Conflict & Development in Africa Podcast

In this week's episode, I am joined by Emilia Columbo, a Senior Associate to the Africa Program at the Centre for Strategic & International Studies and Vice President for analysis at Voxcroft Analytics, to discuss the resurgence of the Islamic State insurgent group in Mozambique.

In this week’s episode, I am joined by Dr Mathieu Gotteland, a scholar with a PhD in the History of International Relations to discuss the diplomatic row between Somalia and Ethiopia.

In this week's episode, I am joined by Professor Christopher Isike, Professor of African Politics and International Relations and Director, African Centre for the Study of the United States, at the University of Pretoria. Professor Isike provides a useful insight into the mixed position held by the African States towards the Israel-Hamas war, with some countries such as Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda...

In this week's episode, I am joined by Professor Freedom Onuoha, a Nigerian-based political scientist and the Coordinator of the Security, Violence and Conflict (SVC) Research Group at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, to discuss the illegal mining activities in Africa particularly by Chinese nationals.

In this week's episode, I am joined by Arthur Traldi, an international lawyer and former Prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal, to discuss the decade-long ICC inquiry into possible war crimes by Boko Haram and the stalled formal investigation of these crimes as recommended by Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.

In this week's episode, our guest is Professor Loren Landau-a professor of migration and development at the University of Oxford, and a research professor at the University of Witwatersrand's African Centre for Migration & Society. Professor Landau discusses xenophobia in South Africa and how this manifest within the context of the global migration crisis. He carefully dissects the pol...

In this week's episode, I am joined by Dr. Nathaniel Powell, Africa Analyst at Oxford Analytica and the author of the book, France's Wars in Chad: Military Intervention and Decolonization in Africa to discuss the political unrest in the Republic of Chad. Chadians are set to go to the polls on the 6th of May, but it has already been rocked by political violence that has led to assassination...

In this week's episode, I am joined by Adesola Adeboyejo, a Trial Lawyer, at the Office of the Prosecutor, International Criminal Court and Director at the Centre for African Justice, Peace and Human Rights, to discuss the human rights challenges in Africa. Adesola presents a useful perspective on human rights advocacy in Africa, particularly the one spearheaded and supported by ICC. She also...

In this week's episode, I am joined by Fidel Amakye Owusu, an International Relations and Security analyst and CEO of DefSEC Analytics Africa Ltd, to discuss the severed military agreement between the Republic of Niger and the United States. Fidel provides useful insights into why Niger cut military ties with the U.S. and the implication for security and development in the region.

In this week's episode, I am joined by Dr. Joseph Siegle, the Director of Research at the African Centre for Strategic Studies, National Defense University, to discuss the growing presence and influence of Russia in the African continent. Dr. Siegle provides a deep insight into the factors driving the resurgence of Russia in African states, the scope of Russian activities and the implications...

In this week's episode, I am joined by Dr. Jason Warner, the Research Director and Senior Analyst (Africa and Terrorism/Transnational Crime) at U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) G2, to discuss the presence, scope and influence of the Islamic State in Africa. Dr. Warner is also the co-author of the book, The Islamic State in Africa: The Emergence, Evolution and Future of the Next...

This week, I am joined by Brigadier General Saleh Bala (Rtd), the CEO of White Ink Consult and Senior Associate Centre for Strategic & International Studies, to discuss the resurgent coup-de-tat in Africa, the formation of a new alliance between the Junta governments of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, and the challenge to the ECOWAS union.

Cameron Hudson, a Senior Associate at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies and former Chief of Staff, Special Envoy to Sudan (2009-12), joins me in this week's episode to discuss the ongoing war in Sudan between rival factions of the military government, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Cameron provides an illuminating insight into...

In this week's episode, Yavi Madurai, a digital transformation strategist, media analyst and a gender and economic rights activist based in South Africa, joins me in discussing the prospects and challenges of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

In this week's episode, I am joined by Dr. Michael Boyle to discuss drone warfare in Africa. Dr. Boyle is Associate Professor at the Dept of Political Sciences at Rutgers University. Professor Boyle has written extensively on terrorism, political violence, drones and American foreign policy. As drones become easily accessible to both state and non-state armed groups, it becomes ever important...

In this week's episode, I am joined by James Barnett, one of our fellows and PhD candidate at Oxford University, to discuss how the recent agreement between Ethiopia and Somaliland raises the question of legitimacy and recognition of de facto states (including the implication of the agreement on security in the Horn of Africa). James is an experienced researcher with extensive fieldwork experi...

In this week's episode, I am joined by two special guests, former investigative journalist, Yusuf Anka, the winner of the 2023 Global Shining Light Award (for his role in the BBC documentary 'The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara') and Idris Mohammed, an investigative journalist and conflict and peace researcher with the United States Institute of Peace. Yusuf and Idris provide a deep insight...

In today's episode, I am joined by the Honourable Member of Parliament for Bumba Equateur Province in the DRC and former Speaker of the National Assembly, Rt. Hon Jeanine Mabunda to discuss DRC natural resource-fueled conflicts and the role of external governments.

In this week's episode, we are joined by Ms Chizoba Nzeakor, an award-winning climate champion and Founder and CEO of Climate Technology Solutions to discuss how the Cop28 Agreement addresses the climate needs and goals of Africa.

In this episode, our first guest in 2024, Dr. Ashley Jackson discusses Western governments' military interventions in the world, particularly Africa with Dr. Michael Nwankpa, the host. Ashley, who is the co-founder of the Centre for Armed Groups and the author of the book, Negotiating Survival: Civilian-Insurgent Relations in Afghanistan , presents a useful insight into why Western interventio...

On this week's episode, I am joined by Dr. Christine Cheng, the author of the award winning book, Extralegal Group in Post-Conflict Liberia: How Trade makes the State, to discuss the process and progress of democracy and state-building in Liberia since the end of the civil wars in Liberia. Dr. Cheng is a Senior Lecturer at the War Department at King's College London.

In this week's episode, we discuss the United States' policy in Africa with our special guest, Dr. Manoela Borges, a career diplomat with nearly two decades of experience working in different United States embassies and stations across the world including in Nigeria, Ghana and Mali. Dr Borges is currently the First Secretary, Africa Watcher at the US embassy in London, United Kingdom.

In this episode, we are joined by Professor Cedric de Coning, a Senior Advisor at the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Dispute (ACCORD) and Co-Director at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) to discuss an important topic-peacekeeping operations and stabilization missions in Africa. Cedric has 30 years of experience in research, policy advise, training and educa...

In this episode, we are joined by an important guest, Dr. Fatima Akilu, the Executive Director of NEEM Foundation, Nigeria, to discuss one of the most dangerous terrorist organisations in the globe, Boko Haram and the effectiveness of the Nigerian government response. Dr. Akilu is an NHS-trained forensic psychologist with over 20 years experience in the field of mental health and psychology. Fatim...

In this week's episode, we are joined by William Davison, a Senior Analyst at the International Crisis Group to discuss the two year war between the Ethiopian Government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front, and its impact on the economic growth that Ethiopia had enjoyed in the last 15 years. We also discussed the regional implication and international dimension of the conflict.