World
Lavrov Yet to Begin Choosing between Illusions and Reality for Africa
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
In late January, four African countries – South Africa, Eswatini, Angola and Eritrea – officially hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. He went visiting these African countries as part of laying the groundwork and testing the pulse ahead of the forthcoming second Russia-Africa summit set for late July in St. Petersburg.
The first such summit was held in Sochi in October 2019 under the motto For Peace, Security and Development, attracting a large number of African representatives.
As Russia prepares to strengthen its overall corporate economic profile during the next African leaders’ summit, many Russian policy experts are questioning bilateral agreements that were signed, many of them largely remained unimplemented, with various African countries.
At the prestigious Moscow-based Institute for African Studies, well-experienced policy researchers such as Professors Vladimir Shubin and Alexandra Arkhangelskaya have argued that Russia needs to be more strategic in aligning its interests and be more proactive with instruments and mechanisms in promoting economic cooperation in order to reap the benefits of a fully-fledged bilateral partnership.
“The most significant positive sign is that Russia has moved away from its low-key strategy to vigorous relations, and authorities are seriously showing readiness to compete with other foreign players. But, Russia needs to find a strategy that really reflects the practical interests of Russian business and African development needs,” said Arkhangelskaya, who is also a Senior Lecturer at the Moscow High School of Economics.
Currently, the signs for Russia-African relations are impressive – declarations of intentions have been made, important bilateral agreements signed – now it remains to be seen how these intentions and agreements entered into these years will be implemented in practice, she pointed out in an interview.
The revival of Russia-African relations has to be enhanced in all fields. Obstacles to the broadening of Russia-African relations have to be addressed more vigorously. These include, in particular, the lack of knowledge or information in Russia about the situation in Africa and vice versa, suggested Arkhangelskaya.
While answering questions from the “Moscow. Kremlin. Putin” television programme on December 25, 2022, Lavrov explained that Russia’s motto is the balance of interests. “This balance is the core of our foreign policy. It is the only approach that has prospects in international affairs,” he reiterated, so Russia should balance its interest (not to describe them as enemies) with other external players in Africa.
Lavrov has been in the ministerial seat these several years and, of course, seems to be up to the existing challenges and the comprehensive policy tasks in continental Africa. In Pretoria, Lavrov held discussions with South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor. While talking later about the Russia-Ukraine crisis at the media briefing, Lavrov said Moscow appreciated “the independent, well-balanced and considerate approach” taken by Pretoria. South Africa has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has been hit by unprecedentedly stringent sanctions and suffers from isolation.
South Africa has now assumed the chairmanship of the BRICS, a grouping that includes Brazil, Russia, India and China. It will, however, host joint maritime drills with Russia and China from February 17 to 27, off the port city of Durban and Richards Bay. Some experts say the BRICS grouping, especially in the emerging new geopolitical world, throws many challenges to the United States and European-led global governance structures.
In August 2023, South Africa will host the BRICS summit. In this context, the sides expressed confidence that Pretoria’s upcoming chairmanship of this group opened up new opportunities for its future development, including in the context of expanding the partnerships between the five BRICS countries and African states.
Currently, South Africa has little trade with Russia but champions a world view – favoured by China and Russia – that seeks to undo perceived U.S.-hegemony in favour of a “multipolar” world in which geopolitical power is more diffuse.
Nevertheless, Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor called for greater economic cooperation between South Africa and Russia at the start of her meeting with Lavrov. “Our countries share growing economic bilateral relations both in terms of trade and investments,” she said. “It is my view that both countries can and must do more to develop and capitalize on opportunities to increase our cooperation in the economic sphere.”
Besides that, as indicated above, however, Lavrov mentioned peaceful space, high technology, smart cities, and nuclear energy as promising areas of collaboration with South Africa. Pretoria expresses readiness to collaborate, but the question is how to build a supply chain and financial services for collaborative projects in the face of Western sanctions imposed on Russia.
The two are members of BRICS, a grouping of major emerging economies, although they remain relatively insignificant markets for each other: Russia ranked as South Africa’s 33rd-largest trading partner in 2021, with two-way flows amounting to just $1.46 billion. In comparison, South Africa’s trade with the United States was $10.2 billion in 2021.
Reports have also pointed to the negative effects of Russia’s opaque transactions with South Africa under the Zuma administration. “There is a split in the South African establishment between the ruling ANC party and the opposition, which is fiercely against Russian-South African collaboration. There are fears that the country’s frenetic anti-Russian media campaign may gradually tip the scales against Moscow. Nonetheless, for the time being, South Africa is interested in broadening its foreign relations, particularly through the BRICS,” a Researcher at the Institute for International Studies at MGIMO, Maya Nikolskaya, told local Russian daily Kommersant.
Maya Nikolskaya underlined the fact that 2022 was generally not an easy year for Russian-African relations. The majority of African countries found themselves under tremendous pressure from the West. However, Moscow still has great potential in Africa: Russia is a major grain exporter, and in turn, “Moscow is interested in new sales markets, so building alternative value chains is in the interests of both parties,” the expert explained about Russia’s relations with South Africa.
On his second stopover in the Kingdom of Eswatini, Lavrov expressed deep wariness about the Western dominance and situations guided mostly by the orders of the former colonial powers. “We understand the painful feelings of the US and Europe, as the structure of international relations is changing, becoming multipolar, polycentric. We cannot change our Western friends and make them polite, behave democratically,” Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with the Kingdom of Eswatini’s top diplomat, Thulisile Dladla.
Reports indicated that the King of Eswatini Mswati III, has been invited to the Russia-Africa summit to be held this year in St. Petersburg. And Moscow plans to deepen its interaction with Eswatini in the area of Russian grain supplies, the construction of irrigation systems, energy and mineral resources mining. “We stated that efforts should be focused now on the economic sphere, which by its indicators so far lags far behind other areas of our cooperation, above all the excellent level of political dialogue,” the Russian top diplomat said.
About 50 Swazi nationals are receiving military education at Russian Defence Ministry colleges, further agreeing to step up cooperation in the field of security. Tongue-twisting Lavrov repackaged a long list of projects in nearly all sectors, including industry, agriculture, information communications technology, digital, education, culture and many others. With a small population of 1.2 million, Eswatini is a tiny landlocked country in Southern Africa.
During the media conference, he made references to his previous tour in Africa (Egypt, the Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Ethiopia) and also to the Arab League headquarters. He also discussed BRICS at length, particularly proposals for its expansion, as well as its role in the global economy, globalization and global finance. “BRICS is not planning to shut the door to the rest of the world. On the contrary, we would like to cooperate with all countries as much as possible, equally and based on a balance of interests. The BRICS countries’ approach to global affairs is winning the sympathy of more and more countries across the world, including in Asia, Africa and Latin America,” he asserted.
Wrapping his “business-as-usual” meetings in Eswatini, Lavrov referred to countries such as China, India, Turkey, et cetera that are emerging together as a new multipolar world. But these countries have good economic footprints in Africa. For Russia to recognizably play dominating role similar to China, India and Turkey, it has to make a complete departure from frequent rhetorics and work seriously on its economic policy dimensions in Africa.
The Kingdom of Eswatini, officially renamed from Swaziland in 2018, is a constitutional monarchy with the current constitution in force since February 8, 2006. The country is a member of the British-led Commonwealth. Eswatini, with an approximate population of 1,2 million (2021), is bordered by South Africa and Mozambique. It has had diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation since November 19, 1999.
Upon his arrival on January 24, Lavrov and his delegation were welcomed by his Angolan counterpart, Tete Antonio. On the next day, he held an in-depth discussion with President João Lourenço. According to the transcript, the focus was on the preparations for the next meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic and Scientific-Technical Cooperation and Trade in Luanda in late April. Both, however, outlined steps to advance strategic partnerships across all areas.
With Minister of External Relations Tete Antonio, there were questions relating to the launch of Angola’s AngoSat-2 satellite and which allows continuing cooperation in the peaceful exploration of outer space and other high-tech areas. Lavrov and Antonio have ultimately agreed to expedite the coordination of several new intergovernmental agreements, including those on the opening of cultural centres and on the nuclear power industry, humanitarian missions and merchant shipping.
Eritrea was Lavrov’s final working station. With an estimated population of 5.8 million, it is located on the Red Sea, in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa. Russia and Eritrea have had diplomatic relations since May 1993. President Isaias Afwerki has ruled Eritrea with an iron fist since its independence from Ethiopia in 1993. Eritrea was one of the countries that voted against a UN resolution condemning Russia over the situation in Ukraine in March 2022.
In April 2022, Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh Mohammed made a visit to Moscow. Both Lavrov and Mohammed reaffirmed Russia’s strategic interest in making coordinated efforts aimed at building a logistics hub along the coastline. During their meeting, Lavrov promised Moscow’s contribution towards stronger stability and security in the Horn of Africa.
As far back in 2018, Lavrov spoke extensively about economic cooperation. According to him, Russia’s truck maker KAMAZ was already working in Eritrea, supplying its products to that country, as was Gazprombank Global Resources, which was building cooperation in the banking sector. In the same year, 2018, concrete talks were held to build a logistics centre at the port of Eritrea, which makes the world’s class logistics and services hub for maritime transportation through the Suez Canal and is definitely set to promote bilateral trade.
According to the transcript posted on the website, Lavrov said: “we cooperate in many diverse areas: natural resources, all types of energy engineering, including nuclear and hydroelectric energy, and new sources of energy, infrastructure in all its aspects, medicine, the social sphere, transport and many more.”
Still that same year, Eritrea was interested in opening a Russian language department at one of the universities in the capital of the country, Asmara. Lavrov further indicated: “We agreed to take extra measures to promote promising projects in the sphere of mining and infrastructure development and to supply specialized transport and agricultural equipment to Eritrea.”
As always, Lavrov’s discussions with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki focused on “strengthening bilateral relations as well as regional developments of interest to the two countries.” He, however, reaffirmed Russia’s unconditional commitment to fulfilling all of its obligations under export contracts to send critical food supplies to African countries in need, including under the package agreements reached with the participation of the United Nations.
Isaias Afwerki further listened carefully as Lavrov listed a huge number of proposals, including those relating to the economy, mining, information and communication technologies, agriculture, infrastructure projects, the possibilities of the sea and air ports of Massawa, as well as Russian proposals for the development of industry in Eritrea. “All these are topics for the upcoming consultations between our ministries of the economy. We agreed to start them soon and give them a regular character,” he convincingly assured.
In summary, Lavrov’s trip to Africa, which has become a renewed diplomatic battleground since the Ukraine war began, has taken him to Angola, Eswatini and South Africa. As previously, not a single development project was commissioned in any of those African countries he visited. It was the usual diplomatic niceties, “dating and promising,” but at least with a bouquet for the bride.
During his four-African country visit, Lavrov did not hold meetings with any youth and women groups, nor did he address a gathering of African entrepreneurs. He did not visit any Russian-funded project facility sites to first-hand assess developments and progress there, nor any educational establishment, especially those dealing with international relations. His meetings were state-centric and mostly office-centred. Throughout his speeches, not a single reference was made to the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). While exploring more opportunities, there was absolutely nothing on Covid-19 and Russia’s Sputnik V vaccines or practical proposals to develop vaccines for other deadly diseases across Africa.
Lavrov left Moscow the next day after his three-hour media conference, summing up foreign policy achievements and the way forward on 18 January. During that conference, Africa only appeared at the bottom of the discussions. And yet Africa is considered “a priority” in Russia’s policy. Lavrov made a sketchy response about Africa and then reminded the gathering of the forthcoming summit planned for late July 2023. He, however, mentioned that there were drafted documents to reset cooperation mechanisms in this environment of sanctions and threats and in the context of geopolitical changes.
“There will be new trade and investment cooperation tools, logistics chains and payment arrangements. The change to transactions in national currencies is underway. This process is not a rapid one, but it is in progress and gaining momentum,” he told the gathering in quick remarks, then swiftly closed the media conference that day.
Nevertheless, African leaders are consistently asked to support Russia against Ukraine. Since the symbolic October 2019 gathering in Sochi, extremely little has happened. With high optimism and a high desire to strengthen its geopolitical influence, Russia has engaged in trading slogans, and many of its signed bilateral agreements have not been implemented, including all those from the first Russia-Africa summit. The summit fact files show that 92 agreements and contracts worth a total of $12.5 billion were signed, and before that, several pledges and promises were still undelivered.
Since his appointment in 2004 as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov has succeeded in building high-level political dialogues in Africa. But, his geopolitical lectures have largely overshadowed Russia’s achievements in Africa. Throughout these several years of his official working visits to Africa, unlike his Chinese counterparts, Lavrov hardly cuts ribbons marking the completion of development projects in Africa.
However, he needs simultaneously to understand how to approach development ideas inside Africa. These ideas could offer Russia hopes for raising its economic cooperation to a qualitatively new level and ultimately contribute to the building of sustainable relations with Africa. The new scramble for Africa is gaining momentum; therefore, Russians have to face the new geopolitical realities and their practical existing challenges. But in a nutshell, Russians seem to close their eyes to the fact that Africa’s roadmap is the African Union Agenda 2063.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Investors are interested in investing about $2.2 billion in the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones Nigeria Phase II project.
This was recently facilitated by the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) at the Africa Investment Forum.
The initiative is expected to revolutionize Nigeria’s agricultural sector, as it will create agro-industrial hubs that drive productivity, enhance food security, raise living standards and create jobs.
Those interested in the project include Arise IIP, Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, Africa Export-Import Bank, Sahara Farms, BPI France, Africa50, and the US Development Finance Corporation.
They engaged the Nigerian government at a meeting on Wednesday, December 4, 2024.
The SAPZ Nigeria Program is a country-wide government-enabled and private-sector-led investment program that will, (i) provide infrastructure for the establishment of agro-industrial zones, (ii) strengthen institutional capacity and business environment for agro-industrial development and (iii) support agricultural productivity, skills, and private investment across value chains.
SAPZs are established in areas with high agricultural production potential. They are provided with infrastructure, common services, and supported by policy incentives to integrate agricultural and industrial businesses. Through value-added manufacturing, they have the potential to trigger the long-delayed structural transformation that revitalizes rural areas, enhance food security, improve employment, and boost regional and international trade.
Phase I Nigerian States benefiting from the program are Cross River, Imo, Ogun, Oyo, Kaduna, Kwara and Kano, and the Federal Capital Territory. SAPZ Nigeria Phase II is underway to expand to an additional 24 States in Nigeria in the next 3 years and will link Nigeria’s agriculture to agro-industrialization to drive economic growth.
The president of AfDB, Mr Akinwumi Adesina, said, “This is a defining moment for Nigeria’s agricultural transformation.”
“The Nigeria SAPZ II project will create millions of jobs, empower smallholder farmers, and position Nigeria as a leader in agro-industrialization. These investments exemplify the power of collaboration to achieve sustainable development in Africa,” he added.
The bank’s Director General for Nigeria, Mr Abdul Kamara, said, “I am pleased to see this whopping investment interest and commitments by our financing partners for Nigeria, at a time when the country is ramping up efforts to attract investments into the agriculture sector to address food security, create job opportunities and boost economic growth.”
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
Russia and Africa have moved one more step forward in their bilateral relations by establishing a cultural telebridge dedicated to the formation and development of the Museum of African Cultures in Moscow. The cultural telebridge between Russia and Africa was organized by the Russian-African Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) with the support of the Secretariat of the “Russia-Africa Partnership Forum” under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.
The telebridge was held on three main platforms – in Moscow (Russia), Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), and Yaoundé (Cameroon), and included participants from Morocco, Guinea, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Zambia, Burkina Faso, South Africa, and Egypt.
The main speakers of the telebridge included representatives of the ministries and cultural authorities of Russia and African countries, diplomats, museum specialists from Russia and Africa, private collectors, universities, NGOs, journalists, and members of the African diaspora.
The event was opened by Ilya Ilyin, Dean of the Faculty of Global Processes and First Vice-President of the Russian-African Club at MSU. He highlighted the topic of the telebridge on the development of the Museum of African Cultures which was deliberately chosen for discussion. The need to expand humanitarian cooperation with African countries was specifically emphasized at the second summit of the “Russia-Africa Partnership Forum” as well as at the Russia-Africa Ministerial Conference held in Sochi in November 2024. Work in this direction is being carried out in accordance with the priorities outlined by Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 30, 2020, under the “Priority Steps in Africa” decree. Among the key initiatives in the humanitarian field is the idea of creating the Museum of African Cultures, which will be the only museum outside of the African continent officially dedicated to African themes. The museum will be established at the renowned State Museum of Oriental Art.
Ilya Ilyin noted as a significant achievement the agreement to establish a branch of the Russian-African Club in Burkina Faso, and work on this initiative is ongoing. He expressed gratitude to Daniel Sawadogo, former cultural attaché of Burkina Faso’s Embassy in Russia, who participated in the telebridge, for his efforts in strengthening cooperation between Burkina Faso and Russia.
Ilyin reminded the audience that the year 2025 will mark the 270th anniversary of Moscow State University and the 220th anniversary of the Moscow Society of Naturalists, chaired by MSU Rector V.A. Sadovnichy. Additionally, in 2025, the Faculty of Global Processes of MSU will celebrate its 20th anniversary. The most significant event of 2025 will be the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory. In this regard, the Dean proposed continuing the tradition of holding a memorial event involving Russian-African youth at Poklonnaya Gora, as was done in 2023 and 2024.
Tatiana Dovgalenko, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and head of the Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum spoke about the active work being carried out in conjunction with the Ministry of Culture of Russia, Rossotrudnichestvo, cultural institutions, and civil society circles in hosting thematic exhibitions, theatre festivals, cultural days, concerts, film screenings, and lectures in Africa. Significant projects are being implemented by the Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS), the Inopraktika Foundation, and the Moscow Conservatory. These and other initiatives demonstrate the explosive interest of Africans in Russian culture. The demand among African students for creative education in Russia continues to grow. Today, citizens from 20 African countries are studying in Russian cultural universities.
The Museum of African Cultures will immerse the Russian audience in the richness of African culture and peoples. It will display the collected artefacts housed in Russia, primarily African art pieces from the State Museum of Oriental Art. This collection comprises more than 1,100 items and is continuously replenished through scientific research expeditions, temporary exhibitions, and private collections donated by prominent Russian Africanists. T.E. Dovgalenko expressed confidence in the museum’s role as a profound cultural bridge.
The museum will become a significant platform in Russia for hosting educational, cultural, and business events, implementing educational programs, and conducting scientific research in the field of African studies, as well as simply a space of creative power.
The lead moderator of the telebridge, Alexander Berdnikov, Executive Secretary of the Russia-Africa Club of Lomonosov Moscow State University, introduced the co-moderators from the Russian side – Louis Gouend, Ilya Shershnev, and Inga Koryagina. He emphasized that the opening of the Museum of African Cultures is a highly important issue for both Russian and African societies.
In his opinion, it is also critical during the telebridge to address the prospects of communication with African countries in the field of humanities, particularly related to museums. The speaker reminded attendees about the “Russia Calling!” forum held on 4th December in Moscow, during which Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia will develop new tools for advancing comprehensive cooperation with African countries. The Museum of African Cultures is one such new tool for collaboration in the humanitarian sphere.
The museum is being established as a multifunctional institution, also tasked with educational and expert goals, African studies training, and other functions.
Research Associate of the State Museum of Oriental Art and Africanist, Darya Vanyukova, emphasized at the beginning of her speech that no museum collection, no matter how large, can encompass the immense richness and diversity of the artistic culture of African countries. Therefore, as the expert noted, the idea of creating an exploratory museum must be approached honestly and openly. The speaker stressed the importance of developing long-term projects within the museum, which can serve as a foundation for a cultural program, allowing visitors to gain a deeper understanding of the African continent.
A key aspect of preparing for the museum’s opening involves creating a concept and designing the permanent exhibition. The expert shared plans for projects scheduled for 2025, including exhibitions dedicated to the Republic of Cameroon and the Republic of Mali. Vanyukova also mentioned that the Museum of Oriental Art’s team is counting on support from colleagues in African countries. She explained the museum’s plans to request artefacts from Russian and African museums for long-term storage, with a view to returning these valuable art pieces to their home countries once the established agreements expire.
Yuri Zaitsev, Head of Rossotrudnichestvo’s representative office in Tunisia, emphasized the importance of maintaining close ties with the African community and museum experts from the continent when establishing the museum. He expressed his hope that North Africa would be broadly represented in the museum. Additionally, Zaitsev offered comprehensive assistance and support from North African countries. He noted that the Russian House in Tunisia also supervises several countries without Rossotrudnichestvo representation, including Algeria, Libya, and Niger. This allows for facilitating communication with museum communities in those nations.
The expert proposed creating branches of the museum or exhibition complexes at VDNH or in other districts. He highlighted Tunisia’s rich historical heritage, including aspects that connect Tunisia and Russia, such as the history of the Russian Squadron and the work of artist Rubtsov, which, according to Zaitsev, should also be represented in the Museum of African Cultures.
Alla Stremovskaya, Associate Professor at the Department of Eastern Political Studies of the Faculty of Global Processes at Moscow State University, spoke about the role of museum diplomacy in international relations. She presented a report on online projects by key Russian museums. According to Stremovskaya, museum diplomacy is a form of cultural diplomacy that historically served as a strategic tool used by national governments to advance their foreign policy goals. Various countries have supported museum initiatives to disseminate their national values and ideas abroad.
Today, these functions are also fulfilled by museum online projects. Stremovskaya highlighted international online projects by the Russian Museum, the Hermitage, the Tretyakov Gallery, and the State Museum of Fine Arts. These projects combine a range of multimedia centre functions, including virtual tours, online lectures, and visits to exhibition compositions. She also mentioned major international museum online projects such as “European” and “Latino.” The expert stated that knowledge of these projects will help in creating a similar initiative for the new Museum of African Cultures.
Louis Gouend, Telebridge Moderator and Head of the Commission on Diaspora and Media Relations at the Russian-African Club of Moscow State University, expressed gratitude on behalf of the entire African community for the idea of establishing a Museum of African Cultures in Moscow, calling it a “cherished topic” for all Africans.
Gouend introduced the participating experts from the telebridge studios in Cameroon and Burkina Faso. The moderators for the telebridge in Cameroon were historian Professor Njock Nyobe Pascal, former Director of the Douala Maritime Museum, and Professor Jean-Baptiste Nzoge. The first speaker from Cameroon, Madame Rachel Mariembe, an expert in historical and cultural heritage, spoke about the work of the Douala Museum, whose collection is constantly being expanded, thanks to well-established connections with other museums, not only in Cameroon but also in other countries, as well as through collaboration with private museums.
Cameroonian museologist, Professor Michel Ndoh, expressed the opinion that the Museum of African Cultures in Moscow should represent a unique opportunity for Africans to establish strong ties with Russia. The success of the future museum in Moscow, according to the expert, depends on its programmatic policy.
The speaker highlighted that the primary mission of the museum should be showcasing Africa as a whole, while taking into account the uniqueness of each country on the continent. Africa itself must take the initiative and present its proposals, concluded Michel Ndoh.
His Majesty Mbombog Malet Ma Ndjami, Director General of the Palace of Culture and African Art, noted that a museum is a guardian of memory. According to the speaker, collaboration with Russia will provide the African continent with new opportunities to preserve its memory. Cameroonian museums were established following a model created in the 19th century, and it is from that period that the perspectives through which Africans view their memory — namely, Eurocentric perspectives — originate, noted the expert. He believes that cooperation with Russia will allow Africans to view their historical reality from a different perspective, through masterpieces of national African art. Africa shares a common memory with Russia, and together, we can embody this memory through museum partnerships.
Ndo, a museologist from Cameroon, considers the museum to be a lever for diplomacy. Diplomacy, he stated, is the interaction of all participants in the process. Therefore, the expert emphasized the importance of hearing from Russian colleagues about the specific types of support they expect from African specialists in the museum field. He proposed that mutual exchanges of conceptual ideas are crucial.
The telebridge was then passed to Burkina Faso, where the moderators were Moktar Sanfo, Director General of Culture and Arts (DGCA), and Sabari Christian Dao, Director General of the National Museum of Burkina Faso.
Christian Dao welcomed the participants of the telebridge and introduced his colleagues, gathered at the web studio in the National Museum of Burkina Faso, with a total of 20 people present. The speaker expressed collective excitement at the opening of the Museum of African Cultures in Moscow.
The first expert from Burkina Faso to speak was Juliette Congo, Director of the Women’s Museum in Kolgwendiese, founded in 2008. The Women’s Museum is a unique project as it not only showcases collections but also conducts educational programs. These initiatives highlight the role of women in African society and their contributions to national and cultural wealth. The museum houses collections dating back to the era of the Moro Kingdom, where women served as a ruling force.
Alassane Samura, Director of the Water Resources Museum, presented the concept of his museum, which is built on the idea that water permeates all of human history across all aspects of life; without water, there is no life. In Africa, where tremendous effort is often required to access water, people hold this natural resource in high regard. This is why the Water Museum was established. It features collections of ancient water storage containers and vessels, as well as tools for retrieving water.
Assane Romba, curator of the Georges Ouedraogo Museum of Music, described his museum as a “living place” where exhibits come to life. He spoke about the constant interaction with visitors through the universal language of music. The museum’s collection includes objects that serve sacred functions and are emblematic of Africa’s cultural heritage.
Sinali Djibo, Director of Exhibitions and Mediation at the National Museum of Burkina Faso, outlined the training of specialists in various areas of museum activities. The expert also shared his vision for organizing temporary exhibitions at the future Museum of African Cultures in Moscow. According to Djibo, such exhibitions must be accompanied by explanations for visitors, and he suggested using film as a tool for this purpose. He pointed out that this approach has already been implemented in Europe and parts of Africa.
Dr. Hoda Al-Saati, a representative of the Journalists’ Union of Alexandria (Egypt) and an active participant in cultural and historical events between Russia and Egypt, praised Russia’s efforts in preserving and developing the cultural heritage of African countries. She contrasted this with Western countries, which often regard Africa merely as a source of profit. The speaker supported the idea proposed by Russian and African colleagues that the museum should also function as an educational institution.
Swinni Driss, a representative of the National Museum of Morocco, spoke about the museum’s activities, and educational and cultural projects, in particular, the exhibition of postage stamps, which has become an interesting and popular event in the country.
Ernest Kpan, an expert from Côte d’Ivoire and head of the local branch of the International Council of Museums, believes that establishing a successful project requires defining the shared and fundamental foundations of the museum initiative. It is essential to know the budget allocated for the project and understand its base—both material and scientific. Another critical issue, according to the speaker, is the potential involvement of African specialists in the museum’s operations.
Tatyana Tudvaseva, President of the “Gatingo” Association and chief curator of the international art project “Africa’s World Today, Tomorrow, Yesterday,” stressed the need to include items of contemporary African art among the museum’s exhibits. The paintings of African artist-philosophers—singers of their culture and traditions—are filled with symbolism, meaningful ideas, and interest in human individuality and the surrounding nature. The speaker expressed confidence that these works of art would deeply move the Russian audience.
Moktar Sanfo, Director General for Culture and Arts and moderator in the webinar studio in Burkina Faso requested representatives of the Russian-African club to inform African colleagues about opportunities for advanced training at Moscow-based universities and the areas covered within this framework.
Suleiman Sedogo, President of the Association of Museum Professionals of Burkina Faso, stated that the primary goals of their organization are to improve the quality of museum practices in the country, develop new directions, and support collaboration between private museums and the state.
Daniel Sawadogo, former cultural and scientific advisor to the Embassy of Burkina Faso in the Russian Federation, emphasized the undeniable importance of this telebridge, which has become a significant platform for exchanging expert opinions and practical proposals between museum specialists in Russia and Africa.
Ali Degee, an expert from Burkina Faso and a graduate of a Soviet university, highlighted the exceptional importance of professional staff training in the museum field. The speaker expressed hope that such training would become accessible to the current young generation from African countries. For instance, graduates of museum studies courses organized in Burkina Faso could be sent to Russia for further education.
In conclusion, A.F. Berdnikov, the lead moderator, thanked all participants of the telebridge and noted that the event was productive and constructive. He supported the idea of making this telebridge format regular, as it would provide an excellent opportunity for the mutual exchange of proposals and concrete recommendations, not only for developing the Museum of African Cultures but also for fostering museum-sector cooperation between Russia and Africa as a whole.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Former President of Ghana, Mr John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has won a historic comeback election victory on Sunday as voters pushed out the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) over its management of economic crisis in the West African country.
NPP candidate and current Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia to incumbent President Nana Akufo-Addo today conceded defeat in the weekend presidential election after failing to shake off widespread frustration over high costs of living.
Results showed that Mr Mahama won 56.3 per cent of the vote against 41.3 per cent for Bawumia.
Mr Mahama, who ruled as president from 2012-2017, will return to lead the country on his third attempt to reclaim the nation’s top post after falling short in 2016 and 2020 elections.
Ghana’s two main parties, the NPP and NDC, have alternated in power equally since the return to multi-party politics in 1992.
The country’s economic woes dominated the election after the continent’s top gold producer and the world’s second-largest cocoa exporter went through a crisis of default and currency devaluation, ending with a $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu has congratulated Mr Mahama on his victory in the December 7 general election.
In a telephone call to Mr Mahama, President Tinubu hoped that Mahama’s ascension to power for the second time would further bring stability to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
According to a statement by presidential spokesman, Mr Bayo Onanuga, the Nigerian President commended the people of Ghana for their commitment to democracy, which was demonstrated through the peaceful and successful conduct of both the presidential and parliamentary elections.
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