Foresight Africa Podcast

During the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C., Foresight Africa host Landry Signé caught up with Axel van Trotsenburg, senior managing director of the World Bank, who spoke about how to mobilize the private sector to help create more jobs for African youth in the coming years, while also addressing the debt distress crisis many African governments face. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

During the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in April 2025, Foresight Africa podcast host Landry Signé interviewed leaders in the global finance and development space to glean their key takeaways from the meetings and how they might shape policy decisions and deliver tangible results across Africa. In this special episode, you will hear highlights from each of the conversations, and you can find full interviews at brookings.edu/ForesightSpringMeetings.  Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Host Landry Signé and Belinda Archibong, a fellow with the Africa Growth Initiative at Brookings, discuss inequalities that hinder development across Africa and policy choices that can overcome them. These include increasing job opportunities for women and youth, passing laws against gender and youth discrimination, and providing access to financial resources to both demographics. Archibong uses Nigeria as a case study to show how these inequalities hinder economic development. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Host Landry Signé and Dr. Karim El Aynaoui, executive president of the Policy Center for the New South, discuss the rapid shift toward transactional relationships between countries in the South and North that may prove difficult for less stable countries in the New South to navigate. Macroeconomic stability and independent monetary policy are fundamental, he says, and countries must create their own specialized strategies for economic growth. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Foresight Africa host Landry Signé discusses the findings of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation's newest governance index with Nathalie Delapalme, the Foundation's CEO. Countries that have continued to make progress, she says, have done so by putting equal emphasis on all four dimensions of governance: human development, sustainable economic opportunity, security and rule of law, and participation and rights. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) provides a blueprint for the continent to overcome development challenges through intra-African trade that is economically and environmentally sustainable. On this episode of Foresight Africa, host Landry Signé talks with AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene, who shares his vision of how the world's largest free trade area can address Africa's development needs with African solutions. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Foresight Africa podcast host Landry Signé speaks with James Robinson, 2024 Nobel Laureate in economics and University Professor at the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy, about the critical importance of societal institutions in driving economic prosperity in Africa and the imperative of homegrown solutions in unlocking the continent's potential. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Landry Signé speaks with National Geographic Explorers Noel Kok and Pragna Parsotam-Kok about their work to create a network of African conservation filmmakers to highlight African voices and engage African audiences. Kok and Parsotam-Kok are co-founders and executive directors of Nature, Environment & Wildlife Filmmakers (NEWF). Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

In episode one of the fourth season of Foresight Africa podcast, host Landry Signe talks with the new director of the Africa Growth Initiative, Pierre Nguimkeu, who talks about his research priorities for AGI in the coming year. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

With 2030 on the horizon—the looming deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals, now is a critical time to assess the progress, gaps, and road ahead for the top policy and development priorities for Africa, U.S.-Africa relations, and the continent's broader global partnerships. In season four of Foresight Africa podcast, host Landry Signé, senior fellow in the Global Economy and Development Program and the Africa Growth Initiative at Brookings, and guests share their unique insights and innovative solutions to Africa's most complex development challenges, while highlighting the continent's opportunities to advance impactful engagements between Africa, the United States, and the global community. Stay tuned for new episodes every other Wednesday. Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Rwanda has made impressive progress in driving inclusive digitalization across its economy. By harnessing data-driven insights, the country has empowered evidence-based policymaking, fostered innovation, and catalyzed digital transformation of Rwandan society. In this episode, host Landry Signé speaks with Crystal Rugege, managing director of Rwanda's Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR), about her journey from Silicon Valley to driving impactful technology initiatives in Rwanda and Africa. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) aims to create one market across the 55 countries of the African Union, promising free movement of goods, services, investment, people, and cooperation. In this episode, host Landry Signé speaks with Francis Mangeni and Andrew Mold, both experts on African trade and regional integration, about the status of African integration under AfCFTA and how to catalyze its continued implementation. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges the continent of Africa faces, but with severe challenges come generational opportunities. In this episode, host Landry Signé interviews Vera Songwe, chair of the board of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility and a Brookings Africa Growth Initiative nonresident senior fellow, about those opportunities including, as she argues, converting Africa's assets like the largest carbon sink in the world into financial resources that African countries can invest in growth. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.  

Angola has faced waves of economic uncertainty over the last decade—from oil price shocks in 2014 and 2023 to the spillover effects' of COVID-19. Despite these challenges, Angola is determined to manage the ramifications to its economy. Host Landry Signé is joined by Angola's minister of finance, Vera Esperança dos Santos Daves de Sousa, to discuss the country's tools for addressing both debt distress and preempting future economic shocks. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

The African Union's Agenda 2063 and the African Free Continental Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) are two examples of landmark efforts to positively transform the continent. Host Landry Signé is joined by Chido Munyati, the head of Africa at the World Economic Forum, to discuss how the program is supporting these unprecedented initiatives. Munyati shares the current regional integration efforts, private sector partnerships, and how policymakers can leverage the demographic dividend to strengthen the continent. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Public procurement is the system of laws and operational arrangements that allows the public sector, including the government, to purchase goods and services, with the aim to maximize social welfare and do public good. However, many African countries fail to address legal and social impediments women-owned businesses face when trying to participate in procurement activities. Host Landry Signé is joined by Professor Sope Williams to describe these barriers a Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Artificial intelligence's acceleration has increased the need for data regulation and privacy protections globally. Chinasa Okolo joins host Landry Signé to discuss AI's impact on the African continent and the continent's current policy landscape. Okolo explains why a lack of policy and privacy protection is harmful, and how to design an inclusive AI regulation framework beneficial to all. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Subjectivity and bias in credit ratings cost African countries up to $24 billion in interest and over $46 billion in foregone lending. On this episode, host Landry Signé is joined by Raymond Gilpin and Daouda Sembene to discuss their 2024 Foresight Africa piece “Making Africa's credit ratings more objective.” Gilpin and Sembene discuss the reasons this subjectivity and bias exist, the costly implications, and government and private-sector solutions for improving credit rating objectivity across the continent.  Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.  

Africa has a growing problem: a large population of youth and working-age people with limited employment opportunities. She Leads Africa co-founder Afua Osei joins host Landry Signé to discuss the role entrepreneurs play in closing that gap. Highlighting the importance of technological access, the Africa diaspora and the outsourcing of digital talent, Osei offers insights and solutions into how African entrepreneurs and policymakers can narrow the divide. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Policymakers have the tools to make Africa globally competitive as a continent. With an increasingly young and underemployed population, there is a large gap between the continent's current stasis and its potential for economic growth. Landry Signé is joined by Zouera Youssoufou, CEO of the Aliko Dangote Foundation, to discuss how proper investments in education, health, and infrastructure would give the continent's vibrant youth the opportunity to succeed. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Africa's relationship with Asia has changed dramatically over the last few decades. From little economic integration in the early 1990s to the strong trade partnerships seen today, the regions are now strongly intertwined. The continents also face similar economic and development challenges and share colonial histories and cultural values. Host Landry Signé is joined by Amit Jain from the NTU-SBF Center for African Studies to share insights and lessons the two continents can learn from each other. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Africa experienced a wave of democratic unrest from 2020-23, with seven countries—Mali, Chad, Guinea, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Gabon—falling to military coups during this time. Why? Host Landry Signé and his guest Joseph Asunka. CEO of Afrobarometer, a pan-African survey research network, discuss Africans' views on democracy and governance, as well as policy recommendations for reversing the recent trends. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

African countries lag behind G20 nations in their digital infrastructure and risk falling behind in their economic development and exacerbating existing inequalities. Host Landry Signé and his guest Haroon Bhorat of Cape Town University—co-authors of new research on how to foster an inclusive digital economy in Africa—discuss the indicators of digital infrastructure and policy recommendations for accelerating digitalization in Africa. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.  

Aloysius Uche Ordu, director of the Africa Growth Initiative (AGI) at Brookings, and Landry Signé, AGI senior fellow, discuss the vulnerabilities and opportunities facing nations on the African continent. From climate change to political instability, positive economic growth to increasing life expectancy, Ordu and Signé offer their perspectives on policy solutions for Africa. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Afripods, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Season three of Foresight Africa podcast will debut soon with new episodes that celebrate the dynamism and optimism across Africa. This season, we'll be talking again to policymakers, industry and civic leaders, and contributors to our flagship report, Foresight Africa, on topics ranging from the continent's digital transformation to governance trends to young people's role in Africa's structural transformation. Learn more at https://www.brookings.edu/tags/foresight-africa-podcast/ Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Kerllen Costa, Angola country director of National Geographic's Okavango Wilderness Project, tells the story of the flora and fauna of Botswana's Okavango Delta, fed by rivers that cross international boundaries and originate in the “water tower” highlands of Angola. Costa explains how important a relationship with local people in the region is key to conservation and sustainability for the vital watershed. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

John Mulligan, climate change lead at the World Gold Council, talks with host Aloysius Ordu about the Council's role in global gold markets, changes in those markets, and how gold mining can be part of the solution to climate change. Mulligan also looks ahead to the next global climate conference, COP28 in Dubai. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Danielle Resnick, a David M. Rubenstein Fellow at Brookings, discusses her research on food security challenges in Africa. She notes the compounding global and regional crises that have worsened the food security situation, but also describes the creative ways that some African governments are addressing the problem. “Food system transformation, Resnick says, “means that we need to change how food is produced, traded, and consumed in order to promote healthy, sustainable outcomes for people, planet, and prosperity.” Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Belinda Archibong, a David M. Rubenstein Fellow at Brookings and professor at Barnard College, talks with host Aloysius Ordu about mental health and other health challenges facing youth in Africa. She explores the nexus between health and economic issues like productivity and growth, and shares her research on using technology to help address these concerns. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Jeanine Cooper, minister of agriculture for the Republic of Liberia, shares her transformative vision for agriculture in her country, one that is green, regenerative, appealing to youth, and promotes local consumption. A rice farmer herself, Minister Cooper also talks about the importance of that crop, and how Liberian agriculture is responding to the challenges of climate change. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Ada Osakwe, a Nigerian innovator and business leader, talks about her role as an innovative entrepreneur and transformative investor. Osakwe founded the Nuli Juice Company and Agrolay Ventures, and was named Forbes Woman Africa businesswoman of the year in 2021. Addressing the gender gap in boardrooms, Osakwe says that “women leaders must support other women.” Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Bogolo Kenewendo, the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions' special advisor, Africa director, and former minister of Investment, Trade, and Industry of Botswana, discusses the African perspective on climate action, biodiversity, climate finance, and gender-responsive solutions. She emphasizes the need for adaptation and resilience in the agricultural sector to secure livelihoods and address high poverty rates in Africa. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Angela Pashayan, professor and political scientist at American University, shares her experiences working with the Mukuru slum community in Kenya and the socioeconomic challenges the residents face. Dr. Pashayan highlights the importance of urban agriculture within the community, discusses the effects of climate change in urban slums, and notes policies to address the gender gap in African countries. Show notes and transcript Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

David Moinina Sengeh, minister of basic and senior secondary education and chief innovation officer in Sierra Leone, urges other African policymakers to invest in education, and offers insight on how AI can be leveraged for educational improvement. Minister Sengeh also talks about his new book, Radical Inclusion, and his music as a way to connect with young people. The music track “Alagalan (feat. Augu6tine)” is included by permission of David Moinina, and can be heard on the album "Love Notes to Salone" (Moinina & Augu6tine, 2020). Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3HTLEwX  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

In this episode of Foresight Africa podcast, Ruth Kagia, senior fellow at Results for Development and former country director for Southern Africa at the World Bank, discusses the risks and opportunities of STEM education in Africa. She explains ways that young girls and women can enter STEM-related fields and more broadly how to address “learning poverty” on the continent. Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3mWYLX7  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Una Osili, associate dean for research and international programs and Efroymson Chair in Philanthropy at Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, explains the role that remittances and philanthropy play in meeting development challenges in sub-Saharan Africa. The African continent, she says, has “a rich history of philanthropy,” and new tools and technology are expanding new ways of giving. Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3GBlmPq  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Kasirim Nwuke, managing partner at Mirisak & Associates and former chief, green economy, technologies and innovation at the UN Economic Commission for Africa, examines Nigeria's presidential election results, in which Bola Tinubu was declared the winner, and where challenges from contenders Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar continue in Nigeria's courts. Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3U7Jajw  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

In this episode of Foresight Africa podcast, Winnie Kiiza, a Ugandan teacher and politician who served as leader of the opposition in Uganda's Parliament, shares her story of growing up in a political family, entering politics herself, and advocating for policies that will open political, social, and economic opportunities for women and girls in Uganda. Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3ZtCsGo  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Gracelin Baskaran, a World Bank consultant and Bye-Fellow at Cambridge, discusses Africa's rich natural resources, especially rare earth elements, and offers recommendations for how Africa's nations can leverage these assets for the benefit of the continent. She also addresses South Africa's economy and how climate change affects economic growth and debt. Show notes and transcript: https://bit.ly/3EKKiDa  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Joseph Siegle, director of research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, joins host Aloysius Uche Ordu for a conversation on Nigeria's upcoming presidential election, on February 25, and other elections in Africa this year. Dr. Siegle explains the importance of Nigeria's election, including the key role youths and civil society organizations will play, plus security challenges the West African nation faces. Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/3XxQ29I  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.  

Rogaia Abusharaf, a professor of anthropology at Georgetown University Qatar, talks with host Aloysius Ordu about the leading role Sudanese women have played in movements for peace and justice from the early 1920s to the recent Sudanese revolution (2018-19). Dr. Abusharaf also describes her research on African migrations and the Intersectionality of race, gender, and politics. Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/40kGKk0  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.

Fenitra Jérémiah and Anja Radoharinirina, who both work for SAF/FJKM, an NGO in Madagascar, describe the incredible beauty of their country and the help they are providing to the communities most affected by climate change. Jérémiah and Radoharinirina share their positive impressions of the youth networking opportunities at COP27 and encourage more youth involvement in future climate actions. Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/3P6Aasq  Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Send feedback email to podcasts@brookings.edu.