Africa's Strategic Voice - The Sixteenth Council

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How Africa’s Infrastructure Gaps Are Holding Back Regional Value Chains

Despite the promise of AfCFTA, Africa’s regional trade remains stunted by a critical and underexamined barrier: infrastructure. This dispatch argues that fragmented, underfinanced, and nationally siloed infrastructure systems are preventing the emergence of regional value chains. From broken transport links to disconnected power grids and outdated customs systems, the lack of coordinated, production-enabling infrastructure is the single most decisive bottleneck to industrial integration. Without a radical shift in governance, finance, and planning, Africa risks missing its moment in the global value chain race.

Are African Economies Prepared for a Global Trade Reordering Driven by U.S. -China Decoupling?

As the U.S.–China economic decoupling redefines global trade, Africa faces a critical inflection point. The continent must either seize emerging supply chain opportunities or risk deeper marginalisation. This dispatch lays out a strategic readiness agenda—from industrial zoning to smart trade defence—aimed at positioning Africa within the evolving global trade order.

Precarious Pact: Unpacking the DRC-Rwanda Peace Deal

Signed on 27 June 2025 in Washington, the DRC-Rwanda peace agreement marks a high-stakes attempt to end decades of violence in the Great Lakes. Brokered by the U.S. and Qatar, the accord intertwines territorial assurances, militia disarmament, and a minerals-for-security agenda. Yet, deep-rooted mistrust, the M23’s absence, and fragile state institutions raise urgent questions about the deal’s durability.

From Presence to Power: Can Africa Redraw the Map of Global Governance?

Africa is no longer absent from global governance—it’s increasingly present, from BRICS to the G20. But visibility without influence is a hollow victory. Despite symbolic gains, real power remains elusive, scattered by internal disunity and institutional limits. To shape the world order, Africa must build leverage, not just presence—through coherence, strategic diplomacy, and reform from within. The seat at the table is not the prize; what Africa does with it is.

The Sahel Without France: Who Fills the Void?

France’s military exit from the Sahel didn’t leave a vacuum—it exposed one. As Russian operatives, Turkish drones, and Gulf aid flood the region, violence has only intensified. The era of Françafrique has ended, but what follows is a scramble, not a solution. This article explores the fractured aftermath, the foreign agendas now shaping the Sahel, and the urgent case for African-led security built on legitimacy, not foreign leverage.

Potential Pathways to Relationship Restoration Between the DRC and Rwanda: A Comprehensive Analysis of Conflict, External Influences, and Cooperation

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda share a long, tumultuous history defined by cross-border tensions, deep-seated mistrust, and overlapping security interests. Past attempts at peace, often orchestrated by external powers, have overlooked local realities and contributed to volatile compromises.