Shifting Tides: The U.S.-Africa Relationship Amid Global Competition

Conference Format
Two-day program featuring five policy discussions and expert roundtables, an opening keynote by a distinguished practitioner, and an executive reception designed to foster high-level networking.

Panel Information:

10:15–11:45 AM
Panel 1 — African Voices on Global Governance, International Law, and Institutional Reform
Combines African policy and legal perspectives on reforming global governance and the rules-based order. Examines representation and influence within institutions such as the UN, IMF, World Bank, WTO, and ICSID, and how African states and the African Union deploy legal instruments, treaty-making, and voting coalitions to shape global norms. Considers sovereignty, recognition, dispute settlement, development assistance, and non-interference principles in an era of multipolar competition. Highlights African contributions to international law and implications for U.S.–Africa engagement.

Speakers

1. Dr. Joseph Asunka
   Chief Executive Officer, Afrobarometer
2. Dr. Hajer Gueldich
   Legal Counsel of the African Union; Professor of Public Law, University of Carthage
3. Dr. Ebenezer Obadare
   Douglas Dillon Senior Fellow for Africa Studies, Council on Foreign Relations

Moderated by Ambassador Susan D. Page
Professor of Practice in International Diplomacy at the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and Professor from Practice at the University of Michigan's Law School

1:00–2:30 PM
Panel 2 — Climate, Innovation, and Human Capital: Navigating Africa's Green Transitions
Examines how climate pressures, demographic trends, and resource endowments drive policy innovation and legal change across the continent. Discusses environmental and climate governance, natural resource and critical mineral policy, labor and mobility frameworks for youth, IP considerations in technology transfer, and the political economy of climate finance. Identifies strategic opportunities for U.S.–Africa cooperation on green industrialization, sustainable energy, and human capital development.

Speakers

1. Boubacar Bocoum
   Lead Mining Specialist, World Bank
2. Dr. Eghosa Ekhator
   Associate Professor of International Environmental Law, University of Derby
3. Olanrewaju Suraju
   Chairman, Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) Resource Centre
4. Dr. Yousif Hassan 
   Assistant Professor at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and the School of Information, University of Michigan

Moderated by Dr. Bilal Butt
Professor, School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan

2:45–4:15 PM
Panel 3 — Migration, Peace and Security in an Age of Uncertainty
Explores shifting security landscapes—from coups in the Sahel to electoral contestation, insurgencies, and maritime insecurity. Integrates policy analysis (peacebuilding, regional security cooperation, counterterrorism assistance, election observation) with relevant legal frameworks (constitutional norms, AU/ECOWAS protocols on unconstitutional changes of government, international humanitarian law, human rights, and sanctions regimes). Assesses implications for U.S.–Africa security cooperation and governance support.

Speakers

1. Dr. Shakirah Hudani
   Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
2. Dr. Omotade Akin Aina
   Senior Program Director, International Program, Carnegie Corporation of New York
3. Murithi Mutiga
   Program Director, Africa, International Crisis Group

Moderated by tbc.

9:15–10:45 AM
Panel 4 — Geopolitics and Great Power Competition: Africa's Strategic Positioning
Analyzes how African governments manage external influence and competition among the U.S., China, Russia, the EU, and Gulf States. Consider both policy tools (foreign aid, infrastructure, security partnerships, media engagement) and legal instruments (basing agreements, investment contracts, maritime rules, bilateral treaties). Highlights African agency in strategic non-alignment, the African Union's diplomatic positioning, and how great power competition shapes development outcomes and sovereignty debates.

Speakers

1. Dr. Benedito Machava
   Assistant Professor of History, Yale University
2. Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assil
   Senior Research Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
3. Dr. Joseph Siegle
   Director of Research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, National Defense University
4. Dr. Mo Ibrahim (Virtual) - tbc
   Founder and Chair, Mo Ibrahim Foundation

Moderated by Dr. Kamissa Camara
Professor of Practice, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan

11:00–12:30 PM
Panel 5 — Africa's Economic Future: Trade Integration, Investment, and Growth Pathways
Centers on Africa's economic transformation and emerging growth strategies. Examines the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a driver of intra-African trade, industrialization, and market harmonization. Explores how sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and financial regulatory reforms could mobilize domestic capital for Africa-to-Africa investment and reduce dependence on external financing. Discusses barriers to investment (infrastructure, risk perception, monetary policy fragmentation), and opportunities in manufacturing, services, and digital trade. Identifies implications for U.S.–Africa economic engagement and the evolving role of development finance institutions.

Speakers

1. Dr. Olufunmilayo Arewa
   Professor of Law, George Mason University
2. Dr. Anita Plummer
   Associate Professor of African Studies; Executive Director, Center for Women, Gender, and Global Leadership, Howard University

Moderated by Dr. Laura Beny
Earl Warren DeLano Professor of Law, University of Michigan Law School
 

Faculty Expert

Susan D. Page

Professor of Practice in International Diplomacy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and Professor from Practice at University of Michigan Law School. Director; Weiser Diplomacy Center.

Page applies her vast foreign policy experience to the Weiser Diplomacy Center. She has served the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the United Nations, and non-governmental organizations in senior roles for decades, across East, Central, and Southern Africa, and in Haiti and Nepal. Page was the first U.S. ambassador to the Republic of South Sudan and served as Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations in Haiti.

Faculty Expert

Kamissa Camara

Professor of practice

Dr. Kamissa Camara is a Professor of Practice in International Diplomacy at the University of Michigan. She is a scholar-practitioner with 20 years of experience in diplomacy, international affairs, democratic governance, and security across Africa. Before joining the University of Michigan, she held senior government positions in Mali and worked with international organizations in Washington, D.C., on democracy, governance, and elections.

Staff Expert

Nayab Ali

International Diplomacy Programs Administrator, Weiser Diplomacy Center

Faculty Expert

Yousif Hassan

Assistant professor

Yousif Hassan examines the social, economic, and political implications of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, natural language processing, blockchain among other technologies with a particular emphasis on technoscientific innovation, development, and the digital economy. Hassan’s interest is at the intersection of social justice and technology and innovation policy.