Africa’s Role and Place in the Forming Multipolar World

In March, Center for Russian-African Relations and Foreign Policy of African Countries of the Institute for African Studies (Russian Academy of Sciences) held a conference “Africa – the Rising Center of an Emerging Multipolar World”. The conference took place during a period of sharp aggravation of the international situation, which required for Russia to revise the directions of its foreign policy with the focus on some countries, in particular, the countries of Africa. The event held in the format of a videoconference was attended by scientists of the IAfr RAS, MGIMO University, RISI, Institute of Economics (Academy of Sciences of Belarus), Research Economic Institute of the Ministry of Economy (Republic of Belarus), teachers and students of Patrice Lumumba RUDN University, Moscow State University, TISBI University of Management (Kazan, Russia), Samara State University of Economics. The role and place of African countries in the system of international relations and in strategies of the main centers of power, the African policy of the world’s leading players, as well as the state and prospects of Russian- and Belarusian-African cooperation in the context of a sharp aggravation of the international situation and tough economic sanctions imposed by the West on Russia and Belarus were discussed. The speeches contained recommendations on strengthening both countries mutually beneficial partnership with African states, which may be used by government organizations and business community.