Friday 10 November 2023
Roundtable
Africa-Europe relations in the context of instability and geopolitical rivalry
(Session co-organized with Open Society Foundations). Since 2020, there have been six coups in West and Central Africa, particularly in the Sahel, and now the ‘Coup Belt’ stretches from Guinea on the Atlantic to Sudan’s Red Sea coast. Recent political instability across the region is fed by high levels of poverty, poor governance, and insecurity, but also bears the distinct imprints of global power politics. The wave of military takeovers has revived the debate on governance, regional integration, migration, trade and how all these are linked to human rights, peace, and security. They have also raised tough questions about Africa-Europe relations in the context of renewed competition for Africa’s resources. This roundtable will combine evidence and policy analysis from both regions and lay out the implications of recent political and security crises for Africa-Europe relations.
Geert Laporte
Senior Executive, European Centre for Development Policy Management, Former Director of European Think Tanks Group
Moderator
Emmanuel Besnier
Deputy Director for Africa and the Indian Ocean, Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs
Speaker
Niagalé Bagayoko
Chair, African Security Sector Network
Speaker
Alioune Tine
Founder, Afrikajom Center, UN Independent Expert on the human rights situation in Mali
Speaker
Mathieu Pourchier
Executive Director, Tournons La Page
Speaker
Steven Gruzd
Head of African Governance and Diplomacy Programme, South African Institute of International Affairs
Speaker
Intervention on the same theme