Foresight Africa Podcast
The Foresight Africa podcast celebrates the dynamism and optimism across Africa and explores strategies for broadening the benefits of growth to all people in the region. Host Aloysius Uche Ordu, director of the Africa Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institution, interviews policy experts and leaders from the public sector, private sector, and civil society on key trends affecting people and nations on the continent.
Episodes
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...
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.
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.
Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Subscribe and listen on App...
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 ...
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.
Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brooking...
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.
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.”
Foresight Africa podcast is part of the Brooki...
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.
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.
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 permiss...
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
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.
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
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
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
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.
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
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://broo...
Nadia Owusu, convenor at the Local Conference of Youth Ghana, and MaryJane Enchill, deputy chief executive officer/head of communication at HATOF Foundation, share their takeaways from COP27, naming climate fund mobilization as a crucial outcome. Both climate activists discuss their work on climate justice and educating their communities on the impact of climate change.
Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/3uvpv0M
Victoria Alis, president of Oceans Project Seychelles, discusses vulnerabilities faced by ocean ecosystems in the Seychelles and measures some local NGOs in her town put in place in preparation for COP27. Alis lists local climate-related capacity building and mobilization of local youths as priorities for mitigation and adaptation of ocean health in her community.
Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/3Bbcg9v
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