Welcome to Foreign PolicyOverview of Africa.
Highlights this week: Big Message from Nigeria President Denis Sassou Nguesso arriving in England to strengthen the close relationship between the two countries. A 42-year reign in the Republic of Congo, and Rwanda is threatening to withdraw troops from counter-terrorism operations Mozambique.
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has embarked on a historic two-day visit to the UK on Wednesday. King Charles III and Queen Camilla welcome Tinubu and his wife, former Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to Windsor Castle, which is the first official visit of a Nigerian leader to the country since the trip of the military ruler Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida almost four decades ago.
The two nations share violence colonial historywhere England looted and ran the country as a corporate businessbut we have grown closer in recent years as Abuja does not search plow firmly and predictable alliances in front of the White House that is increasingly in turmoil.
“I do not seek to give words that erase the past, for no words can,” Charles he said at a state party for Tinubu on Wednesday, adding that he hoped for a more hopeful future “worthy of those who endured the pain of the past.”
Soon military cooperation while the United States has also not produced results in combating the toxic alcohol of security problems fueled by jihadists, armed criminal groups, and separatists.
About 65 Nigerian soldiers were killed, and 300 citizensincluding children, were kidnapped in a coordinated attack earlier this month on military bases in northeastern Nigeria by the Islamic State of West Africa. on monday, suicide bombers populated areas in the northeast, including hospitals, killing at least 23 people; the army blamed people suspected of being Islamic militants.
Some British MPs have asked Prime Minister Keir Starmer to do so cope with Tinubu during the visit about the alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria – allegations spread by US President Donald Trump that misrepresent the security situation in the country, where all faiths have been affected by the increase in violence.
Perhaps as a counter to the propaganda, Oluremi Tinubu, who is a Christian pastor, is set to preach at a service at London’s Lambeth Hall and meet representatives of the Church of England.
The British government recently said that it wants to to move from the culture of “paternalism to a partnership of respect and equality” with African nations, where it will no longer lecture African leaders on governance and reasoning”from the donor to the investor.”
Both nations are looking to switch trading partners amid Trump’s tariff threats. Already, the couple has a close economic relationship. The UK has long been one of the major sources of capital inflows to Nigeria. Meanwhile, Nigeria has long supplied crude oil to its former colonial power, and last year, London’s exports of refined oil to Abuja increased almost immediately. 60 percent.
Tinubu’s visit comes at an important time, as Nigeria seeks foreign investment to develop its oil infrastructure and thus protect its economy at a time when the war in Iran has led to a boom in the oil market. Fighting in the Middle East has closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil shipping channel, causing global oil prices to rise.
Nigeria recently suspended the issuance of new oil import licenses for the second month in a row to prioritize domestic production from the Dangote Refinery, Africa’s largest refinery. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar he urged Gulf oil producers to invest in Nigeria as an alternative source in the Middle East.
As Africa’s largest oil producer, Nigeria could theoretically benefit economically from rising global oil prices, but insecurity in the Niger Delta—where oil production in the country is concentrated—and damaged pipelines have prevented its ability to produce enough crude oil domestically and abroad. It is constant he misses its OPEC quota of 1.5 million barrels per day and is currently unable to close the gap caused by the Iran war.
The government of Tinabu has from time to time deployed troops to protect oil infrastructure in the Niger Delta, but some soldiers face allegations of involvement in oil theft. In the past, England has done that supported of Nigerian Navy combating piracy and oil theft in the Niger Delta, including training small boat patrols, after seeing that the lack of security was not done directly. those affected its economy.
Now, Tinubu is looking to strengthen protection and monitoring cooperation with the UK to increase Nigeria’s capacity to pump more oil and address several security issues, including jihadists the north. Among Nigerian bosses the message for the UK they are the ministers of defence, national intelligence and mines.
At the same time, Abuja hopes to strengthen the relationship between the two countries investment in fintech and creative industries. British fintech company Wise has been adopted to work in the country, when Nigerian banks they are looking to expand to London.
Creative cooperation between the two countries is becoming more and more evident. Forwardthe 2024 Disney+ animated series set in futuristic Lagos, was created by Kugali Media, a UK-based company. And a Nigerian movie My Father’s Shadow, which received a Caméra d’Or Special Mention at Cannes and won Best Debut at the 2026 British Academy Film Awards, was funded by British foundations.
Wednesday, March 18, to Thursday, March 19: King Charles III welcoming Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on a state visit to England.
Election of the Republic of Congo. President Denis Sassou Nguesso re-elected Sunday in the Republic of Congo by getting 94.8 percent of the vote, according to state authorities, extending his rule of almost 42 years.
Sassou took power in 1979 and has ruled continuously since, except for a five-year period starting in 1992. At the end of last week, he ran for a fifth consecutive term against six unknown opposition candidates; his biggest opponents have either been jail or live in exile.
Nguesso campaigned to speed up development projects and expand access to education. However, many analysts to care vote as a check box exercise. The country’s economy is largely dependent on unearned oil revenues it went down for ordinary citizens. About half of Congo’s 6.1 million people live in poverty, and the youth unemployment rate is more than 40 percent.
Kenya’s relationship with Russia. Kenyan Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi he said Monday that Russia will stop recruiting Kenyans to fight its war in Ukraine in a joint meeting with its Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov.
Lavrov did not an opinion on the deal but said that all the foreign fighters had signed the contracts voluntarily “in full compliance with Russian laws.”
Africans without a military background have been he was attracted to Russia under false promises of civilian jobs and sent to the front line in Ukraine, where hundreds of people from 36 African nations are fighting for Moscow. A Kenyan intelligence report in February found more than 1,000 Kenyans were counted among them.
Rwandan soldiers will leave? Rwanda has threatened withdraw its troops from counter-terrorism operations in Mozambique’s natural gas-rich Cabo Delgado province if sustained international funding is not forthcoming. Currently, the European Union’s financial support for Rwandan troops in Mozambique it expires in May, with no plans to extend the period.
French energy giant TotalEnergies is developing a $20 billion liquefied natural gas project in Cabo Delgado. The project is supported by a 5 billion dollar loan from the US Import Bank authorized by the Trump administration, and operations restarted in January after ceasing in 2021 due to death rebel attacks linked to the Islamic State. The withdrawal of Rwandan troops could leave the project open to risk again.
Rwanda appears to be using its operations in Mozambique as leverage against US sanctions. Washington installed restrictions on the Rwandan army and its four senior commanders earlier this month, accusing them of supporting the M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo, after Washington’s rebellion. peace treaty break down.
“We did not pay hundreds of millions of dollars and our soldiers (Rwanda Defense Forces) did not make the ultimate sacrifice to bring stability to this region … only to see our brave soldiers constantly questioned, insulted, blamed, blamed or approved by countries that benefit greatly from our intervention,” Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe. he wrote on X on Saturday.
Congo mining plan. Last week, Dutch prosecutors fine Fleurette Properties, a Dutch company owned by US-backed Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler, nearly $30 million, following an eight-year corruption investigation into mining deals in the Congo.
Dutch authorities found the company guilty of obtaining valuable mining licenses in the Congo through bribery.
An online tour of Egypt. Egypt’s media is failing to protect female journalists from cyberbullying and sexual harassment, forcing many to leave the profession, Asmaa Fathy. he writes for Arab Writers for Investigative Journalism.
“(T)here is no policy of protection, either in the media organizations where they work or from the Egyptian Journalists Association,” Fathy writes, adding that “there is an institutional culture that marginalizes whistleblowers instead of holding accountable those guilty of abuse.”
Ghana’s slow poison. Illegal gold mining, locally known as galamseyis causing a major public health crisis in Ghana, as it has poisoned the country’s rivers, soil and food with toxic metals and chemicals. But the Ghanaian government and the media are not treating this as a real emergency, Adwoa A. Fofie. he argues in Africa is a country.
“Galamsey looting, media complicity, political elite participation, independent mining organizations, including the Chinese, compounded by poverty, makes it the biggest form of ecological violence and a direct threat to Ghana’s food system,” Fofie writes.
