Dear <<First name>>,
 

The 32nd African Union summit has just come to a close. Thus ended a busy two days with a packed agenda ranging from how to address funding gaps – a key issue for the Union which was spearheaded by outgoing AU chair Paul Kagame – to the progress on Agenda 2063 and the state of play of the African Continental Free Trade Area. The new chair, Egyptian president El-Sisi, has now officially taken over for 2019 and the decision was taken to have South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa as chair in 2020.

As usual we are here to help you connect the dots. To give you a sense of the challenges surrounding the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, Sean Woolfrey, Philomena Apiko and Kesa Pharatlhatlhe have looked at two countries in particular: Nigeria (which still has not signed it yet, but might do so soon) and South Africa (which did sign it but with some hesitation). These two countries are good examples of how different approaches and domestic priorities can and will influence the future of the agreement.

Also, following his paper on the finances of the African Union, Jan Vanheukelom wrote a blog looking at prospects of new AU chair El-Sisi being able and willing to carry on Kagame’s legacy.

Finally, we are looking for two new colleagues to join our Economic and Agricultural Transformation team. The details are below. As ever, don’t hesitate to share these vacancies in your networks.


All the best,

Virginia

Nigeria and South Africa: Shaping prospects for the African Continental Free Trade Area

Signing the agreement for the African Continental Free Trade Area in March 2018 was a major step towards an integrated continental market, but previous trade deals in Africa have failed at the stage of implementation. We have looked at Africa’s two largest economies, Nigeria and South Africa, to learn how domestic dynamics influence the implementation of the free trade area. Read the paper >>

African Union 

 Al Jazeera looks back at a year of the African Union under the tenure of Rwanda's President Paul Kagame.

In the second of a series of articles focusing on the African Union summit, the Institute for Security Studies highlights that Africa is being encouraged to act on the causes of forced displacement, rather than focusing on security measures.

The International Crisis Group lists eight priorities for the African Union in 2019.


Trade, finance and regional integration

The ‘debt-trap’ narrative around Chinese loans shows Africa’s weak economic diplomacy, argues Abdi Latif Dahir in an article for Quartz.

Mail & Guardian online argues that we need to rethink economics for Africa.

The European Commission has announced that the EU will give additional support to regional programmes for 25 countries in Africa.

In this interview with McKinsey, Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, discusses the potential for agricultural industrialisation, energy inclusion, and infrastructure upgrade to drive prosperity growth.

Brookings lays out three myths about youth employment in Africa and strategies to realise the demographic dividend.


Governance

The BBC maps the challenges facing Nigeria in nine charts, as the country approaches a presidential election…

…and Brookings’ article explains why Nigeria’s 2019 presidential election can be a chance to think globally and act locally.

In this article for The Guardian, Mo Ibrahim and Alan Doss argue that in accepting the controversial outcome of DRC’s presidential election, the global community has failed the country.


Peace and security

The African Union has published the continental results framework for reporting and monitoring of the implementation of the women, peace and security agenda in Africa for the period 2018-2028.

The Institute for Security Studies asks: ‘Does regime security come ahead of real reform in Gabon?’.


Climate change

As hundreds of millions of people are exposed to climate change risks, the International Institute for Sustainable Development explains why adaptation finance matters.

ODI’s Charlene Watson shares her to-do list for progressing climate finance in 2019.

For small businesses in Africa, climate resilience is an economic opportunity, argues Moushumi Chaudhury in an article for the World Resources Institute.


Food security

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization published the book ‘Sustainable Food and Agriculture: An Integrated Approach’, which looks at the imminent threats to sustainable food security through a cross-sectoral lens.

The International Food Policy Research Institute argues that better nutrition is a new goal post for agriculture…

… and explains why empowering young people is key to ending global hunger and malnutrition.


Other

In an article for Le Monde Afrique, Igiaba Scego argues that Italy is denouncing other countries’ colonialism without recognising its own [in French].

Brookings’ Landry Signé highlights four things you need to know about France-Africa relations given the evolving context with the EU, China, and other emerging partners.

Several members of the European Parliament demand that the next partnership agreement between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific countries includes conditionality on death penalty abolition.

The Guardian looks into a report by the One Campaign on why billions of UK aid are failing to reduce poverty.

The Center for Global Development argues that the World Bank’s next president should be a woman… 

 … and also asks: ‘How will donors spend $170 billion this year and next?’

In an article for AfricaPortal, Raga Mberi looks at the effect of fake news in Zimbabwe in a time of crisis.