World
Russia and Africa Yet to Break Multitude of Business Barriers
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
The scramble for the entrepreneurial influence and control of the African continental landscape by global players is a geopolitical reality. To be part of this geopolitical arena, foreign corporate business players have been devising different approaches and pathways for revitalizing investment partnerships and strengthening cooperation with potential African partners, says Louis Gouend, founder of Hello Africa and founding Executive Director of the African Business Club.
In this interview taken by Kestér Kenn Klomegâh late May 2024, Louis Gouend gives useful insights into the dynamics of why Russia and Africa ultimately have to forge an engagement in business and economic sectors, to expand cooperation in both regions and further highlights the existing challenges facing the evolving entrepreneurial initiatives in Russia and Africa.
Here are the interview excerpts.
How would you characterize the level of business cooperation between Russia and Africa?
In recent years, business relations between Russia and Africa have acquired new dynamics. Russia is actively seeking opportunities to strengthen economic ties outside traditional Western markets, and Africa is attractive as a region experiencing rapid economic growth and rich natural resources. In this case, special attention is paid to sectors such as energy, mining, agriculture and educational projects. Russian companies are actively investing in mineral resource development projects, and are also entering the agricultural sector of some African countries.
ln your expert point of view, what are the basic challenges that currently confront businesses on both sides?
There are several key difficulties that complicate business interaction between Russia and Africa. These are, first of all, differences in business culture and legal regulation, which complicate the process of doing business. Logistics challenges, including the difficulty of transporting goods over long distances and across multiple borders, also pose additional obstacles. The bureaucracy can be sluggish, and corruption in some African countries makes the situation worse.
Another barrier is a lack of knowledge. On one hand, Russian companies lack knowledge of the environment and available high-quality analytical materials about the African market, its specifics and risks. On the other hand, African entrepreneurs and consumers have virtually no knowledge about Russian products and corporate business services. The main problem now is not funding, but the lack of sufficient knowledge and contacts. One of the options for resolving this issue is to increase Russian business missions to Africa, which will help promote Russian goods and technologies on the African market. And vice versa, in terms of bilateral cooperation.
Another factor limiting exports to Africa is the lack of special investment agreements and lack of regulation in this direction. When we talk about investment activity, the question arises about the lack of investment protection agreements. Their absence prevents Russian companies from insuring investments, which prevents them from exporting to Africa.
Our club members are mainly representatives of various African diaspora who live or studied in Russia and have been operating businesses in Russia or Africa. They know the mentality and culture of both sides, and they have strong ties with both sides, allowing them to be reliable bridges between Africa and Russia.
We work with African chambers of commerce, embassies, diaspora representatives, as well as other regional associations and export companies. Stakeholders include large and small businesses from Russia and Africa, various industry associations, government agencies and diplomatic missions. To improve business cooperation, the club plans to develop knowledge exchange programs, conduct business forums and master classes, and create special working groups to discuss specific issues and problems.
Why did the creation of an African Business Club (ABC) become necessary only now and what are its main goals?
The growth of economic activity and the increase in the number of bilateral projects between Russia and Africa required the creation of a platform to facilitate these interactions. The African Business Club aims to be a platform where entrepreneurs can share knowledge, network, explore new opportunities and solve emerging problems together. The club’s main goals include strengthening trade relations, and stimulating investment and technological exchange.
Our clients value us because, first of all, we help adapt the work of a foreign company to Russian realities, organize and debug many business processes within various aspects and support the foreign company as a reliable partner. Companies planning to invest in African economies will need strong ties to the African government and partnerships with local businesses. How to contact the right people? We are ready to help with this issue.
We offer advisory services to small, medium and global companies that want to invest in the African continent. Thus, we promote entrepreneurship and help create new trade ties between Russia and Africa. We attract potential investors interested in financing projects in the African private sector. We create online access to market research resources and relevant business contacts in Africa. We publish position papers covering issues related to trade with Africa, investment, regulation, policy and industry content.
The number of Russian companies wishing to enter the African market is growing regularly, and this confirms our intentions to promote the development of bilateral economic relations. On the other hand, we can note an increase in the number of African companies wishing to develop close cooperation with their Russian partners.
We offer a wide range of services for Russian companies entering the African market. This includes market research, selection of partner companies, assistance in organizing a business, and personnel search, including offers for Russian citizens to work in African companies.
Who are your current stakeholders and members? And how do you plan to develop a common approach to increasing the level of business cooperation between the two regions?
Our club members are mainly representatives of various African diaspora who live or studied in Russia and have operating businesses in Russia or Africa. They know the mentality and culture of both sides, and they have strong ties with both sides, allowing them to be a reliable bridge between Africa and Russia.
We work with African chambers of commerce, embassies, diaspora representatives, as well as other regional associations and export companies.
Stakeholders include large and small businesses from Russia and Africa, various industry associations, government agencies and diplomatic missions. To improve business cooperation, the club plans to develop knowledge exchange programs, conduct business forums and master classes, and create special working groups to discuss specific issues and problems.
Why is the presence of African business in the Russian Federation extremely low?
A combination of bureaucratic barriers, lack of awareness of the economic environment and opportunities, complex legal and regulatory frameworks, and relatively high market entry costs deter African companies from actively doing business in Russia.
What complimentary roles can African diplomatic missions and business associations play here?
The club has already been negotiating to simplify procedures for African investors and exporters, and assisting in the creation of reliable and effective communication channels between African companies and Russian regulators. As a two-way street, African diplomatic missions can also act as a bridge, helping to overcome cultural and administrative barriers, and actively participate in the club’s activities, supporting its multifaceted initiatives at various levels.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Accessing the US Dollar in the East Africa region has now been made easier with the expansion of the stablecoin settlement infrastructure of SCRYPT.
This development enables banks, payment providers and corporate treasury teams to move value into and out of the continent in real time.
Businesses paying international suppliers frequently have to convert local currency into USD before purchasing stablecoins for settlement, incurring FX conversions and spreads before any payment is made.
But SCRYPT is eliminating this intermediate conversion by enabling direct settlement corridors for local African currencies into stablecoins.
This development allows businesses to move from local currency to stablecoin settlement in a single licensed transaction, without first sourcing rationed bank dollars, as stablecoins are increasingly becoming settlement infrastructure rather than an investment product.
The expansion adds settlement support across four African currencies: the Kenyan shilling (KES), Tanzanian shilling (TZS), Rwandan franc (RWF) and Ugandan shilling (UGX). Each corridor is delivered through the same full-stack infrastructure our clients already use for trading, custody and treasury operations.
Speaking on this, the chief executive of SCRYPT, Norman Wooding, said, “Across Africa, stablecoin adoption is driven by economic need, not speculation.
“Businesses here are not chasing yield; they are trying to pay suppliers and manage treasury without losing margin to a banking system that rations dollars. Licensed, fair-rate dollar access is the clearest proof of what this infrastructure is for.”
Also commenting, the Managing Director of Markets & Trading at SCRYPT, Mr Gabriel Titopoulos, said, “Until now, reaching stablecoins from local African currencies meant buying scarce dollars and incurring several layers of conversion costs.
“SCRYPT removes this friction. Firms and payment providers can now settle straight from local currencies through live corridors, with local partners.”
World
African Graduates Association Promoting Multifaceted Initiatives With Russian Educational Institutions
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
In preparations for the third Russia-Africa Summit, scheduled for late October 2026, Dr Francois Ngan, deputy chairman of the Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities, during an official working visit, has held a consultative meeting with Professor Vladimir Filippov, the President of the Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship (RUDN), and former Minister of Higher Education of Russia, Chairman of the National Commission for Accreditation of Higher Education.
RUDN is an educational institution established in 1960, primarily to provide higher education to Third World students. It has now become a popular multidisciplinary spot for many students, especially from developing countries. The university offers various academic programmes and has research infrastructure that comprises laboratories and interdisciplinary centres. The university is named after the former Congolese leader, Patrice Lumumba.
Dr Francois Ngan and Professor Filippov discussed the importance of the Graduates Association as a continental platform dedicated to strengthening unity, cooperation, and promoting shared progress among African graduates who studied in the former Soviet Union and in the Russian Federation. They also reviewed multifaceted initiatives that could bring together alumni associations from across Africa, whose members obtained education and professional training, and cultural experiences in Soviet and Russian institutions of higher learning.
Professor Filippov expressed optimism in addressing emerging challenges as a result of shifting geopolitical changes, emphasised strategic cooperation in the educational sphere with Africa, in general, and with the Republic of Cameroon, in particular, and further about the integration of African students during their studies in the Russian Federation.
The meeting also touched on academic and scientific work, the possibility of rewriting a scientific thesis, and the official organisation of transferring versions translated into six languages for the library of RUDN. Significant questions relating to Russia’s educational opportunities, collaborations and partnerships involving African countries were thoroughly discussed.
The Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities was created under one continental umbrella to promote friendship, for professional networking, to engage in cultural exchange, and with particular emphasis on forging strategic cooperation between Africa and Russia.
World
Russia to Support Industrial Growth, Technological Advancement and Supply Chain Resilience across Africa
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
With the heightening of geopolitical rivalry and competition, a new Russia-Africa working group has emerged as a significant institutional mechanism and plans to focus on facilitating and monitoring strategic investments, industrialisation, and infrastructural development—the Strategic Action Plan 2023-2026—that was outlined during the second Russia-Africa summit, in St.Petersburg, the second largest city in the Russian Federation.
While substantial progress has, largely, lagged on the multidimensional economic front with Africa primarily due to its internal difficulties and the complexity of relations with its former Soviet neighbours, Russian officials believe there still remains huge untapped potential in strengthening bilateral cooperation. As planned, President Vladimir Putin has already signed an executive order that directs Moscow to host the forthcoming third Russia-Africa summit in October 2026.
On June 30, a regular meeting of the Business Council on Africa was held under the chairmanship of the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry. It was dedicated to issues of trade, economic and investment cooperation with Africa. The group discussed the current state and prospects for the implementation of policy initiatives with an emphasis on assisting the countries of the continent, strengthening their economic, energy, technological and food sovereignty, as well as training specialists for Africa.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has reiterated that Russia-Africa relations primarily depend on an understanding of the importance of collective action based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and resolving common tasks. In the past few years, Russia-Africa cooperation has been noticeably strengthening. “We are deepening political dialogues, developing bilateral contacts with African countries, promoting cordial cooperation between ministries and departments, and expanding humanitarian exchanges. We are also continuing the structural diversification of trade partnerships and economic dimensions.”
“Next on the agenda is the launch of diplomatic missions in The Gambia, Liberia, Togo, and the Union of the Comoros,” Lavrov said at a meeting of the Business Council under the Russian foreign minister. Lavrov noted that Russian embassies began operating in three other African countries in 2025: Niger, Sierra Leone, and South Sudan. A new Department for Partnership with Africa was also established. According to the top diplomat, “expanding Russia’s diplomatic presence on the continent contributes to developing relations.”
There are already 45 Russian embassies operating in Africa. The Russian foreign minister noted that Moscow is quickly rebuilding its presence in African countries, which sharply declined during the collapse of the Soviet Union. “There will be literally four or five countries left where we still need to establish full-fledged embassies, and then, we will have 100 per cent coverage of the entire African continent with our diplomatic presence,” Lavrov emphasised.
After the first summit in October 2019, the Foreign Ministry also created the Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum. Its main tasks include controlling the roadmap to Africa’s multidimensional cooperation and guiding potential Russian investors to the continent. This also underscored the priority and post-Soviet solidarity Russia currently attaches to its policy towards Africa, within the growing framework of the emerging new architecture of multipolarity in the Global South.
In an interview in June 2026, the director of the Department of Partnership with Africa at the Foreign Ministry, Tatyana Dovgalenko, shared a few insights in the lead-up to the third summit. Furthermore, Dovgalenko explained that Russia would move away from security to concentrate more on economic issues, especially to team up with African colleagues to streamline mechanisms for implementing projects that will ensure food security and agriculture, and help Africa in installing processing facilities to support its self-sufficiency. She also emphasised energy and vital infrastructures, and the third direction was to simultaneously work more coherently with sub-regional organisations.
Over the past few years, bilateral relations have been increasing. There are positive dynamics in trade turnover, estimated at $30 billion. Steps are being taken to build payment systems, preferably in national currencies, while Russia looks to open four more diplomatic offices, bringing the total to 48 across Africa. Russia is currently training 37,000 African students, but only approximately 1/3 on state scholarships in Russia’s educational institutions. “We are ready to share valuable experiences of building a sovereign development model with African partners to achieve self-reliant economic growth based on their own resources and capabilities. Russia aims at creating processing capabilities and localising production, and provides access to advanced technological solutions,” underlined Dovgalenko in her interview with New Eastern Outlook.
For African countries that have endured difficult decades on the path to political independence, it is now important to take full control over the untapped resources, direct income and revenue toward stimulating the national economic sector, rather than paying for the well-being of the Western “golden billion” during this changing geopolitical era, according to Dovgalenko.
According to reports, the forthcoming Russia-Africa summit will have an economic agenda, including the digital economy, technology, artificial intelligence, healthcare, investment, and settlements in global trade. Of course, the agenda will also cover Africa’s political aspects. But if African friends bring along any specific ideas, Russia will give them serious attention. In addition, with continuity and consistency, pay increased attention to expanding ties with Africa’s regional integration associations.
Going forward, the focus will be on translating strong trade relations into deeper investment partnerships, fostering technology collaboration, strengthening industrial linkages and contributing towards the shared objectives set by the leadership of both African countries and Russia. At the third summit, the above-mentioned specific initiatives will be further designed. In this regard, the key document, the new action plan for the next three-year period (2027-2029), is intended to reflect dynamic realities in the future relations of Russia and Africa
