From the North Africa, the Mediterranean and the Sahel Program
Events, commentaries and updates from the Stimson Center.
A Conversation with the Ambassadors of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger: The Sahel at a Crossroads
Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are reshaping the Sahel’s political and security landscape. Watch the Stimson Center event of a rare joint conversation with the ambassadors of all three Alliance of Sahel States members to discuss regional realignment, security, and future international engagement.
The Game of Middle Powers in North Africa
In a new commentary for the Stimson Center, Research Associate Yusuf Can & Stefan Lukas of Middle East Minds map how Russia, the Gulf states and Turkey are reshaping North Africa’s security and economic landscape.
Stimson Center’s North Africa, Sahel and Mediterranean Program published a flagship report, analyzing Morocco’s evolution into a strategic middle power amid economic transformation, climate stress, and geopolitical competition.
Algeria as a Geopolitical Actor: Strategic Dynamics and Regional Implications
In a recent Issue Brief, Dario Cristiani, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, examines Algeria’s constrained geopolitical influence amid rising competition, internal stability, and evolving Mediterranean partnerships.
A Conversation with Ms. Amina Benkhadra: Morocco’s Energy Future and Strategic Resources
Morocco is advancing its energy and minerals sectors to strengthen security and drive the green transition. Watch Amina Benkhadra, Director General of the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines (ONHYM), explore strategy and partnerships at the Stimson Center.
On Our Radar
The headlines shaping politics, security, and economics across North Africa and the Sahel.
France24
Trans-Saharan gas pipeline: an African dream that could upset the global energy balance
After two decades of postponements, work on the Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline, aimed at exporting Nigerian gas to Europe via Niger and Algeria, officially restarted in early June.
IOM
Aid System Under Pressure as Needs Continue to Grow Three Years into Sudan War
IOM warns that the scale and complexity of population movements, combined with environmental shocks and operational constraints, are placing significant pressure on humanitarian systems, with more than 1.3 million people arriving in both South Sudan and Chad.
Al Jazeera
Can Africa turn its population boom into prosperity?
Africa is projected to reach 2.5 billion people by 2050, and as global support retreats through aid, investment, and poor governance scores, economists are debating whether the continent can convert increasing population into lasting economic transformation.
Business Insider Africa
Oil exploration in Egypt’s largest arid region generates very promising results
Egypt has seen a significant boost in oil output from its Western Desert, which covers roughly two-thirds of the country’s land area, supporting the country’s overall objective of bolstering energy independence.
Reuters
IMF ready to help Africa weather Middle East shock, says Zeidane
The IMF’s new Africa chief, Zeine Zeidane, reaffirmed the fund’s priority to help countries weather the shock from the Middle East, already reaching agreements for Burkina Faso, The Gambia, and São Tomé and Príncipe.
The Economist
The Iran war meant an economic crisis for Africa
Surging oil prices delivers a shock to Africa’s mostly fuel-importing economies, with higher freight, fertilizer, and energy costs derailing growth and momentum, disproportionately impacting Sahelian states.
PBS
Attack on Niger’s airport highlights expansion of jihadis into Africa’s Sahel region
JNIM claimed a June 18 attack on Niamey’s Diori Hamani International Airport that killed 11 soldiers and two civilians.
UN News
Libya’s political process regains momentum, but window for action is narrowing, UN envoy warns
The country’s current stalemate pits the UN-recognized Government of National Unity in the capital Tripoli against eastern-based authorities backed by the House of Representatives and General Haftar’s Libyan National Army.
The New Arab
Libya’s main governing bodies agree to hold long-awaited elections early next year
Libya’s top governing bodies agreed on Thursday on a roadmap for holding long-awaited presidential and parliamentary elections within 8 months.
Morocco World News
Morocco Allocates MAD 450 Million to Fund 2026 Election Campaigns
The Moroccan government has set the total amount of state funding for political parties participating in the upcoming parliamentary elections at MAD 450 million ($45 million), including MAD 50 million reserved for electoral lists presented by candidates aged 35 and under.
The North Africa Post
Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani received UN Sahara envoy Staffan de Mistura in Nouakchott as he toured the region consulting the parties to the conflict to advance the UN-led political process in line with Resolution 2797.
The North Africa Post
Morocco Secures Nine Leadership Positions in African Union Governance Organs
Morocco has consolidated its position within the African Union’s institutional architecture, securing nine positions of primary responsibility across key continental organs following North African regional consultations.
Sudan Tribune
UN official says drone strikes kill over 1,000 civilians in Sudan this year
UN rights chief Volker Türk told the Human Rights Council that drone strikes killed more than 1,000 civilians in Sudan in the first five months of 2026.
Arab Finance
Egypt reaches zero oil, gas arrears after settling $6.1B in dues: Badawi
Egypt has fully settled all outstanding arrears owed to oil and gas investment partners, cutting them to zero after dues had reached approximately $6.1 billion in June 2024, according to Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi.
Arab Weekly
Tribute to former Brotherhood minister triggers political uproar in Egypt
The inclusion of former Egyptian information minister Salah Abdel Maqsoud in a list of journalists being honoured by the Egyptian Journalists’ Syndicate has triggered a fierce political and media controversy, exposing the enduring sensitivities surrounding the legacy of the Muslim Brotherhood more than a decade after its removal from power.
CNBC Africa
Senegal’s Sonko softens tone on debt restructuring as IMF talks due
Senegal’s Ousmane Sonko softened his tone on debt restructuring as IMF talks approached, signaling openness to negotiations facing debt load near 132% of GDP at end of 2024.
BBC
African and Caribbean nations call for formal apology for transatlantic slavery
African and Caribbean countries have called for a formal apology and reparations from countries that benefited from the transatlantic slave trade, endorsing a 19-point plan at the end of a three-day conference in Accra.
The Defense Post
UN Sudan Envoy Urges Paramilitaries to Halt El-Obeid Assault
The UN secretary-general’s special envoy for Sudan called the head of rebel paramilitary forces to urge him not to attack the major city of El-Obeid, where the United Nations fears an imminent offensive.
South China Morning Post
Ethiopian PM’s party secures landslide win in national election
Ruling Prosperity Party secures nearly 90% of contested parliamentary seats amid fractured opposition and widespread security disruptions.
South China Morning Post
At least 30 deaths at DR Congo camp show Ebola could be spreading fast
All the victims in northeastern Congo had symptoms including headaches, fever and vomiting associated with Ebola as funding cuts leave poor facilities for hygiene and sanitation aid groups said.
The New York Times
Uncertainty Remains Over the Strait of Hormuz
Uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz remained on Sunday, a day after the U.S. and Iranian militaries offered conflicting accounts over whether the waterway was open to ships.
Human Rights Watch
Burkina Faso: Prominent Journalist Forcibly Disappeared 2 Years On
Burkina Faso’s authorities are urged to account for the journalist Atiana Serge Oulon, who was forcibly disappeared by state security forces two years ago, and release him immediately, said multiple human rights organizations.
Bloomberg
Libya May Be Next in Oil-Fueled Trump Strategy
With Hormuz squeezing supply, Libya may be next in the Trump administration’s oil-fueled diplomatic strategy, with U.S. envoy Massad Boulos pushing to raise output and advance the country’s political roadmap.
Reports & Analysis on the Region
Deeper dives from experts, think tanks, and research institutes.
COMMENTARY
Why local networks are the future of aid in Africa
Stimson Center Program Director Hafed Al Ghwell argues that Africa’s current reality of overlapping conflict, climate shocks, and governance failure departs from the assumptions of traditional humanitarian responses, and that effective aid increasingly exists in small, local, and trusted networks able to operate where formal institutions can’t amidst enduring crises.
COMMENTARY
The UN Mission in South Sudan in the Context of Changing Security and Regional Dynamics
A new Stimson Center policy memo examines the current security situation in South Sudan, the effects of Sudan’s war, and the implications of the recently renewed UNMISS mandate.
COMMENTARY
Canada Cannot Build a Credible Africa Strategy Without Morocco
Open Canada argues that after Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand recognized Morocco’s autonomy plan as a credible basis for a solution, Canada’s new language on Western Sahara is a test of whether Ottawa is prepared to build a serious strategy around anchor partnerships.
COMMENTARY
Algeria: energy diplomacy in the Sahel
Le Point examines how Algeria managed its energy assets to reengage strategy among Sahelian countries, gifting Niger a 40MW power plant, validating the Trans-Saharan pipeline feasibility study, and launching joint development of the Kafra oil block aiming to preserve Algiers’ regional influence against competing Moroccan initiatives.
COMMENTARY
Libya’s fractured oil state faces the Hormuz test
Opinion piece finds that Libya has a functional oil export regime and seems an obvious candidate to cover the supply shock of the Hormuz standoff, though its fractured security environment means protests or blockades can shut down hundreds of thousands of barrels remaining unable to fill the gap.
COMMENTARY
The ammonia age: How Europe and Africa can steer global shipping to net zero
This policy brief argues that African countries could be decisive in the upcoming International Maritime Organisation vote, though their support will require credible European commitment across regulation, development of green fuels, and collaboration to ensure maritime sectors grow farther behind amidst decarbonization.
COMMENTARY
Dispatch from Libya: Why the U.S. needs a renewed counterterrorism commitment in Africa
The Atlantic Council examines how jihadist groups and adversarial powers fill the space of the United States and its partners in their absence, calling for counter terrorism commitments, special operations advising, financial assistance, and sustained diplomacy.
REPORT
Outlook for Sustainable Agriculture in North Africa: Report Card Assessment
The Middle East Institute uses a comparative report card approach to assess water reliability, water use efficiency, agricultural land sustainability, and food sector economics across Egypt, Sudan, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, and Mauritania.
COMMENTARY
Will global turmoil push Africa’s leaders to prioritise agriculture?
ISS Africa argues that the Iran war is part of many setbacks exposing agriculture vulnerability, finding that an African agricultural revolution anchored in industrialization, intra-African trade, low-carbon farming, and political commitment to agri-prosperity has become the most viable path to food security.
COMMENTARY
Is Africa becoming a new arena for adaptive drone warfare?
ISS Africa examines how the transfer of Ukrainian technology, combined with Africa’s existing arms networks, could drastically shift state and non-state armed actors across the Sahel, the DRC, and Sudan.
COMMENTARY
Egypt: Revitalising Non-Alignment
Opinion piece arguing that Egypt is strategically reviving its historic non-alignment posture amid the Iran war and intensifying great-power competition, positioning Cairo to balance relationships with the U.S., Gulf states, Russia, and China while preserving its strategic autonomy.
COMMENTARY
JNIM’s Blockade Tactics Threaten West Africa’s Trade Corridors
ISS Africa analysis of JNIM’s economic warfare strategy, examining how the group’s fuel and transport blockades and supply-route strangulation are choking commerce across Mali and into coastal West Africa.
REPORT
Sudan, June 2026 Monthly Forecast
Security Council Report Previews the 120-day Sudan briefing and the 1591 Sanctions Committee briefing to the UN Security Council amid an entrenched war of attrition between the SAF and RSF.
REPORT
Libya, June 2026 Monthly Forecast
Security Council Report Previews the 60-day UNSMIL briefing by Hanna Tetteh amid political deadlock and the Zawiya refinery clashes, with the Council expected to address the electoral process and economic governance.
REPORT
Middle East and North Africa Economic Update, Spring 2026
World Bank assesses growth, fiscal, and inflation dynamics across Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia under the shadow of the Iran war and Hormuz closure, with MENA growth downgraded sharply.
REPORT
Africa’s Fastest-Growing Companies (Special Report)
FT special report ranking and profiling Africa’s fastest-growing companies, examining the sectors, business models, and macroeconomic conditions driving corporate growth across the continent including North African firms in fintech, logistics, and energy.
COMMENTARY
Egypt’s Bet on Land Monetization
Atlantic Council analysis of Egypt’s strategy to monetize state-owned land as a fiscal tool to address its debt burden and IMF program requirements, examining whether converting public land into revenue can deliver sustainable returns or merely defers deeper structural economic reforms.
COMMENTARY
The Global Costs of a Disruption of the Strait of Hormuz
Policy Center for the New South Analysis quantifying the worldwide economic consequences of the Strait of Hormuz closure during the Iran war, examining the transmission of energy price shocks, shipping disruptions, and supply chain breakdowns to African and global economies.
REPORT
Central Bank Independence and Inflation Outcomes
IMF departmental paper examining the relationship between central bank independence and inflation outcomes, with analysis relevant to North African and Sahelian monetary authorities navigating the inflationary pressures of the Iran-war energy and food price shocks.
BOOK REVIEW
Book Review: How Africa Works by Joe Studwell
A review of Joe Studwell’s book on African economic development, assessing its arguments about industrial policy, agricultural transformation, and the structural conditions for growth against the continent’s contemporary development challenges.
COMMENTARY
Could China Help Make Africa a Factory for the World?
The Economist examines whether China’s tariff-free market access and manufacturing investment push could help transform parts of Africa into export-oriented industrial zones, assessing the infrastructure, governance, and currency constraints that have stymied similar initiatives.
Upcoming Events
Key briefings and conferences to watch.
International Monetary Fund
Rethinking MENA Integration in a Fast‑Changing Global Environment
June 29, 2026 — In partnership with Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, the event will analyze the impact of global trade, geoeconomic fragmentation, and technology, including artificial intelligence, on the MENA region.
Policy Center for the New South
Sailing by Lightning: Interest-Driven Europe-Africa Partnership for Effective Multilateralism
July 6, 2026 — Event examining how a pragmatic, interest-driven partnership between Europe and Africa could strengthen effective multilateralism, addressing trade, security, migration, and development cooperation in a fragmenting global order.
Financial Times
Africa Summit: Mobilising growth in a new global order
October 21, 2026 — In its 13th year, the summit convenes leading policymakers, business leaders, financiers and visionaries to explore how Africa can sustain greater regional cooperation, investment, and leadership amid uncertainty.
Atlantic Council
2026 Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics
December 11, 2026 — The Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics is an annual flagship convening focused on issues at the nexus of economics, finance, foreign policy, and national security.
Tune In
Hear the latest insights from regional experts.
PODCAST
The Human Cost of the Strait of Hormuz Closure
Middle East Institute Alistair Taylor is joined by MEI Senior Fellow Intissar Fakir to explore what it means for the region, unpack the link between food security and regional stability, and assess how the strait’s reopening could impact those affected.
VIDEO REPORT
Worsening hunger could push millions closer to famine in 13 global hotspots
A new Hunger Hotspots report released Wednesday by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) identifies 13 countries and territories where food insecurity is expected to worsen between June and November 2026.
PODCAST
Africa Aware: Navigating Somalia’s political stalemate
In this episode by Chatham House, Professor Afyare Abdi Elmi and Aweis Ahmed discuss scenarios to navigate Somalia’s current political stalemate and pathways for a peaceful political transition.
PODCAST
Inside Ebola country: NPR reports from eastern DR Congo’s outbreak zone
NPR takes a look inside Bunia in the DR Congo where daily life has shifted in response to Ebola as fear spreads across citizens and health workers alike amidst declining facilities.
WEBINAR
How might an African credit rating agency improve the continent’s financing conditions?
A joint Chatham House panel discussion, held in collaboration with the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, assessing the potential impact of an African credit rating agency on reducing borrowing costs and lowering barriers to financing for African countries.
VIDEO REPORT
Sudan Crisis Worsens as Civil War Enters 4th Year and Hormuz Closure Disrupts Aid
PBS NewsHour reports on Sudan’s deepening famine and how the Strait of Hormuz closure is compounding the humanitarian catastrophe by disrupting fuel and fertilizer supplies for Sudanese farmers.
PODCAST
The New Alliance of Sahel States and the Future of Africa’s Legacy Institutions
Beverly Ochieng analyzes AES politics, security, and the bloc’s exit from ECOWAS, examining what the realignment means for Africa’s established regional institutions.
PODCAST
In Mali, What Way Out of the Crisis One Month After the April 25 Attacks?
ICG French-language podcast episode with Sahel experts examining the political, security, and humanitarian situation in Mali one month after the coordinated JNIM-FLA offensive, and assessing what pathways, if any, exist toward de-escalation.
WEBINAR
Bridging the Skills Gap: Mobilising Southern Mediterranean Talent to Address Labour Shortages
Policy Center for the New South event examining how to mobilize talent across the Southern Mediterranean to address European and regional labor shortages, focusing on skills development, migration policy, and workforce mobility between North Africa and Europe.
Job Opportunities
Environment Programme of the United Nations
UNEP Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) – GFANZ Africa Carbon Markets Expert
Consultant will work closely with UNEP FI and GFANZ regional networks to support activities that strengthen the role of carbon markets as a credible climate finance tool in Africa.
Apply by Jun 30th.
University of Cambridge
Building Capacity for the Assessment and Management of Marine Invasive Alien Species in North Africa
Invitation for early-career professionals from across North Africa to join us in Tunis for a
collaborative workshop on marine invasive alien species.
Apply by June 30th.
Environment Programme of the United Nations
Regional Coordinator – CITES Tree Species Project (Africa)
Contract role to ensure a smooth launch of the implementation of shortlisted projects in the Africa region, support the mapping of planned activities, and the delivery of high-quality outputs in all target countries of the region.
Apply by July 7th.
Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development (ACTED)
Chad: Climate and Environment Project Director
Senior project director role based in N’Djamena leading climate and environment programming in Chad, overseeing initiatives addressing environmental resilience, adaptation, and natural resource management in the Sahel.
Apply by July 15th.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Internship Programme for Near East and North Africa (RNE)
The Internship Programme aims to attract talented young women and men who are strongly motivated to share their new perspectives, innovative ideas, and latest academic experience in FAO’s domains.
Apply by August 25th.
United Nations
Human Rights Intern: Middle East and North Africa
Assist Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights across research, analysis, and drafting of human right situations and violations.
Apply by Aug 31st.
International Rescue Committee
Senior Manager, Emergency Cash and Basic Needs (Sudan)
Leads IRC’s emergency cash assistance and basic-needs programming through December 2026.
Apply by December 31st.
Policy Center for the New South
Junior Professional Program (Fellowship/Job)
Two-year structured professional development contract in Rabat for early-career analysts working on Morocco, Africa and Global South issues.
Current Geopolitics Shift Deep-Sea Mining Debates