Dear <<First name>>,

Egypt will be the second North African country to chair the African Union this year, exactly ten years after Gaddafi’s Libya. So much has happened since. Accordingly, also the relationship that ‘Arab Africa’ has with the rest of the continent and with the European Union has evolved in these years. To examine the shifting roles and priorities of North Africa and of the political actors that have influence in the region, we wrote two papers. The first one, published this week, looks at Europe-Africa relations from a North African viewpoint. Keen to keep the special rapport with the EU, while at the same time looking to increase their economic ties with Sub-Saharan Africa, North Africa does not seem too enthusiastic about the much-touted continent-to-continent approach.  

For the European Union, these days North Africa has often been associated with migration, as the region is a key channel to Europe. As a follow-up to the publication of our Challenges Paper, now also available in French, we looked at those trends in Africa’s migration policies that are likely to surface in the coming months.  

The team and I are much looking forward to discussing all these Africa-Europe related questions at tonight’s launch of the Challenges Paper at the Finnish Permanent Representation in Brussels. We hope to see you there.

All the best,

Virginia

North Africa’s double pursuit in Africa-Europe relations – Part 1

While looking to tighten its relations with the rest of the African continent, North Africa is also seeking to safeguard the link with the European Union. Emmanuel De Groof, Jean Bossuyt, Tasnim Abderrahim and Dalil Djinnit look at how this double pursuit towards north and south is influencing Africa-Europe relations. Read the paper >>

Davos 2019

Deutsche Welle writes about how the plan to boost intra-African trade while global barriers go up has gained much attention in Davos…

…and Africa Times further analyses how talks in Davos focused on the African Continental Free Trade Agreement and a unified market.

In his speech to world leaders, UN Secretary-General António Guterres underlined that ‘climate change is the biggest threat to the global economy’.

EURACTIV wraps up last week’s Davos forum, highlighting the warning of a self-inflicted economic recession.


Trade, finance and investment

A paper by the International Monetary Fund provides evidence of a strong relationship between the short-term dynamics of growth and inequality in developing economies.

The International Trade Union Confederation highlights the relevance of social dialogue for formalising the informal economy in a recent publication…

…and particularly sheds light on the situation in Kenya.


Peace and security

In a short documentary, the United Nations Development Programme portrays the humanitarian-development-peace nexus in Somalia and Nigeria.

 The EUobserver explains how France and Germany hope to revive the EU with the Aachen treaty signed last week.

The World Economic Forum states that climate change, food insecurity and extremists are largely to blame for the violence in the Sahel.


Governance

In this video, the BBC looks at what we can expect from Felix Tshisekedi, DR Congo’s new leader…

…while Brookings’ Jideofor Adibe looks at the 2019 presidential election in Nigeria.

The South African Institute of International Affairs looks at how and why Africa’s relationship with the International Criminal Court deteriorated, and what hope remains for the delivery of international criminal justice in Africa.


North Africa

Among other examples, this article by the Policy Center for the New South looks at Morocco to illustrate the misunderstood link between trade and migration.

The European Council on Foreign Relations zooms in on the strikes and elections raising the tension in Tunisia’s society and politics.

Reuters reports that eight years after the uprising, Egyptians say freedoms have eroded…

…and as French President Macron visits the country, Le Monde highlights that the country has become ‘more dangerous than ever for the political opposition’ [in French].


Other

The South African Institute of International Affairs has just launched a new special journal issue on EU-Africa ties.

The European Commission has published the conclusions of last week’s EU-AU Ministerial Meeting.

‘Should the UK’s development department be merged with foreign affairs and trade?’, asks the Center for Global Development…  

…which also argues that a no-deal Brexit would be bad for developing countries.

‘Is there a circular solution to the world's food problems?’, asks the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

A group of 30 intellectuals urge to ‘fight for Europe’ as the continent faces its biggest challenge since the 1930s, reports The Guardian.

The European Parliamentary Research Service published a brief on the interlinks between migration and development.

To fight the global rise of populism, liberals need to regain the trust of the voters that form much of their base, argues Project Syndicate.