependent African economies that must change their economic model very quickly.
Based on a field survey carried out in Côte d'Ivoire as part of the research program “Faire des politiques publiques en Afrique”, the author questions the genesis of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in the field of global health and its appropriation in the Ivorian context.
In 2020-2021, Prime Minister Boris Johnson undertook to fundamentally change the operational mode and strategy of relations between the United Kingdom and the African continent bequeathed by his predecessors since 1997.
Lesotho is a landlocked mountain kingdom encased in South Africa for which it is a reservoir of water and labor. This kingdom of tormented creation is in a structural political and security crisis. Since 1993 and the return to multiparty politics, all elections, except that of 2002, needed...
Although the Central African Republic remains a very weakly connected country with an Internet penetration rate of 14% in 2020, citizens begin to appropriate the use of social networks.
Despite the coronavirus pandemic and the passing of President Pierre Nkurunziza on June 8, 2020, the election cycle (presidential, legislative, senatorial, communal and hillside elections) have been upheld and went smoothly. Not only has the ruling party, the National Council for...
While migration from Africa is the priority of European policies for the control of the European Union’s external borders, African migration dynamics are above all regional. Sub-Saharan migration is poorly connected to transcontinental flows: more than 70% remain in Africa.
Beginning with early voting in Zanzibar on October 27, 2020, Tanzanians went to the polls in a general election for district councilors, Members of Parliament (MPs) and the President. As official results began to be declared, it became clear that Tanzania’s long-time ruling party, Chama Cha...
Whereas the strong ties between France and its former colonies in Africa have been studied extensively, the relationships between Portugal and Lusophone Africa have attracted less attention. This editorial offers insights into the political, economic, and diplomatic interactions between Lisbon...
4x4 Directors Forum 2019 African-European Think Tank Dialogue
The 4x4 Directors Forum is an annual meeting gathering the directors of four European and four African Think Tanks to discuss current challenges that both continents are facing. The purpose is to identify common positions and asymmetries, and address possible areas of cooperation in order to...
Global Governance of Migration: A Challenge Beyond the North-South Paradigm GFMD Side Event
The global dialogue on migration is frequently stalled due to contradictory interests and positions between the countries of the North (Europe and North America) and the South.
Toward a Global Low Carbon Transition: What Sustainable Opportunities for Africa? Ifri-OCP Policy Center Roundtables
Despite its marginal contribution to the historical growth in greenhouse gas emissions, the African continent could be one of the most vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change.
Angola : from Dos Santos to Lourenço, Unexpected Transition, Lasting Transformation?
As part of the Observatoire of Southern Africa and the African Great Lakes, Ifri organizes this conference on Angola in collaboration with the Directorate General for International Relations and Strategy of the...
Migration in East Africa: A Regional Challenge and a Global Issue
The arrivals of refugees from East Africa in Europe have continued to increase since 2015. However, this situation should not gloss over the fact that migration is mainly a regional phenomenon: East Africa, alongside Middle East, hosts currently more refugees than any other regions in the...
China’s Belt and Road – Towards Globalization with Chinese Characteristics? Ifri-OCP Policy Center Roundtables
In 2013, Chinese president Xi Jinping first unveiled his broad vision to develop regional connectivity and infrastructure across Eurasia that would later be officially named the Belt and Road Initiative (or yi dai yi lu, One Belt, One Road, or OBOR).
Deepening the Franco-Japanese Cooperation in Africa: the Economic and Security Dimensions
It is now clear that some African countries are on their way to achieve a dynamic economic growth that will uphold the overall development of the continent. At the same time, they are still struggling with the lack of economic and social infrastructure, governance issues and a complex and...
Southern Africa: the Uncertain Future of a "Pole of Stability"
In the framework of the Observatoire of Southern Africa and the African Great Lakes, Ifri co-organizes this conference on Southern Africa with the Directorate General for International Relations and Strategy ...
Boosting Power in sub-Saharan Africa: China’s involvement in electricity
Access to electricity has proven a major impediment to economic growth in Africa. As an increasingly important investor in the region, what role has China played in tackling issues of energy poverty, and what can be done in the future?
What development prospects for industrialisation in Africa?
Industrialisation in Africa is a necessary and major process to support the continent's economic development. Although Africa will keep its demographic growth running, the industry sector only represents 1...
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.