Environ 163 millions d’Africains font face à l’insécurité alimentaire aiguë, maintenant à un niveau record le nombre d’Africains qui subissent un tel niveau de crise alimentaire. Ce chiffre a quasiment triplé depuis cinq ans, soulignant l’escalade rapide de la situation d’urgence alimentaire en Afrique.
La famine sinstalle dans les zones de conflit prolongé dAfrique
Centre d'études stratégiques de l'Afrique
Since 2021, the Russian Orthodox Church has established an expanded presence in Africa, in competition with the Greek Orthodox Church in Alexandria, Egypt. Facing condemnation from the West since its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has sought to expand its influence in Africa with soft power in addition to a military presence in the form of first the Wagner Group and now Africa Corps.
Reading of the Week: Russias Influence in Africa - The Role of the Russian Orthodox Churc
Foreign Policy Research Institute
In September 2024, authorities in Benin detained the country’s former sports minister and a prominent businessman for allegedly plotting a coup against the West African nation’s president, Patrice Talon. Had a putsch materialized, Benin would have joined a growing list of African countries to have experienced a military coup over the past four years.
Civilian Support for Military Coups Isnt a Bug - Its a Feature
Baker Institute for Public Policy
L’Inde, pays promoteur du mouvement des non-alignés et ardent défenseur de l’anticolonialisme, a manifesté sa solidarité pour la cause palestinienne lors des premières décennies du conflit israélo-palestinien. Les événements du 7 octobre 2023 ont toutefois mis en exergue une proximité avec Israël. La relation indo-israélienne, dont le fil rouge est le développement du partenariat de défense, leur est en réalité mutuellement bénéfique.
Le partenariat strategique entre lInde et Israel au XXIeme siècle
La Fondation Méditerranéenne D’études Stratégiques
Several Israeli attacks on Hezbollah communication systems, aerial attacks on its rocket launchers and caches, assassination of much of the movement’s top leadership and now an Israeli ground offensive form a macabre dance with assaults in the form of relentless Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel, as well as a direct Iranian missile attack more recently. The air hangs heavy with threats of retaliation.
The elusive Israeli quest for strategic victory
Fanack
Over the past decade, Iran has turned to criminal markets as a strategic tool to pursue its geopolitical goals. Isolated by international sanctions, Iran has forged extensive ties with criminal networks across the globe to fund armed groups, procure materials for its nuclear program, and evade sanctions.
Irans Criminal Statecraft
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime
Oman is actively stepping up its coastal security in light of ongoing challenges from the "axis of resistance." The activities of Iran’s allies in its “axis of resistance” have brought into focus the major challenge that Oman has always faced in securing its 3,175 km coastline. Oman’s ability to effectively police its own territorial waters is one half of the problem.
Oman seeks improve its coastal security
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), which replaced AMISOM in 2022, is a UN peacekeeping mission with the mandate to support the Somali Security Forces (SSF) in combating al-Shabaab and securing the country. As ATMIS is set to conclude by December 2024, discussions are underway for a follow-on mission, the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), to ensure continued support and prevent a security vacuum.
ATMIS Transition and Post-ATMIS Security Arrangements in Somalia
International Peace Institute
An estimated ten thousand cattle rustlers attacked an Eastern Equatoria community on 23 April, killing 32 people, stealing 16 000 head of cattle from herders - and abducting over 100 women and children. The abduction of women and children during cattle raids is fairly common along the South Sudan-Ethiopia border.
Cultural practices and state weaknesses drive South Sudan-Ethiopia abductions
Enhancing Africa's response to transnational organised Crime
Next year marks 25 years since the adoption of landmark United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS). A persistent question in preparing for this event is how Security Council members that support WPS can make sure their efforts lead to changes on the ground. This is central in an era of pushback against women’s rights and gender equality in many parts of the world.
Reading of the Week: Time to Push for Next Step on Women, Peace and Security: Ensuring Positive Impact for Women in Conflict
International Peace Institute
The Africa-Europe adaptation partnership is facing significant challenges, with slow progress on the adaptation finance agenda at the heart of the issue. The optimistic rhetoric of “Two Unions, a Joint Vision” from the 6th European Union-African Union Summit in 2022 failed to reflect the underlying tensions. Africa’s frustration is growing due to the widening finance gap and lack of transparency, while the European Union appears increasingly fatigued by Africa’s criticism
How the EU Can Reset Its Adaptation Partnership with Africa
Instituto Affari Internazionali
Recently, the IDF began a ground operation in southern Lebanon, following the addition of “safely returning northern residents to their homes” to Israel’s war objectives. In this document we analyze potential achievements of a land manoeuvre in Lebanon and alternatives implementation.
The IDF Ground Operation in Lebanon. Goals, Alternatives and Consequences
The Institute for National Security Studies
Amid the turmoil, key regional players remain deeply concerned about an uncontrollable escalation. Saudi Arabia, in particular, finds itself in a delicate position: it seeks to maintain solidarity with the Palestinian cause while keeping perspectives for a pragmatic engagement with Israel on the table. Hence, the Israel-Gaza war presents a dilemma for Saudi Arabia, threatening its national, geostrategic and economic ambitions.
In Light of Regional Escalation: Saudi Arabias Not Alone Approach
Brussels International Center
A new public opinion poll finds the Iranian population in overwhelming, if contradictory, agreement: a majority say the country’s economic problems stem from the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy decisions, while citizens favor a continued Iranian military presence in the Middle East, approve of a new nuclear agreement with Western powers, and seek to normalize diplomatic relations with the US.
Key takeaways from new polling on Irans foreign policy and regional role
Middle East Institute
The long-running feud between Libya’s competing authorities over the Central Bank has flared up again, threatening an economic crisis that could lead to unrest. The parties should press ahead with UN-backed mediation to achieve a resolution.
Getting past Libyas Central Bank standoff
International Crisis Group
Sierra Leone’s Atlantic coastline stretches for 400 km and once contained abundant marine resources crucial to the nation’s economy. The fishing industry contributes up to 12% of the country’s national GDP, says the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources and employs approximately 500 000 people out of a population of eight million – reflecting its significance in supporting livelihoods and sustaining the economy. Fish is also the primary source of protein for about 80% of Sierra Leone’s population.
Fighting the invisible fleet. Sierra Leones battle against IUU fishing
Enhancing Africa's Response to Transnational Organised Crime
Comme au Togo et au Gabon, la transition qui a eu lieu au Tchad de 2021 à 2024 a abouti à une succession dynastique.
Mahamat Idriss Déby a succédé à son père Idriss Déby Itno, qui fut président du Tchad de 1996 à 2021. Alors que la majorité des Tchadiens espéraient une alternance et un changement de gouvernance, le « système Déby » est parvenu à se maintenir.
De Déby à Déby. Les recettes d une succession dynastique réussie (2021-2024)
Institut Français des Relations Internationales
The 2024 BRICS summit, to be held in Kazan, Russia, from October 22-24, will take place amid an increasingly tense geopolitical atmosphere. The crises in the Middle East and Ukraine are likely to dominate the agenda, as member states explore the future of the alliance and their nations’ roles within it.
South-Africa faces new dynamics at BRICS summit
Geopolitical Intelligence Services
The Security and Development Dialogue on Environmental Crime, held virtually on 18 July 2024, was the first in a series of meetings to discuss how the challenges and weaknesses in existing responses to environmental crime can be addressed through the multilateral system. This series, hosted with financial support from the European Union through the ECO-SOLVE project, provides a unique platform for stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to share perspectives on the complex and evolving challenges posed by environmental crime.
Security and development dialogue on environmental crime
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
The bilateral relationship between Morocco and India has passed through three distinct phases, culminating in the current stage of strategic partnership. Initially marked by diplomatic formalities and limited engagement, the relationship gradually transitioned into a period of economic and cultural exchange, laying the groundwork for more substantial collaboration.
This Policy Paper analyzes the historical trajectory of Morocco-India relations, tracing the development from these early interactions to the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership.
Morocco-India partnership: Field of strength to be explored
Policy Center For The New South
Despite the operational and intelligence successes of Israel in Lebanon in September 2024, a troubling question hangs over the country: Who bears responsibility for the failure to anticipate the Oct. 7 Hamas assault that led also to the war in Lebanon and on other fronts? Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his intelligence chiefs appear locked in a blame game, with each side offering conflicting accounts of whether warnings were issued and, if so, why they were not acted upon
Reading of the Week: Israels Oct. 7 early warning failure: Who is to blame?
Texas National Security Review
Yemen is experiencing brutal cycles of drought and deluge, a dangerous combination for a people already facing severe food insecurity. Water scarcity and desertification are among the most complex challenges facing Yemen. The country suffers from chronic water shortages and a high rate of desertification, not to mention natural disasters like floods, droughts, and changing weather patterns such as rising temperatures
From palms to sands. How climate change is destroying green Yemen
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
The continued lack of decisive action from Iran, while Israel steadily “salami sliced" the leadership of the Axis of Resistance, risked diminishing Iran’s influence in the region and over its partners and proxies
Why Iran Struck Israel Despite the Risks
Stimson
Absent rapid reform, Tunisia’s economic policies will plunge the country into an abyss. Already, a financial crisis is brewing. This is the worrisome outcome of the path the country has followed since President Kais Saied’s power grab in July 2021. The path is underpinned by two main aspects of economic policy.
Tunisias Economy in the Eye of the Storm
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Avec une croissance de 3,4% par an au cours de la période 1980-2019, la Mauritanie a enregistré de bonnes performances économiques au cours des quatre décennies précédant la période de Covid-19, qui l’ont fait passer au rang de pays à « revenu intermédiaire de la tranche inférieure ».
Impulser la transformation de la Mauritanie par la réforme de l'architecture financière mondiale
African Development Bank Group
Burkina Faso, a low-income country in the Sahel region of Africa, has improved many of its human development indicators in recent decades, including reducing child mortality rates. This has been achieved in part through investing to improve nutrition and women’s access to health care through the Universal Health Insurance Scheme
Improving food security and child health in Burkina Faso in a changing climate
The London School of Economics and Political Science
After winning India’s general elections in June by a slender majority, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has encountered deepening challenges in the Middle East – a region that generously credited him many foreign policy successes in the last decade. During his first two terms in office (2014-19 and 2019-24), Modi’s renewed focus and proactive approach toward the Middle East
Modi 3.0: India Confronts New Realities in a Chaotic Middle East
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
In the post-Cold War era, the Middle East and Africa were defined largely by their geopolitical significance. The West, especially the United States and Europe, engaged with these regions through a lens focused on security, energy supply, and strategic alliances. However, this dynamic has shifted significantly over the last two decades.
Africa and the Middle East: The Shift from Geopolitics to Geoeconomics
Policy Center for the New South
This policy brief presents the gender representations theoretical framework to analyse how and why gender is used in the propaganda and politico-military strategies of violent extremist movements. It argues that violent extremist ideologies break down in-group and out-group collective identities into individual “good” and “bad” gender identities, or gender representations.
Why Gender matters in violent extremist propaganda strategy
International Centre for Counter Terrorism
A year after Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack in southern Israel, the Middle East is on the cusp of all-out war. Since Israel launched its military response in Gaza, the Biden administration has tried both to broker a ceasefire there and to manage the risk of regional escalation. But the lack of a Gaza deal has fuelled hostilities elsewhere, and today the regional containment effort is at grave risk.
Reading of the Week: A Wider Middle East War Can Still Be Stopped
International Crisis Group
China’s mega Belt and Road Initiative, once President Xi Jinping’s flagship project, does not lack leadership support. Yet, 11 years after its inception, the project has yet to take off as envisioned. Meanwhile, the global trade and investment strategy of the United Arab Emirates – a country of just 11 million people – is providing an alternative vision
The UAEs Network-Based Vision for Economic Integration
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
On September 30, after a devastating ten-day stretch culminating in Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati announced his government’s support for implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701. The 2006 resolution was endorsed by Beirut, but the state never implemented its most important provision
In Lebanon, a Rare Moment of Opportunity
The Washington Institute
Population mobility in the Sahel is a multifaceted phenomenon. Economic factors play an important role, with many seeking better livelihoods, higher wages, and improved living standards in response to widespread poverty, unemployment, and limited job opportunities. The large scale of internal mobility reflects opportunities and challenges for migrants and their families
Population Mobility in the Sahel: Implications for Social Protection Programs and Systems
The World Bank
This report examines the record and participation of the African Group at the UN Human Rights Council from 2006 to 2022. The study considers 450 votes and 5 850 voting decisions, with the focus on the African states’ records on country-specific resolutions and civil and political rights. It uses five categories to classify the African Group’s commitment to human rights
African states on the UN Human Rights Council, 2006-2022
South African Institute of International Affairs
This report details the key trends and developments in human smuggling in Libya in 2023. In large degree, the year was one of continuity with the patterns seen in 2022. Over the course of the year, for example, 77 470 migrants departed the Libyan coast, only marginally higher than 2022’s figure of 75 500
Libya: Hybrid human smuggling system prove resilient
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
In rural South Sudan, markets for food, labour and land are expanding, and women’s workloads are increasing. In the twentieth century, most rural women had two main labour burdens: they produced food for home consumption on family farms; and at home provided life-giving labour, like child-rearing, emotional support, cooking and cleaning. These two labour burdens were unpaid. But now, they have a third labour burden.
Reading of the Week: The triple burden: women selling their labour in South-Sudan
Rift Valley Institute
The crises of the last few years have split the states of the Middle East and North Africa into winners and losers. While major energy-exporting countries flourished as hydrocarbon prices rose, others have been hit by a succession of shocks that include rising import prices, capital outflows, and falling growth. Among the region’s faltering economies, Egypt and Tunisia have attracted particular concern in Europe, because of the risk that economic distress could lead to instability and irregular migration directly affecting European countries
Value for money. Why and how Europeans should support the failing economies of Egypt and Tunisia
European Council on Foreign Relations
À l’issue du 15e sommet des BRICS, qui s’est tenu du 22 au 24 août 2023 à Johannesburg (Afrique du Sud), il a été décidé d’inviter six nouveaux pays à rejoindre cette alliance : l’Argentine, l’Égypte, l’Iran, les Émirats arabes unis, l’Arabie saoudite et l’Éthiopie. En 2024, tous ces pays à l’exception de l’Argentine sont devenus membres des BRICS+.
Il est probable que l’adhésion de ces nouveaux pays, outre des avantages politiques et économiques, contribue à leur développement scientifique et technologique.
La Russie et les nouveaux membres des BRICS. Opportunités et limites d'une coopération scientifique et technologique
Institut Français des Relations Internationales
Yemen’s microfinance sector is undergoing a radical transformation. Despite initial success in empowering small businesses, the ongoing conflict has exposed deep vulnerabilities. Competition between the fractured central banks has driven a surge in microfinance bank (MFB) licenses. While this promises to expand financial inclusion, it raises serious concerns about long-term sustainability and financial stability.
Enhancing the Role of Microfinance Banks for Sustainable Impact in Yemen
Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies
With the U.S. presidential election heating up, jobs and taxes have become hot topics on the campaign trail. Employment initiatives and tax reform remain salient policy issues in the Gulf too, though the underlying political economy dynamics differ. In July, Oman’s government announced more than 30 new professions that non-Omanis would be prohibited from working in as of September 2. Meanwhile, a draft law on personal income tax – the first ever for a Gulf Cooperation Council country – is making its way through Oman’s Parliament
The bread-and-butter issues of jobs and taxes in the Gulf
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
During the last year and a half, Iran has reportedly reactivated and accelerated activities at two former Amad Plan sites that were key to Iran’s development of nuclear weapons during its crash nuclear weapons program in the early 2000s, according to Western intelligence officials who decided to release officially the information to the Institute on the condition of remaining anonymous. The two sites, Sanjarian and Golab Dareh, were central to the Amad Plan’s development of a sophisticated multipoint initiation (MPI) system.
Renewed activity at the Sanjarian Amad site
Institute for Science and International Security
L'Indice 2021/2022 sur les femmes, la paix et la sécurité classe la Mauritanie au 157e rang sur 170 pays, soit le 13e pire rang mondial, en termes de statut et d'autonomisation des femmes. Une des raisons importantes en est la généralisation de la violence basée sur le genre rendue possible en partie par les tabous sociétaux et la faiblesse du système de protection et d'application de la loi
Bien que contre lusage de la force physique sur les femmes, les Mauritaniens estiment que la violence conjugale est une affaire privée
Afro Barometer
Protests in Kenya began on June 18, triggered by the country’s treasury announcing a set of revenue-raising measures.
The new levies included a 16 percent sales tax on bread, a 25 percent duty on cooking oil and the introduction of an
“eco tax” on several basic products. The measures were approved in the Kenyan National Assembly on June 20
Dysfunction and disillusionment in Kenya
Geopolitical Intelligence Services AG
In July, Iran and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) resumed diplomatic relations after eight years of a bilateral nadir. The agreement was already signed in October 2023, but the new Iranian ambassador, Hassan Shah Hosseini, was only received by SAF’s chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who dispatched a Sudanese ambassador to Tehran more than half a year later.
A New Old Player in Town: Reconciliation between Sudan and Iran and its Regional Implications
Brussels International Center
Relentless urbanisation often has a heavy environmental cost, arising from activities such as the consumption of fossil resources to fuel industrialisation and infrastructure development. The resulting surge in greenhouse gas emissions is one of the biggest contributors to climate change, which leads to frequent extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, and heatwaves. Such events pose an existential threat to human life, infrastructure, and economic stability.
The Promise of Bioeconomy as a Solution for Sustainability
The Observer Research Foundation
Africa’s large reserves of critical minerals could boost continental industrialisation, while helping global measures against climate change. However, geopolitical tensions between the US-led Group of Seven (G7) and China are adding to some of the structural factors hindering African efforts to move up critical mineral value chains. This policy insight compares the role of Chinese actors in the DRC and Zimbabwe’s mineral sectors with emerging counter-initiatives led by G7 partners.
Africas critical minerals : Boosting development amid geopolitical challenges
The South African Institute of International Affairs
Saudi Arabia’s ‘Vision 2030’ set in motion a large-scale, mainly state-led and top-down modernization agenda to diversify the Saudi economy beyond oil, develop a new national development ethos, reshape Saudi identity and introduce greater lifestyle options while maintaining consolidated rule in the hands of the Al Saud. The envisaged transformation is fully in line with the vested interests of the Saudi monarchy and much of the business elite, as well as some of the country’s younger generations.
Drivers and strategic puzzles of Saudi modernization
Clingendael Netherlands Institute of International Relations
Youth form a distinct social group in Yemeni political culture. After experiencing marginalization and manipulation during the era of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the 2011 revolution gave hope for a new era of inclusion in which political parties would take Yemeni youth seriously as stakeholders and decision-makers on senior committees. However, the war that erupted following the Houthi takeover of Sana’a in 2014 erased gains made by youth during the transition period and led to divisions between youth activists inside and outside Yemen.
The impact of war on youth activism in Yemen
Sana'a Center for Strategic Studies
In July, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the war in Gaza and the future of the Middle East. Afterward, Harris stressed her commitment to a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians-in her words, “the only path that ensures Israel remains a secure Jewish and democratic state, and one that ensures Palestinians can finally realize the freedom, security, and prosperity that they rightly deserve.”
She is hardly alone in this sentiment.
A Two-State Solution That Can Work
Foreign Affairs
This report offers a contemporary analysis of the operations, the organization, the involvement in illicit economies and the financing of the Anglophone separatist armed groups in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon, as well as their relationships with civilian communities.
Reading of the Week: Non-State Armed Groups and Illicit Economies in West Africa: Anglophone separatists
Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project
Le Bénin est confronté à des défis environnementaux majeurs liés à la pollution. Les principaux facteurs contribuant à cette situation préoccupante sont la croissance démographique rapide, l'urbanisation galopante et le développement industriel non réglementé.
Les Béninois restent sur leur soif en matière de lutte contre la pollution
Afro Barometer
This working paper develops a political sociology of roadblocks to demonstrate how roadblocks in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) contribute to the production and reproduction of public authority beyond their spatial and regulatory effects and while transcending particular claimants to authority.
Roadblocks at the rhythm of the country : a political sociology of roadblocks in DR Congo
Danish Institute for International Studies
The paper presents an overview of key migration trends in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. It discusses the domestic implications of an increase in migrant arrivals and analyses how governments have approached this issue.
Maghreb migrations: How North Africa and Europe can work together on sub-Saharan migration
European Council on Foreign Relations
Too often when disasters strike, structural impediments as well as inadequate political will and resources deadlock and disable the United Nations (UN) from coherently and effectively responding. Recent worldwide shocks with extraordinary humanitarian impacts, notably the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022), the cost-of-living crisis (2022–), and Russia’s resurgent invasion of Ukraine (2022–) have prompted calls for the Organization to play a more pronounced role in coordinating aid at the same time as other demands for UN reform have looked to confront injustices in its structure and operations.
Complex Global Shocks, Emergency Platforms, and United Nations Reform
Stimson
China’s recent third plenum highlights the Communist Party’s commitment to guiding the country’s economy through ongoing global tensions and domestic challenges by focusing on sustainable, high-quality growth fueled by advanced technologies. Despite a robust economic performance and a leading role in global green energy, China’s solar industry faces significant turbulence from overexpansion, fierce competition, and external tariffs.
Chinas Expanding Solar Footprint in the Gulf
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
For the Middle East, the energy-climate dilemma is causing a shift in strategy. Oil-producing countries along the Persian Gulf are at the epicenter of the energy transition, but its slow pace suggests difficult times in coming decades rather than in the next year or two. Economic risks from softening oil demand loom largest, but others — including the potential reduction in strategic importance to Washington and rebalancing of domestic social contracts — add further exposures.
Middle East Outlook: The Energy Transition Roils the Land of Oil
Baker Institute for Public Policy
The ongoing conflict in Yemen has had devastating effects on the economy, fracturing it along the lines of the warring parties. The country is effectively split between the internationally recognized government, which theoretically controls much of the south but is actually based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the Houthi rebels, who hold sway over the north, including the capital, Sanaa.
Engaging Yemens Private Sector in Peacebuilding Amidst Ongoing Conflict
Manara Magazine
Israel should maintain its traditional position of opposing the establishment of an independent nuclear fuel cycle in Saudi Arabia, given the negative strategic ramifications of such a move. Specifically, Israel should insist on applying the nuclear “gold standard,” as was the case with the United Arab Emirates.
The Proposal for a Regional Nuclear Fuel Bank in Saudi Arabia
The Institute for National Security Studies
A U.S.-led peace initiative to end Sudan’s brutal civil war took place in Geneva over the last two weeks. But despite invitations and extensive international pressure, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) declined to send a delegation to Switzerland altogether, while the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) sent a delegation.
Reading of the Week: Without Sudans Warring Parties in Geneva, Whats Next for Peace Talks?
United States Institute of Peace
Somalia is experiencing significant impacts of climate change, including higher air temperatures, increased evaporation and more variable inter annual rainfall, all of which lead to more frequent and severe droughts and floods. These changes have direct consequences for the estimated 72 per cent of the national population that relies on farming and pastoralism.
From conflict to collaboration: Co-funding environmental peacebuilding in South-Central Somalia
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Le contexte du Burkina Faso se caractérise par une crise sécuritaire depuis 2015, une crise humanitaire et alimentaire et une instabilité politique, affectant ainsi les perspectives économiques du pays. Le Burkina Faso, affecté par les changements climatiques, a une économie peu diversifiée et vulnérable aux chocs externes.
Rapport Pays 2024 - Burkina Faso - Impulser la transformation du Burkina Faso par la réforme de larchitecture financière mondiale
African Development Bank Group
In June 2024, ESD got the chance to sit down with General (ret.) Thomas Antonius Middendorp, of the Royal Netherlands Armed Forces to discuss his thoughts on the links between climate change and security challenges, as well as the benefits to be gained by modern militaries through the adoption of ‘green’ technologies. Gen. Middendorp has witnessed first-hand the effects of and security risks posed by climate change during his time in uniform.
Reading of the Week: The Climate General - Weighing the impact of climate change on security and how militaries should evolve
European Security & Defence
We are witnessing a moment of transition in international governance. Everyone unanimously concludes that we are facing a multipolar world. This process of reconfiguration of international architecture leads us to consider the future of the Euro-Mediterranean area today.
A New Centrality for the Euro-Mediterranean Space
European Institute of the Mediterranean
In an increasingly Hobbesian world that seems to be spinning out of control, there are currently some fifty state-based conflicts-more than at any time since World War II. Yet, not too long ago, an international consensus had emerged on the importance of an effective, shared response to instability-whether violent or substantial breakdowns in public order, mass migrations, or humanitarian crises.
How Great Power Competition Undermines Global Stability
The National Interest
Internet filtering and the widespread use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have become one of Iran’s most significant challenges, especially since the administration of the late President Ebrahim Raisi, when these practices expanded and grew more complex. With the inauguration of a new government following the July 2024 election of President Masoud Pezeshkian, one of the most pressing questions among the public is whether the administration has both the will and the ability to end the nation’s reliance on VPNs.
The VPN Epidemic in Iran: A Digital Plague Amid Global Isolation
Stimson
Following the last war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006 that left 1,100 Lebanese and 160 Israelis dead, and thousands more injured, the border between Israel and Lebanon remained relatively calm for around 17 years. However, since the Gaza war started in October 2023, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged fire along the border on a nearly daily basis, with clashes concentrated on southern Lebanon and more recently the Bekaa region on the one hand, and northern Israel and the Golan Heights on the other hand.
Hezbollahs strategy against Israel since October 2023
Manara Magazine
In recent months, there has been a gradual thawing of hostilities among long-standing rivals in the Gulf. From the Chinese-brokered agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran to normalize diplomatic relations to Saudi-Houthi peace talks over the war in Yemen and the subsided animosities within the Gulf Cooperation Council, concrete manifestations of detente abound.
Has Regional Detente Paved the Way for Collective Maritime Security in the Gulf?
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
In South Sudan, climate impacts-most clearly in the form of flooding and drought-have contributed to mass displacement, exacerbated resource and food scarcity, and dramatically affected agricultural and grazing patterns. As in other contexts, these phenomena do not alone explain the persistent conflict and political violence that have seized South Sudan in the short time since its independence.
To Stem the Tide: Climate Change, UNMISS, and the Protection of Civilians
Center for Civilians in Conflict
Both the G20 and BRICS+ are critical global groupings for economic and geostrategic reasons. Thirty years ago, G7 countries constituted nearly 70 per cent of the global economy. In contrast, by 2024, the BRICS+ bloc accounted for approximately 35 per cent of the world’s GDP, compared to the 30 per cent held by G7 countries. Meanwhile, G20 countries represent 85 per cent of the global economy, 75 per cent of global trade, and 62 per cent of the world’s population.
South Africas G20 Presidency: Tapping into Africas Potential through Financial, Climate and Food System Reform
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Over the past four years, the human smuggling ecosystem in Chad has continued to evolve and change. The Chadian government, for its part, has increasingly sought to tighten controls on the northbound movement of migrants, perceiving the flow of people as contributing to instability, rebel activity and organized crime in the north as well as in southern Libya.
CHAD Human Smuggling Picks Up Amid Persisting Instability And The Sudan Conflict
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
The United States, Egypt, and Qatar are making a ‘last gasp’ diplomatic push to secure a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Mediators say that the latest truce offer, which they hope to finalize in Cairo this week, ‘bridges’ several contentious details that had thwarted previous talks. At the time of writing, the prospects for the negotiations look bleak. The terms of the ceasefire have yet to be fully disclosed, but they appear to have veered from earlier frameworks offered in May and endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2735.
The real schism in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks is about who decides Gazas future
Chatham House
Japan’s relationship with Africa is changing rapidly. While Tokyo has maintained its traditional aid-focused approach to the continent, it is also encouraging more engagement from the Japanese private sector and a stronger focus on critical minerals.These shifts come amid growing tensions between the G7 advanced economies and the People’s Republic of China.
This policy insight shows that concern about Chinese influence in critical mineral supply lines, and its wider involvement in key African sectors like green energy, industrialisation and infrastructure, is leading Japan to expand its African engagement. However, elevated risk perception among Japanese companies could prove to be a complicating factor.
Local Opportunities and Global Disputes: Tracking Japans Engagement with Africa amid Geopolitical Tensions
South African Institute of International Affairs
Small and medium-sized enterprises represent around 80-90% of private sector businesses in the MENA region, and they employ over 50% of the formal workforce in some countries. Of that, new digital startups are only a small part. Despite SMEs’ limited share in national output in MENA compared to other regions, digital transformation is a crucial opportunity for these businesses to benefit from the growing digital economy and provide a remedy to severe youth unemployment and slow economic growth.
As the source of the most employment, this sector should be targeted for greater integration of information and communication technologies (ICT), but businesses often lack the means of both financial support and know-how to increase their use of technology.
Reading of the Week: Assessing the Status of Digital Integration of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises in the Middle East and North Africa
Wilson Center
For weeks, concerns over the risk of miscalculation or even intentional escalation between Israel and Hezbollah have dominated attention. Ramped up cross-border attacks between the two sides on Sunday, August 25 have left each side simultaneously claiming success “for now,” suggesting a much-feared larger conflagration may have been averted in the near term.
However, implications for longer-term risk and mutual deterrence, Iran’s calculations for escalation, and linkage to the still-elusive Gaza cease-fire remain uncertain.
Israel-Hezbollah Contained Escalation Halts Concern Over Broader Mideast War
United States Institute Of Peace
In recent months, as the United States has struggled to deter and degrade the Houthis, Yemen’s United Nations-recognized government has worked to dramatically increase economic pressure on the group. The economy, in particular revenue and liquidity, is the Houthis’ Achilles heel. This is where the group is most vulnerable, and this is exactly where the government in Aden is pressing.
This approach, however, also carries significant risks. In the short term, increasing economic pressure on the Houthis is likely to prompt them to reignite attacks on Saudi Arabia, while in the long term it could make reuniting Yemen into a single state all but impossible.
The Houthis Achilles Heel
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
According to the US Department of Energy, there are fifty minerals that are “critical”—in that they not only serve an essential function in the technologies of the future but are also at a high risk of supply-chain disruption. That risk is due to a number of factors, but one glaring reason is the limited availability or mining of these minerals in the United States. That is increasingly problematic as demand for these minerals rises, considering the role they play in building a green economy globally.
Critical minerals investment must avoid the mistakes of the past in African mining
Atlantic Council
One of Africa’s longest wars shifted toward a conclusion in July when France recognized Morocco’s claim of sovereignty over the Western Sahara. That action, alongside Morocco’s military advantage, effectively will leave the indigenous Sahrawi independence movement with no choice but to eventually settle for some form of autonomy within Morocco.
While this reality will be unsatisfactory for the estimated 173,000 Sahrawis living in refugee camps, their best option, and that of their backer, Algeria, is now to seize the opportunity to negotiate for best-possible peace terms with Morocco.
Western Saharas conflict is over. Negotiating the terms comes next
United States Institute Of Peace
The Guinean junta’s growing repression and intolerance for dissent risk derailing the promised transition back to civilian government while deepening the country’s humanitarian crisis.
A Stagnant Transition in Guinea
Africa Center For Strategic Studies
A country’s demographic trends are often cited among the risks or opportunities that it faces. Youth bulges could bring political instability; a robust working age population promises a “demographic dividend” of economic prosperity and strengthened democracy. As one generation ages out of the labor force, another slips into place, taking on the responsibility for economic growth (while paying into social security, caring for parents, and often raising a family).
Reading of the Week: Introduction - The Grest Population Shakeup
The Wilson Center
Gates Foundation, with the support of Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, convened an inaugural meeting of the Doha Global South Health Policy Initiative in Doha. The initiative was conceived as a response to stagnating health indicators in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), even before the COVID-19 pandemic, despite global commitments and significant funding from global health initiatives.
The Doha Global South Health Policy Initiative
Middle East Council on Global Affairs
September 13 will mark one year since Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Bahraini crown prince and prime minister Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa signed the Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement (C-SIPA). In an era when Middle East partners have sought additional U.S. reassurances over fears that Washington might abandon the region, the signing of C-SIPA offers a new roadmap for multinational cooperation.
One Year of the U.S.-Bahrain C-SIPA: Signs of Progress, Regional Potential
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Masoud Pezeshkian, a former heart surgeon, took the oath of office before the Iranian Parliament on July 30, a day after he received an endorsement for the presidency from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranians hope that the reformist president will be able to make good on his mandate to carry out social and economic reforms and alleviate some of the pain that sanctions have wrought on the country’s economy and left it with few allies.
Irans New President Takes the Oath With Promise of Reform and Outreach
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
Given the current lack of viable security alternatives on the Israel-Lebanon border, Washington may try to patch up UNIFIL’s many deficiencies—but it must do so with a clear understanding that the force has repeatedly failed its mission and squandered its credibility.
The Pros and Cons of Salvaging (or Ditching) UNIFIL
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Sudan’s protracted and deadly war is not merely a civil conflict, as is often, and sloppily, claimed. Rather, it represents a complex struggle deeply rooted in the nation’s fraught transition to democracy. Following the end of Omar al-Bashir's thirty-year authoritarian rule, Sudan has faced numerous challenges in establishing a stable, civilian-led government.
Sudans War is Anything But Civil
Brussels International Center
The African Union (AU) will attend the next G20 Summit as a full member under Brazil’s presidency in November 2024 in Rio de Janeiro, having been admitted to the group last year. This marks a significant step forward in amplifying Africa’s voice in global forums. Established in 2002 as the successor to the Organization of African Unity (founded in 1963), the AU aims to promote political and economic integration across the continent.
How the African Union Can Amplify Its Influence in the G20
Policy Center for the New South
Negotiations between African governments and foreign investors are often characterized by the various skills, technical capacities, and information asymmetries that shape the balance of power and influence outcomes. The dynamics of these negotiations—in pursuing extractive and infrastructure projects, in particular—merit a special focus, as agreements to carry them out often bind African countries for several decades.
Maximizing the Benefits of the Renewed Global Interest in Africas Strategic Minerals
Carnegie Endowment For International Peace
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is emerging as a promising solution to the challenges of inefficiency and high compliance costs in the fight against money laundering. This brief examines the capabilities, benefits, and challenges of AI in the context of detecting and preventing financial crime. The brief explores the ways in which AI can aid anti-money laundering efforts, particularly by reducing compliance costs and enhancing efficiency. The findings offer insights for policymakers, regulators, and financial institutions seeking to leverage AI to combat money laundering more effectively and efficiently.
Reading of the Week: The Use of AI in Arresting Financial Crime
Observer Research Foundation
Since the United States atomic bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, humankind has been acquainted with new meanings of catastrophic conflict and “total war.” Until now, however, before Russian aggressions against Ukraine and prospective Iranian wars against Israel, the tangible portents of a “final epidemic” have seemed more-or-less manageable. What next?
Madness and World Politics: Risks of a Nuclear War
Modern Diplomacy
There have been many calls-not least from developing countries-to reform major economic institutions such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the World Trade Organization (WTO). But before entertaining reform ideas, we must grapple with a pair of uncomfortable questions. Are these three organizations fully devoted to poorer countries’ economic and social development? And, are they uniquely equipped to deal with development? These questions are especially pertinent today, as the organizations wrestle with making economic growth “environmentally sustainable,” promoting climate-oriented development, and adding climate action to their already-complex portfolios.
The World Bank , the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization: Reform Challenges
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Migration has been a major issue affected the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has for decades. Many citizens across the region have sought to leave their homelands in search of life in foreign countries. Arab Barometer has been monitoring attitudes toward migration in the region since 2006. The newest Wave VIII surveys between 2023 and 2024 reveal that sizable percentages of people across the region want to leave their countries in pursuit of better living conditions elsewhere.
Migration in the Middle East and North Africa August 2024
Arab Barometer
Today we’re putting a special focus on water: sanitation, hygiene, health implications and dimensions of that. That covers a broad complex of issues: access to clean water, water production, desalination, management of human waste and garbage, and treatment. It brings forward questions of what available clean and safe water is available per person in the midst of this crisis, and at what quality.
Gazas Water Crisis-What Can Be Done
Center for Strategic International Studies
Since 2003, US airstrikes in Somalia have caused significant civilian harm, though most reported incidents of civilian harm have been deemed “unsubstantiated” by US Africa Command (AFRICOM). In the few cases the US military has deemed credible, the Department of Defense (DoD) has not provided a response beyond public acknowledgment that it mistakenly killed civilians.
Extend Your Hand: Civilian Preferences for Amends in Somalia
Center for Civilians In Conflict
In July 2023, Niger experienced a significant political shift following a military coup d’état. One of the effects of the coup d’état was the decision of the military authorities to abrogate the unpopular 2015/36 Anti-Smuggling Law adopted in 2015 and implemented since mid-2016.
Nigers Repeal of the 2015/36 Anti-Smuggling Law
Clingendael
The March 23 Movement, commonly known as M23, has been a significant actor in the ongoing conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This conflict, often referred to as a forgotten war, has been overshadowed by other conflicts, despite its profound impact on the region and its people.
A Forgotten War and an Overshadowed Ceasefire
International Centre for Counter-Terrorism
Demand for critical minerals is expected to skyrocket in the decades ahead. These minerals — such as copper, cobalt and lithium, among others — power the electronics we use every day and are essential for transitioning to greener energy technologies. The U.S. is increasingly working with African partners to develop the continent’s abundant critical minerals, an effort that is vital to advancing U.S. economic and national security interests
The Lobito Corridor: A U.S. Bet on Africas Critical Mineral Development
United States Institute of Peace
Japan is stepping up its diplomatic engagement with Africa. Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko visited Madagascar, Côte d'Ivoire, and Nigeria, as part of a 6-country tour from April 26 to May 6, 2024. Her trip was Japan’s fourth high-level trip to Africa in the span of a year, including a visit by Prime Minister Kishida Fumio in May 2023.
Japans High-Level Africa Diplomacy
Center for Strategic & International Studies
Gender equality continues to be elusive in many parts of life in countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Although there is widespread support for women enjoying equal rights, there has been some retrenchment on these issues in recent years
Gender Attitudes and Trends in MENA: The Effects of Working Women
Arab Barometer
Public procurement in Arab countries is governed by laws on tendering and related regulations and decrees, which are typically complicated. The central problem is the widening gap between what is stated in the laws and what happens in reality.
Should Arab countries join the WTOs agreement on government procurement?
Economic Research Forum
Saudi Arabia has historically played a significant role in the global oil market as a swing producer—a country or company with the ability to significantly influence global oil prices by adjusting its production levels—within the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). This stance has given Riyadh enormous influence over oil prices due to its ability to change oil output levels as the world’s second-largest producer
Saudi Arabias strategy with the OPEC
Observer Research Foundation
In 2023, Tunisia emerged as the primary country of embarkation for irregular migrants seeking to reach Europe, eclipsing Libya, which had long been the main North African departure point. In total, some 97 306 migrants arrived in Italy from Tunisia, just over three times as many as in 2022.
Reading of the Week: Tunisia. Irregular Migration Reaches Unprecedented Levels
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
Central Africa is at a critical juncture in its energy governance, which could shape its energy future. The region is navigating between traditional fossil fuel projects like the encouraged Central African Pipeline System (CAPS) by the Central Africa Business Energy Forum (CABEF) and increasing momentum towards renewable energy solutions advocated by initiatives like the establishment of the Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency for Central Africa (CEREEAC)
Harnessing Regional Energy Governance for Central Africas Energy Security
African Development Bank Group
Last week, government officials from sub-Saharan Africa were in Washington, DC to discuss the future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a trade program that gives 32 countries tariff-free market access to the US on some 1,800 products. AGOA expires in September 2025, but with the clock ticking, proponents in Congress want to modernize the program, not just renew it
Shifting Focus on Labor and Environmental Standards to Companies Instead of Countries Would Supercharge AGOA
Wilson Center
In East Africa, harvesting of main season cereals is nearing completion in the south while planting and development continues in the north, and a mix of dry and wet conditions throughout the season is impacting many areas. In the Middle East and North Africa, wheat harvesting finalized in July under mixed conditions, with generally poor to failure outcomes in western North Africa
Crop Monitor for Early Warning, August 24
Global Agricultural Monitoring
On July 16, the United States and Saudi Arabia announced a new framework for space collaboration and civil aeronautics that shakes up the space race. The agreement marks a turning point for the US-Saudi Arabia bilateral relationship, gearing it more toward scientific cooperation and demonstrating the pivotal role that emerging space powers, particularly in the Middle East.
US-Saudi space deal shakes up new space race
Middle East Institute
This paper explores the energy geopolitical implications of the ‘other’ energy transition, ie, the slow but steady shift in global energy demand from traditional OECD markets to developing countries in the coming decades. It is a pilot study that aims to raise attention and invite discussion on this topic.
The geopolitics of the global energy demand shift
Real Instituto Elcano
A series of violent events over the past week have taken the Middle East closer to the brink of all-out war. The latest of these was the killing, on 31 July, of Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas’s political wing and a high-level guest of the Iranian government, in the Iranian capital Tehran on the day of the new Iranian president’s inauguration
Reading of the Week: Staying the Guns of August: Avoiding All-out Regional War in the Middle East
International Crisis Group
Lebanon’s central bank Banque du Liban has achieved 12 months of exchange rate stability. Foreign currency reserves have recently clawed back above $10 billion. At the one-year mark of Wassim Mansouri’s reign as acting governor, economist Layal Mansour lauds his disciplined implementation of a quasi-currency board solution but urges this solution’s full and formal adoption.
The paradox of the Lebanese pounds recent stability
Executive
Unlike its prolific onshore, Kuwait’s offshore had long been a desert for oil and gas. Now the country has changed that, reporting a large discovery at the Al-Nokhatha field, named for the captain of a dhow, the traditional Gulf ship. How useful is this for the country, and does it herald a turnaround in Kuwaiti petroleum?
Kuwaits Big New Offshore Oil Find
Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
Countries across Africa have experienced massive internet connectivity disruptions this year due to cuts in the undersea fiber cables in the Red Sea and along Africa’s east and west coasts. This has left much of the continent disconnected from the digital world that many rely on for essential services, e-commerce, business and daily life.
Bridging Africas digital divide
Geopolitical Intelligence Services
Although all of Africa contributes less than 4 percent to global greenhouse gases annually, many African countries are especially vulnerable to extreme weather events and are unable to adapt to long-term changes in the climate. African countries experience an average of 5 to 15 percent GDP loss per year due to climate change.
Who Speaks for Africa at COP? Power and Politics at the UN Climate Negotiations
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Established in 2013 by the UN Security Council, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) aimed to stabilize the situation in northern Mali, support the political transition, protect civilians, and promote human rights amidst ongoing conflict and instability. The mission’s mandate evolved over its ten-year tenure to address the changing political and security landscape, leading to its withdrawal at the request of the Malian government in 2023.
Emerging Lessons from MINUSMAs Experience in Mali
International Peace Institute
During the coronavirus pandemic, disruptions to global supply chains exposed the United Arab Emirates’ vulnerability to food security issues, posing challenges in maintaining consistent food imports. The UAE government successfully ensured supermarket shelves were stocked by swiftly implementing various safeguarding measures.
The UAEs Path to Food Self-Sufficiency
Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
With scarce arable land and water resources, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia depend heavily on food imports, as do other Gulf countries. The COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine war, and negative impacts of climate change exacerbated the challenge and exposed the vulnerability of their existing food supply chains.
UAE and Saudi Arabias agricultural diplomacy in Africa: Competition, cooperation and its strategic implications
Observer Research Foundation
Based on a comprehensive analysis drawing from extensive research, web scraping, data mining and interviews with stakeholders, this regional report focuses on the evolving trends, opportunities, and challenges shaping the digital economy, the future of work and the related skills requirements in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia.
New forms of work and platform work in the southern and eastern Mediterranean
European Training Foundation
Extreme heat is deadly and disrupts economies and societies. Modelled estimates show that between 2000 and 2019, approximately 489,000 heat-related deaths occurred each year, with 45 per cent of these in Asia and 36 per cent in Europe1. Heat exposure related loss in labour capacity resulted in average potential income losses equivalent to US$863 billion in 20222
United Nations Secretary-Generals Call to Action on Extreme Heat
United Nations
A number of plans have been proffered for addressing the post-conflict environment. One oft-cited proposal calls for “regional and non-regional states to implement a Multinational Authority to temporarily administer Gaza.” However, the willingness of countries in the region to participate in such an effort remains questionable, absent the setting of a timeline for the establishment of a Palestinian state, which Israel continues to resist.
A Palestinian-led approach for Gazas day after
Middle East Institute
The prospect of Maghreb states’ unity in transforming the oil-rich North Africa, once the breadbasket of the Mediterranean, into a more integrated region of stability and growth was buried at the Carthage summit in April 2024 with the launch of a tripartite initiative bringing together Tunisia, Algeria and Libya, nicknamed the G3.
Reading Of The Week: Will the G3 of Maghreb states reshape the balance of power in North Africa?
Manara
Climate change is one of the world’s most prominent challenges, with serious impacts on food systems around the world. These impacts include low agricultural productivity, food insecurity due to water scarcity, and desertification. North Africa is considered a hot spot for climate change. A combination of water scarcity and desertification is taking its toll on many countries in the region, leaving many communities under stress.
Ecological Security Threats in North Africa for 2040
Council on Strategic Risks
Le rôle du secteur halieutique dans l’alimentation du continent africain est considérable : 22 % des protéines animales disponibles viennent des produits de la mer et des eaux douces et plus de 50 % dans certains pays africains, en particulier en Afrique du Nord et de l’Ouest. Les pêches et leurs activités connexes fournissent non seulement de la nourriture, mais aussi des emplois à 12 millions de personnes, et génèrent des revenus pour les États comme pour les communautés
LAfrique face à lépuisement de ses ressources de la pêche maritime
Policy Center For The New South
Since Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, Russia has enjoyed watching the deteriorating situation in the Middle East preoccupy its main adversary, the United States. On April 13, however, Moscow grew concerned when, in retaliation for an attack on the Damascus consulate of Iran, its growing ally, Tehran launched more than 300 missiles and drones at Israel.
Reading Of The Week: What Russia Wants in the Middle East
Foreign Affairs
The Bahrain-China relationship has rarely garnered much interest – that is, until recently. At the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum in May, the two countries agreed to form a comprehensive strategic partnership. The agreement skipped over a strategic partnership designation and placed the small Gulf country in the same category – at least on paper – as regional heavyweights
A Flurry of Activity in Bahrain-China Relations
The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
On June 25, Haitians in Port-au-Prince watched closely as several hundred Kenyan police officers, clad in uniform, filed to the tarmac from a Kenya Airways plane. The officers’ arrival had been in the works for more than a year and a half, since the former Haitian prime minister, Ariel Henry, requested international support for the Haitian police in the face of a then-unprecedented uprising by gangs in the fall of 2022.
Why Kenyas deployment wont solve all of Haitis problems
Brookings
On July 20, Israel responded to a deadly Houthi drone attack in Tel Aviv with heavy airstrikes on the Yemeni port of Hodeida, destroying most of the site’s oil storage tanks. On one hand, this targeting choice reflects crucial gaps in the international community’s policy toward the group. On the other hand, Hodeida is also a crucial entry point for humanitarian aid, so targeting its infrastructure has negative repercussions for the Yemeni people.
To Stop Israeli Attacks on Yemen, Enforce Sanctions on the Iran-Houthi Link
The Washington Institute
This note looks at the right to education under international human rights law (IHRL) and how it applies in the context of the armed conflict and crisis in Syria when international humanitarian law (IHL) is also applicable. It concisely explains how the OHCHR Syria Office advocates for state policies that advance the realisation of this right and how the UN contributes to these broader goals.
The Right to Education in Syria
UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
As tensions between Israel and Hezbollah escalate, the specter of a full-scale war, with the potential to draw in the United States and Iran, demands the US’ immediate attention. The Biden-Harris Administration has tasked, in response, White House Senior Advisor Amos Hochstein with the responsibility of mediating efforts to de-escalate the conflict and bring stability to the Lebanon-Israel border
Securing Lebanon to Prevent a larger Hezbollah-Israel war and wider escalation
American Task Force on Lebanon and The Middle East Institute
The South African public transport sector is facing a critical crisis, marked by escalating violence and extortion within the taxi industry. This report delves into the dynamics behind these troubling incidents, shedding light on the severe impact they have on bus companies and the broader public transport ecosystem.
Crime and conflict in South Africas long-distance transport industry
Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime
The widespread adoption of non-financial standards for assessing economic performance, often called ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) criteria, appears to have had an impact on financial markets, one that is diffuse and hard to measure. The implications of this shift to a rigid yet vague system of evaluation could be especially challenging for African companies and economies, which are highly dependent on capital flows that must now measure up to the demanding ESG yardstick.
Africa shows ESG is near an adapt-or-die moment
Geopolitical Intelligence Services
The Multi-Partner Somalia Infrastructure Fund (SIF) was established in October 2016 with the key objective of supporting Somalia to develop and rehabilitate key infrastructure, rebuild institutions, and reinforce economic governance. This report provides an update on the Fund’s activities covering the period January to December 2023.
Somalia infrastructure fund 2023 annual progress report
African Development Bank Group
The present report, submitted pursuant to paragraph 47 of Security Council resolution 2717 (2023), covers developments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 20 March to 19 June 2024. It describes the progress and challenges in the implementation of the mandate of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
United Nations (UN)
Global Gateway represents the offer the EU is making to its external partners. It will help to tackle the most pressing global challenges, from fighting climate change to improving health systems, as well as boosting competitiveness and security of global supply chains.
Evolving Africa-Europe Relations: Prospects For a Sustainable Future
Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI)
The Syrian regime recently announced that it had arrested over 2,000 people in Damascus on drug-related charges during the first half of 2024. Investigative reports confirm that Syria's drug market continues to grow in terms of production, distribution, and consumption levels. However, the relatively small amount of drugs confiscated suggests the regime is focusing on arresting users and street-level pushers rather than going after the major producers and traffickers.
Reading Of The Week: Smoke and mirrors: The Syrian regimes dubious anti-drug campaigns
Middle East Institute (MEI)
Iran’s presidential elections ended with heart surgeon and moderate “reformist” Masoud Pezeshkian winning by a margin of 3 million votes against hardliner Saeed Jalili. The elections were called to replace President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a mysterious helicopter crash in late May. The July 5 runoff followed a first-round vote on June 28 with record low turnout and inconclusive results.
Monday Briefing: How significant is reformist candidate Pezeshkians victory in Irans presidential vote?
Middle East Institute (MEI)
With trade in goods among Arab countries remaining modest, trade in services could play the pivotal role of an engine of growth in economic integration within the region, as well greater participation in global value chains. This column outlines progress to date and what needs to be done to make a success of AFTAS, the Arab free trade area in services.
Can a free trade area in services boost trade within the Arab region?
Economic Research Forum (ERF)
The Guided Trade Initiative (GTI) of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was launched on 7 October 2022 in response to the growing demand for trading under the AfCFTA to start. It was designed as an interim trading arrangement to test the provisions of the AfCFTA, to identify challenges and bottlenecks and to help maintain the political momentum behind as well as public support for the Agreement.
Nigerias participation in the Guided Trade Initiative
Supporting Investment & Trade in Africa (SITA)
Target Product Profiles (TPPs) are a staple of the health sector. They are used to communicate client needs and requirements for products not currently available on the market, with information on how the new product will be used, by and for whom, and the minimum and ideal performance criteria. TPPs guide the industry to develop products that meet current needs. They are not intended to act as final procurement specifications, but rather as a list of desired requirements, which combined, describes the ideal product considering the context. Clients recognize that innovation is an iterative process and suppliers must balance sometimes competing requirements against product development progress.
A Target Product Profile for an Innovative Road Construction Technology Solution
Center For Global Development (CGD)
A new major battle broke out in the North Darfur city of El Fasher, which has been surrounded since April by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). El Fasher is the only capital city in Darfur that is still controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). The SAF, backed by its allies, managed to conduct multiple offensive maneuvers on RSF strongholds in rural territories in North Darfur. During the clashes, the SAF claimed to have inflicted several casualties on the RSF, including killing the local operation commander.
Fighting deepens around El Fasher in Sudan, al-Shabaab loses territory in Somalia, and police crackdown on tax-related protests in Kenya
Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED)
Policy awareness about the challenges of climate change in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has been on the rise, especially with Egypt hosting the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) in 2022 and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hosting COP28 in 2023.
Reading of the Week: Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa - Mitigating Vulnerabilities and Designing Effective Policies
Carnegie Endowment For International Peace
Nigeria has relied on the United States (US) for support in its efforts to combat a variety of armed opposition groups (AOGs), and the US considers Nigeria a key partner in West Africa. Nigeria faces formidable security challenges as AOGs across the country harm civilians and threaten livelihoods.
US Security Assistance to Nigeria: Civilian Protection Gaps and Opportunities
Center for Civilians in Conflict
Social, political, economic, and environmental changes have led to rapid urbanization and expansion of cities in Arab Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries, creating new opportunities, along with challenges, in the development and sustainability of cities. Emerging economic sectors in transportation, infrastructure services, and information and communication technologies will play a vital role in confronting the challenges.
Toward Smart Sustainable Cities in the MENA Region
Baker Institute for Public Policy
Since February 2024, the United States has imposed a series of unprecedented sanctions linked to Israeli settlers in the West Bank for human rights violations. This includes two rounds of sanctions targeting a close associate of Israel’s far-right national security minister, two entities that raised money for violent settlers, five settlers, and two illegal outposts.
Civilians or Soldiers? Settler violence in the West Bank
Armed Conflict Location and Event Data
This latest MEAC Research into Action report examines the operations and limitations of peace systems in MENA. Multi-tiered peace systems, comprising institutions and mechanisms from hyper-local to state and regional, work to mitigate and resolve conflicts throughout the region. Through a conversation with Dr. Ahram, the report summarizes this academic research, distills its policy implications, and proposes practical and realistic approaches to conflict resolution beyond MENA.
In Search of a Middle East and North Africa Peace System
The United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
This report explores trends in renewable energy investment, finance and policy in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a view to unlocking the potential of renewable energy as an important lever of socio-economic development in the region.
Sub-Saharan Africa: Policies and finance for renewable energy deployment
International Renewable Energy Agency
L'indice de réglementation de l'électricité (ERI) mesure le niveau de développement et de mise en œuvre des réglementations dans le secteur de l'électricité d'un pays. Il évalue non seulement le développement et la mise en œuvre des réglementations, mais aussi l'effet de la réglementation sur les acteurs et les parties prenantes du secteur de l'électricité. Cela inclut les entreprises de distribution d'électricité et le consommateurs.
Indice de réglementation de lélectricité pour lAfrique - Méthodologie détaillée
Africa Energy Portal
The world today faces the most wars since World War II. “Great Power Rivalry” has become a major narrative in explaining the trend toward conflict. However, humanism has deep roots in all societies and gives us the means to build coexistence. When we survey the state of international relations today, the overwhelming mood seems to be one of pervasive pessimism. The frameworks of leading thinkers confirm this.
Islam and Great Power Rivalry: Doom and Humanism in International Relations
The Wilson Center
The political landscape in Europe has shifted noticeably to the right as a result of the EU parliamentary elections. In this Megatrends Afrika Spotlight, Benedikt Erforth and Niels Keijzer (IDOS) shed light on the consequences this could have for EU-Africa relations.
The European Parliament Elections: What Can We Expect for Africa-EU Relations?
Megatrends Afrika
The United Arab Emirates signed the 2020 Abraham Accords with Israel in pursuit of strategic benefits. During the Gaza war, costs are becoming clear. Abu Dhabi shows no sign of rethinking normalisation, but it might consider smaller steps to register discontent with the Israeli campaign.
Reading Of The Week: The UAE, Israel and a Test of Influence
International Crisis Group
As the Israel-Hamas War continues, questions loom as to whether Hezbollah, a strong ally of Hamas and Iran, will enter the fight against Israel. Both regional and international actors remain concerned of escalation as assistance provided by countries like Iran and Russia arrives in the Levant.
A Wagner Group Delivery to Hezbollah: Russia and Iran Reaffirm Mutual Objectives via Proxy Groups
Irregular Warfare Center
A little over a year ago, the icy relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia underwent a remarkable thaw. Following a handshake between their foreign ministers in Beijing, the two countries restored diplomatic ties, reopened their respective embassies, and dispatched a flurry of high-level visits to each other’s capitals.
Beyond guns and oil: The emerging soft power rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia
Middle East Institute