Russian Researchers Roadmap Africa’s Investment Sectors for Entrepreneurs -By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh

The Centre for Transition Economy Studies of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences held a two-day scientific conference under the theme: “Industrial Development Strategies of African Countries” on March 18-19. The conference was opened by Professor Irina Abramova, Director of the Institute for African Studies. More than 40 researchers and experts from Russia, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and North Macedonia took part in the event.

The conference focused on a wide range of significant issues related to Africa’s industrial development, the modernization of the African production base, and the potential for Russian-African cooperation. The in-person part of the conference focused on the development of the manufacturing and extractive industries, special economic zones, energy and transport infrastructure, digitalization, and the agro-industrial complex. The second day of the conference was conducted as an online discussion in English, featuring African colleagues on the localization of production chains in Africa, covering both agricultural and mineral processing.

Topics of the Conference included:

1. Continental, regional and national programs and plans of industrial development in Africa. Prospects of continental and regional production chains.
2. Study of the manufacturing market in African countries: manufacturing and agro-industrial complexes
3. Energy, transport, and digitalization: necessary infrastructure for industrial development.
4. Interests of Multinational Corporations in Africa: conditions, forms of activities and geographical distribution. The role of free economic zones.
5. Government policy regarding Multinational Corporations and control over export-import flows.
6. The role of international organizations and activities of external actors.
7. Possible areas and prospects for expanding mutually beneficial cooperation for Russian companies in Africa.

Experts in African studies from Russia as well as representatives of Russian government and business circles involved in trade and economic cooperation with African countries actively participated. One of the significant outputs presented at the plenary session of the conference was the full-text on the African Development Strategy database created by Professors D. A. Degterev and A. D. Novikov, together with the staff of the IAS. The database covers more than 400 official strategic planning documents across 53 countries on the continent for the period 1997–2025. It systematizes them under six thematic areas: long-term and medium-term development strategies, industrial policy, ICT, agriculture and water sector.

The plenary session featured nine reports covering key dimensions of Africa’s industrial development. There were issues of trade and industrial potential of the continent that was highlighted in the report on the export specificity of African machine-building industries: based on ITC Trade Map data (2019–2024) that shows duties of South Africa, Tunisia industrial production, including on intracontinental markets.

Institutional mechanisms of Russian-African economic cooperation were reviewed in the report on the activities of Intergovernmental Commissions: the number of these ICC increased from four (4) in 2023 to nine (9) in 2025, and the volume of investment fund to support African projects is planned to increase, at least, to Rouble 5 billion for 2026–2027.

The conceptual dimension of financing industrialization was presented through a critique of universal Western narratives and the justification for the need for an “application finance strategy”—a country model that takes into account the economy of Africa. Practical aspects of Russia’s investment presence in Africa are characterized on the example of projects in the countries of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) with an emphasis on the specific risks of the subregion (DM Sinitsyn, VEB.RF). Digitalization and artificial intelligence development in sub-Saharan African countries was also analyzed and presented at the conference.

Russian-African cooperation in the field of technologies and education was covered in the reports on the transfer of agrobiotechnologies through the Afro-Russian Center for Technology Development in Kampala, within which in 2025/2026, this period in which concretely 467 citizens of African countries were trained in Russian universities (NA Goncharova, FGBU “Agroexport”).

The competitive struggle of foreign players for African markets and the possibilities of Russian participation were considered in the reports on the position of the continent on the world energy markets, supplies of ground vehicles, and activities of pharmaceuticals for Africa. The digital dimension of industrialization was covered by the reports on the cyber potential of West Africa, the formation of data processing centers in the industrial strategy of South Africa, in the digitalization strategies of Algeria and Morocco.

The thorough-motive of most speeches, at the conference, became a reflection on the ‘disconnection’ between the proclaimed goals of industrialization and the actual structure of African economies: despite the widespread proliferation of pre-national strategic documents industries in the continent’s total GDP has not exceeded 10–12% for more than two decades, and exports still comprise mainly unprocessed raw materials.

In this regard, a number of reports justify the need to transition from external financial models formed by international organizations to sovereign country strategies based on state political, industrial and industrial resources. Global South — including to deepening Russian-African cooperation in the spheres of technology, education and investment.

A collective monograph is, however, planned for publication following the conference. The event included presentation of the full-text database on African development strategies, prepared by the team of the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.