04/06/2019
Mauritania's political system displays certain democratic qualities that go some way to meeting international standards.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Created in 2007, the Africa Studies Center of the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI) works to address cross-disciplinary issues that the African continent is facing. The Center achieves its mission through quality analyses available in various formats. Launched in 2008, l’Afrique en questions concerns topics of broad and current interest. Policy Papers and Reports published by the Center give deeper analyses.
Aimed at renewing interpretative frameworks and nurturing public debate, the Center’s expertise offers helpful tools in policy-making towards 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, OECD or World Bank.
Publications are combined with public events where politicians, academics, companies and civil society can promote dialogue about Africa and share analytical tools.
Be sure to check out Afrique Décryptages, the African Studies Center’s blog
This blog provides information regarding the Center activities. Publication announcements, conference reports as well as links to our researchers’ public appearances. Afrique Décryptages also works as a forum where researchers are free to share their opinions about topical issues in order to stimulate debates and discussions.
Alain ANTIL
Researcher and Head of the African Studies Center
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Clélie NALLET
Research fellow at the African Studies Center
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Victor MAGNANI
Project Officer at the African Studies Center
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Benjamin AUGE
Associate Research Fellow
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Mathieu PELLERIN
Associate Fellow at the Sub-Saharan Africa Centre
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François GAULME
Associate Fellow at the Sub-Saharan Africa Centre
Cet axe de recherche traite des processus électoraux et des dynamiques politiques internes, des politiques publiques et pratiques de gouvernance élaborées par les États ainsi que des évolutions du modèle étatique sur le continent africain.
Cet axe de recherche analyse les politiques africaines mises en place par les partenaires traditionnels du continent africain (France, Grande-Bretagne, etc.), mais aussi par les pays émergents (Chine, Turquie, Brésil, etc.).
Cet axe de recherche examine les enjeux sécuritaires au Sahel et dans la région des Grands Lacs en traitant notamment des mouvements armés, de l'économie des trafics et des tensions autour des ressources naturelles.
Cet axe s'intéresse aux classes moyennes, aux villes africaines comme vecteur de croissance et à l'urbanisation du continent comme élément de transformation des sociétés africaines ainsi qu’à la compétition pour l'accès au foncier.
Cet axe de recherche porte sur l’exploitation des ressources extractives sur le continent, les enjeux géopolitiques qui en découlent et les pratiques de gouvernance du secteur mises en œuvre par les États producteurs ou en passe de le devenir comme les États d’Afrique de l’Est.
The research of the program revolves around the following themes:
(1) Social and economic mutations of Africa
- The middle-class emergence and its consumption pattern
- African cities and the urbanization of the continent
- The competition for land
- The State evolution and governance issues
(2) Africa in international relations
- The traditional partners’ African policies (France, United Kingdom…)
- The emerging partners’ African policies (China, Turkey, Brazil)
- Governance and geopolitics of the extractive sector
(3) Security matters
- Security situation in Sahel
- Trafficking economies
Consult this page (French only) to get on to our latest publications
04/06/2019
Elections are held on a regular basis in various African countries, but democracy is far from flourishing.
04/06/2019
To create a political shift that draws a line under conflict once and for all, it is not always enough to draft a democratic constitution and call elections.
07/05/2019
On the eve of the 25th anniversary of democracy in South Africa, the African National Congress (ANC) still holds power in a nearly hegemonic way. Nevertheless, the popularity of the party is decreasing while economic and social inequalities are deeply entrenched in the country.
19/04/2019
Russia’s comeback to Africa has been widely discussed since 2017.
22/01/2019
On May 21st 2019, Malawi will hold its tripartite elections, where voters will vote for the President, Members of Parliament and local Councillors. 2019 will also mark the 25 years of multiparty politics in Malawi since the one-party regime presided by Hastings Kamuzu Banda came to an end in...
19/12/2018
Nowadays, numerous actors are involved in military cooperation programs aiming to strengthen African armed forces and build special partnerships.
18/12/2018
30/11/2018
Often described as an “ungoverned area”, the Niger-Libya border is nevertheless at the centre of major economic, political and security challenges. Both the Libyan authorities and the Nigerien state are struggling to establish tight control over this particularly isolated area.
30/11/2018
This study analyses the various mechanisms that explain the leakage of the main source wealth in Nigeria at all levels of the production and commercialization of oil and gas, from the wellheads, with the bunkering of pipelines, up to the export of crude oil and the import of refined products,...
05
Jun
2019
from 09:30 to 18:00
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
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.
21
Feb
2019
from 14:00 to 18:30
- Ifri Conferences
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,...
28
Jan
2019
from Monday 28 January 2019 15:00 to Tuesday 29 January 2019 13:00
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
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...
06
Dec
2018
from 08:30 to 09:45
- Ifri Conferences
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.
08
Nov
2018
from 09:00 to 17:30
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
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.
26
Apr
2018
from 14:00 to 18:00
- Ifri Conferences
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...
21
Sep
2017
from 18:00 to 19:30
- Ifri Conferences
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...
18
Sep
2017
from 09:30 to 17:30
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
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).
10
Jul
2017
from 09:30 to 16:15
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
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...
13
Mar
2017
from 14:00 to 18:00
- Ifri Conferences
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 ...
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.
13/06/2019
An interview with Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria.
06/05/2019
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.
06/07/2018
Days before French President Emmanuel Macron visited West and Central African leaders this week to talk security, Islamist fighters sent a defiant message -- a suicide attack on the headquarters of a five-nation force that is supposed to take the lead in fighting terrorism in the region.
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24/05/2018
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.
13/02/2018
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?
03/11/2017
What is the role of international NGOs regarding the sanctions process?
31/05/2017
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?
09/12/2016
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.
30/06/2015
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.
18/03/2015
Aljazeera Center for Studies, March 2015
...Find out about Afrique Décryptages, the blog of the Ifri Sub-Saharan Africa program.
http://afriquedecryptages.wordpress.com/
This blog is an information space on the program's activities. On these pages you will find our publication announcements, conference reports, as well as web links to our researchers’ lectures in the media. This blog is also a place for the program researchers to express themselves, and you will regularly find their points of view and original analysis on topical subjects in short formats meant to spark debate.
Follow us on Twitter @AfriDecryptages