In the past year, there have been more than 1,500 violent incidents and an estimated 11,000 fatalities attributed to drone warfare in Africa. This represents more than triple the number of fatalities in 2024 (3,279).

The African Union is expected to provide leadership and coordination on a wide array of issues, underscores the importance of this pan-African body. Yet, progress on longstanding calls for AU reforms has been protracted. African governments and citizens must decide what kind of union Africa needs.

Nigerians use social media platforms for news more than any other source, and at the highest rate recorded globally (79%). This makes the country an attractive target for a host of coordinated foreign information campaigns. Learn how Nigeria is countering these threats: africacenter.org/spo...

China’s critical minerals strategy has emphasized processing and refining capabilities, while diversifying upstream by acquiring major African mining assets. China now controls over half of global critical minerals production and an estimated 87% of processing and refining. africacenter.org/spo...

Renewed global interest in securing stable supplies of critical minerals has refocused attention on the Africa's infrastructure and logistics corridors. Strengthening them will require strong coordination bodies, diversified financing, and alignment with regional priorities. africacenter.org/spo...

Latin American drug cartels are forming partnerships with African criminal organizations to facilitate the production of methamphetamine and the trafficking of cocaine on the continent. Nigerian and South African groups appear to be the most active and organized in managing these arrangements.

Global trade in cocaine and methamphetamine is at an all-time high. For decades, Africa has been a transit point for Latin American drugs making its way to Europe. But the last few years have seen an explosion in cocaine and meth production distribution in Africa. 1/2

There has been a significant scaling up of Latin American cartel operations in Africa in recent years. This is having far-reaching implications for security, African criminal organizations, the viability of licit markets, and governance on the continent. Read more: africacenter.org/spo...

The Red Sea maritime corridor has typically accounted for roughly 95% of maritime traffic between Europe and Asia, 30% of global container traffic, 15% of global oil and shipping transits, and 12% of global annual trade—valued at $1 trillion. africacenter.org/spo...

Africa continues to face near record levels of forced displacement due to protracted conflicts that generate recurring cycles of instability and population movements. africacenter.org/spo...

“Military political work” (军队政治工作) is what Beijing calls all the activities of the PLA to shape the civilian environment. These include: political and ideological training, public affairs, professional military education, and more.

Africa’s regional economic corridors offer opportunities to strengthen integrated continental networks, but they require strong coordination bodies, diversified financing, and alignment with regional priorities.

“[A] very important part of developing a culture of military professionalism is the dialogue that must exist between civilians and the military to achieve it.” Senegalese officers share their experience building Senegal's culture of military professionalism: africacenter.org/spo...

The inability to sustain stability in eastern DRC also stems in part from persistent weaknesses in the Congolese security sector. These weaknesses have led the government to rely on militias, foreign forces, and mercenaries. But this is a double-edged sword. 1/3

The Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa employs a cross-sectoral approach to corridor planning, including: • Transport & logistics • Energy infrastructure • Industrialization & value addition • Digital/ICT infrastructure • Environment/water management africacenter.org/spo...

In May 2022, Chinese intelligence reportedly interrogated Chinese students in an Egyptian prison. They were part of a group of 200 Chinese nationals rounded up by Egyptian security weeks after Egypt’s interior ministry signed a cooperation agreement with China’s Ministry of Public Security.

A constitutional anchor in West Africa since 1999, Nigeria is an attractive target for foreign authoritarian actors. Weakening Nigeria or shifting it toward authoritarianism would open it to greater influence by other authoritarian governments. Get all the details here:

The Raging Information Battle in Nigeria

Foreign actors are targeting Nigeria with manipulative information operations to erode trust, deepen polarization, and shape security narratives.

africacenter.org

Nearly 45 million Africans (roughly 3% of the African population) are forcibly displaced. Conflict remains the dominant driver of forced displacement in Africa: The top 10 leading countries of origin for displaced Africans are all in the midst of conflict. africacenter.org/spo...

Africa’s logistic/infrastructure corridors have been engines of the continent’s economic growth.

Al Shabaab has established a sophisticated revenue-generation capacity that stretches well beyond areas under its territorial control in Somalia, and the evolution of its financial transactions has outpaced existing regulatory frameworks and traditional investigative methods.

Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping and increased leverage to disrupt maritime passage through the Bab al Mandeb Strait fundamentally shifts the regional security landscape for Africa and the Red Sea region. africacenter.org/spo...

Africa's Central Corridor connects Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and the DRC to the Port of Dar es Salaam. It is distinctive for its highly digitized systems and streamlined border passages operating under a single customs territory.

La perspective d’un contrôle du détroit de Bab al-Mandeb par les Houthis accroît les coûts économiques et modifie en profondeur le paysage sécuritaire régional de l’Afrique et la région de la mer Rouge. africacenter.org/fr/...

Nigeria is facing a host of coordinated and deceptive foreign information campaigns intended to shape public perceptions of insecurity, governance, and Nigeria’s regional partnerships.

The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor is the economic spine of coastal West Africa, connecting ports, industrial centers, and consumer markets in five countries. Economic activity encompasses manufacturing, agriculture, energy, logistics, ICT, tourism, mining, and special economic zones.

Le dernier exercice de combat aérien entre la Chine et l’Égypte marque une avancée significative en matière d’échelle, de complexité et de projection de puissance par rapport aux précédents exercices d’entraînement militaire de la Chine en Afrique. africacenter.org/fr/...

Africa is endowed with some of the world’s largest known reserves of critical minerals. Renewed global interest in securing stable supplies of these minerals has revisited attention on the continent’s infrastructure and logistics corridors. africacenter.org/spo... 1/3

فإن التصدع الداخلي للبيئة الأمنية في السودان يحمل تداعيات بعيدة المدى على مسار الحرب، بما في ذلك التحديات الأمنية والسياسية والاقتصادية التي ستشكل المشهد فيما بعد الصراع. africacenter.org/ar/...

Information operations targeting Nigeria seek to weaken confidence in elections and democratic institutions, discourage civic participation, intensify social divisions, undermine regional leadership, and make an authoritarian path appear reasonable or inevitable. africacenter.org/spo...

إن مناورة “نسور الحضارة” الأخيرة، التي تقدم قدرات صينية متطورة في مناورات عالية الإيقاع في إفريقيا، تؤكد أن الميزات الرئيسية لإستراتيجية التدريب المتطورة للصين في إفريقيا ترتبط ارتباطا أوثق ببناء قدرات الصين القتالية والاستطلاعية، وليس بتعزيز قدرات القوات الإفريقية. africacenter.org/ar/...