African Governments Navigating U.S. and China Relations

RSVP Required Open to the Public

Join the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in a workshop series in Spring 2022 to examine the factors driving recent political transitions as well as geostrategic relations in Africa. This third and final session will delve into the nexus of political, security, and economic interests between African governments, China, and the United States, as well as how external actors are reacting to African governments’ evolving foreign policies and priorities.

Date: Thu, Apr 28, 2022 Time: 03:00pm - 04:15pm Location: Online

Panelist
Dr. Folashadé Soulé

Panelist
Dr. Shirley Yu

Panelist
Dr. Jendayi E. Frazer

Moderator
Natalie Colbert

Event Information

We will be joined by the following panelists:
Dr. Folashadé Soulé, Senior Research Associate at the Global Economic Governance programme (Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford)
Dr. Shirley Yu, Senior Practitioner Fellow with the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation (Harvard Kennedy School) and Director of the China-Africa Initiative (Firoz Lalji Institute, London School of Economics)
Dr. Jendayi E. Frazer, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies (Council on Foreign Relations) and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, 2005-2009
Natalie Colbert (Moderator), Executive Director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs (Harvard Kennedy School)
While this virtual event is on the record, the event organizers prohibit any attendees, including journalists, from audio/visual recording or distributing parts or all of the event program without prior written authorization.
Dr. Foloshadé Soulé is a Senior Research Associate at the Global Economic Governance programme (University of Oxford). Her research focuses on Africa-China relations, the study of agency in Africa’s international relations, and the politics of South-South cooperation. She was a postdoctoral fellow at the London School of Economics, and a former Oxford-Princeton Global Leaders Fellow. Additionally, she is the initiator of the Africa-China negotiation workshop series bringing together African negotiators and senior policymakers to exchange and build better negotiation practices when dealing with China.

Dr. Shirley Yu is a Senior Practitioner Fellow with the Ash Center at the Harvard Kennedy School, and the Director of the China-Africa Initiative at the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa at the London School of Economics. She is also a distinguished Foreign Faculty professor at the National Defence University (Islamabad, Pakistan), and a member of the Davos Expert Network on China, 5G, and Geo-economics. Shirley is a frequent commentator for many international outlets like the BBC, Al Jazeera, CNN, and Financial Times.

Jendayi E. Frazer is the President and CEO of 50 Ventures, a private consulting and investment company that seeks to elevate Africa's global standing by investing in its governance, education, enterprise, and stability sectors. She is also an Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. Prior to these roles, she served as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs (2005-2009), U.S. Ambassador to South Africa (2004-2005), and Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council (2001-2004). Additionally, she served as a distinguished public service professor at Carnegie Mellon University (2009-2014).