Journal of African Foreign Affairs (JoAFA) Volume 9, Number 1, April 2022
About This Edition
ISBN : ISSN: 2056-564X E-ISSN: 2056-5658
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In this issue of the Journal of African Foreign Affairs, the reader will find analyses ranging from non-state actors, sub-state actors, sovereign state policies, and state-to-state relationships particularly with China. A regular reader may notice that the relationships between China (the biggest developing country) and Africa (the biggest continent with developing countries) have been more the focus of our contributors than the relationships between the African continent and Western countries. Signs of the time? Pivot to the East? It is also noticeable that, in most of Western books about geostrategy, Africa is barely mentioned. In that respect, a book by late Zbigniew Brzezinski, Strategic Vision: America and the Crisis of Global Power (2012) comes to mind. It may not be a matter of mutual ignorance but certainly that of emphasis. As the topics of this issue show, the emphasis is on the agency of African states and the role they play within the continent and vis-à-vis players from outside. The war between Russia and Ukraine may
affect food and fuel prices in Africa. But African states should, as they face the challenges of current circumstances, exercise their agency to craft policies that are truly national, and steer their countries in directions that meet the needs of their populations. That is what peace, development, and political stability require.