Europe’s Africa policy was greatly affected by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, especially as energy and food supply became weaponised as a Russian tool of aggression. In response, stronger bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation is needed between African organisations and countries and Western actors. Both parties should continue to accelerate existing objectives, like the 2030 Agenda, debt, sustainable development, health security, energy independence, political instability, and democracy and human rights. All these priorities, if well implemented through the G7 mandate, could also help Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni to finally succeed in tackling migration through a multilateral approach rather than a purely domestic one.  

In this episode, Elisabeth Sidiropoulos, chief executive of the South African Institute for International Affairs, and Maddalena Procopio, senior policy fellow at ECFR’s Africa programme, discuss how Meloni could advance her policy ideas on Africa through the G7 presidency.

This podcast was recorded on 30 May 2024