Geopol Report
Foreign Interventions in the Sahel Region: How Effective are the Multinationalists at  Mitigating Conflict and Aiding in Climate Adaptation?

Research desk

Africa Research Desk

Our team is dedicated to analysing and interpreting the strategic, political, and economic dynamics that influence Africa’s position in global affairs.

Intelligence Briefings

On this desk

8 reports

See every research desk on the interactive globe.

Explore the globe

See every research desk and the regions it covers.

Explore the regions

Latest Africa geopolitics reports

Somalia’s Security Transition after ATMIS: Political Settlements, External Partnerships, and the Risk of Fragmented State Authority

Africa

18 April 2026

Somalia’s Security Transition after ATMIS: Political Settlements, External Partnerships, and the Risk of Fragmented State Authority

Somalia’s security transition has entered a critical and uncertain phase. The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) formally ended and was replaced by the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) on 1 January 2025 under UN Security Council Resolution 2767.

Read the report
Somaliland’s Geopolitical Limbo: Balancing Maritime Trade Opportunities with Potential Regional Destabilisation

Africa

23 January 2026

Somaliland’s Geopolitical Limbo: Balancing Maritime Trade Opportunities with Potential Regional Destabilisation

Somaliland has been operating as a breakaway state within the borders of Somalia since 1991. For the last 34 years, they have been a functioning de facto state with its own military, police, currency, rule of law, and democratically-elected government. Until December 2025, they had received no formal recognition from any UN-member state, leading to a severe handicap in their ability to secure IMF loans, access international trade organisations, or negotiate on their own behalf in international forums.

Read the report
Israel’s Hidden Hand: Strategic Interests and the Push for Somaliland’s Recognition

Africa

21 November 2025

Israel’s Hidden Hand: Strategic Interests and the Push for Somaliland’s Recognition

The question of international recognition for the breakaway state of Somaliland has been dramatically transformed. No longer confined to the well-rehearsed arguments of historical distinctness and democratic governance, it has been thrust into the centre of a vortex of intersecting regional crises and bold strategic ambitions. This shift is amplified by influential voices in Washington and a concerted lobbying effort, reframing the issue from a regional dispute into a pivotal matter of the U.S. and Israeli national security.

Read the report
Foreign Interventions in the Sahel Region: How Effective are the Multinationalists at  Mitigating Conflict and Aiding in Climate Adaptation?

Africa

12 September 2025

Foreign Interventions in the Sahel Region: How Effective are the Multinationalists at  Mitigating Conflict and Aiding in Climate Adaptation?

The Sahel region is situated between North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa in more ways than simple geography. Characterised by a combination of humid savannas commonly found in Sub-Saharan Africa and the arid Saharan landscape of North Africa, the Sahel climate possesses a semi-arid nature, giving it precarious geopolitical positioning. Countries such as Mali and Sudan have suffered from conflicts related to religious extremism, corruption, and climate change.

Read the report
US-Kenya Security Pact and Counterterrorism in East Africa and its wider Geopolitical Implications

Africa

25 May 2025

US-Kenya Security Pact and Counterterrorism in East Africa and its wider Geopolitical Implications

The US-Kenya security pact highlights the growing shift in global power dynamics, where smaller regional players, like Kenya, are being increasingly integrated into the security policies of larger powers. However, this brings to fore several questions about the long-term viability of such partnerships. In a world where global powers are becoming more unpredictable and the nature of conflict is increasingly non-traditional, the US-Kenya pact may serve as a useful model for flexible, regional security alliances.

Read the report
When The ‘Recalcitrant’ Prevails: Nigeria’s Loss in the IPOB Secessionist Struggle

Africa

22 April 2025

When The ‘Recalcitrant’ Prevails: Nigeria’s Loss in the IPOB Secessionist Struggle

In 2014, Nnamdi Kanu, a revolutionary of Igbo extraction and leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, emerged to campaign for the separation of Biafra from Nigeria.

Read the report
Xenophobic Violence in South Africa and the Government’s P/CVE Initiatives

Africa

17 March 2025

Xenophobic Violence in South Africa and the Government’s P/CVE Initiatives

Far-right extremism is a cyclical and resurgent entity, often emerging in different forms and contexts throughout history. This is evident in the cases of fascism, Islamophobia, QAnon, anti-Semitism, and xenophobia in diverse countries’ contexts.

Read the report
Strategic Risks in the Horn of Africa’s Port Cities: Sovereignty, Militarisation, and Competing Interests

Africa

14 March 2025

Strategic Risks in the Horn of Africa’s Port Cities: Sovereignty, Militarisation, and Competing Interests

The rise of autonomous port cities, empowered by external financing and militarisation, threatens to redraw political loyalties, destabilising already fractured states and creating volatile flashpoints where trade...

Read the report

Sign in

Sign in to access and download Geopol Report's Intelligence Publications.

Forgotten your password? · New here? Sign up