The ‘EUI Platform on Africa’ brings together the activities of the different academic units of the European University Institute (EUI), which engage with African topics or offer education and training to African participants to respond to concrete training needs and policy-making challenges.
Europe’s future is bound-up with that of its nearest neighbour, Africa, a vibrant continent with the youngest population in the world. Europe has tended to see Africa through the lens of development co-operation but this belies the transformation of Africa over the last 20 years, including massive economic and urban growth across the continent. Hence, one of the EUI’s objectives is to generate and disseminate knowledge as well as to develop capacities together with and for African institutions, scholars, policy-makers and leaders, in order to unlock the potentials of Africa, both within the continent and internationally, within the context of the Africa 2063 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.
European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, has framed her Commission as a ‘Geopolitical Commission’ to emphasize the importance of Europe’s role in the world and its partnerships with global regions. In this context, the EU’s relationship with Africa is a key priority for the Commission, as per the Africa-EU Partnership. Launched in March 2020, the Partnership proposes to work together on five key global trends: Green Transition and Energy Access; Digital Transformation; Sustainable Growth and Jobs; Peace, Security and Governance; Migration and Mobility.
EUI expertise of relevance to the EU’s Africa policy are related to the following clusters: political economy (energy, renewals, trade, natural resources); conflict and security; mobility and migration.
The EUI welcomes African scholars and policy specialists, and looks forward to further engaging in structured collaborations with African stakeholders, including academic institutions, national authorities, regional and sub-regional organisations, platforms of local authorities and civil society actors, corporate, media.
Page last updated on 27 July 2020