The Elite Africa Project is a global network of scholars working to shift how Africa and its elites are understood.

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INTRODUCTION

Welcome to The Elite Africa Project

Watch a video introduction to the project and database.

Featured Posts

Introducing: The Elite Africa Project Database

Learn more about the Elite Africa Project and our Online Database!

Dafe Oputu

Scholar Spotlight: Sishuwa Sishuwa - Part 2

Part 2 of our interview with Zambian historian Sishuwa Sishuwa.

Elite Africa Roundup - 22 November 2024

Uganda's opposition leader abducted, artist Shonibare at Art Basel

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Elite Africa Roundup - 1 November 2024

A big week for art in W. Africa, SA supports ICJ case against Israel

Domains of Elite Power

The mechanics of how power—the essential condition of elite status—is meaningfully generated and exercised

Economic

Economic and business elites

Coercive

Military elites and those in security agencies

Ritual

Royalty, nobles, “traditional” rulers

Aesthetic

Art, literature, music- and media-based elites including new online influencers, clothing designers, architects, etc.

Religious

Religious and spiritual leaders, and intellectual/academic elites

Political

State-based or state-focused elites including international techno/bureaucrats

The Elite Africa Project

is a Canadian-based global network of scholars working to challenge predominant understandings of Africa and its elites.

Both in academia and in wider public discourse, African elites have either been ignored or depicted as grasping and self-interested. This framing perpetuates negative depictions of the continent and its peoples and draws on a simplistic understanding of what power is and how it is wielded. Our work aims to counter these perceptions by initiating global conversations about “who leads” in Africa and how they do so.

We seek to disrupt and renew both academic and public discussions of African leadership, refocusing attention on a wider, qualitatively different set of elites from those that have predominated in the past (such as the parasitic “Big Men” of neo-patrimonial politics).

Burna Boy, Nigerian musician, rapper and songwriter; in 2021, his album Twice as Tall won the Best World Music Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, and he enjoyed back to back Grammy award nominations in 2019 and 2020.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian economist, fair trade leader, environmental sustainability advocate, human welfare champion, sustainable finance maven and global development expert. Since March 2021, Okonjo-Iweala has been serving as Director-General of the World Trade Organization.

This project focuses on Africa’s elites, defined as those who operate at the highest level across a range of domains, wield significant power, and possess expert knowledge, skills, and personal strengths that are deployed in strategic, creative, and generative ways. While elites are those who possess the most consequential and powerful agenda-setting and decision-making capacity, Africa’s elites have either been sidelined in many of our analyses or rendered monotonal. When we switch frames to consider the continent as embodying and projecting new, generative forms of power, it changes our view of Africa. It may also change how we understand power itself.

We look at six domains of elite power, from the political to the aesthetic, and ask how we might shift how we think about and study Africa, and how this shift would impact our conceptualization of power and its exercise. Our goal is to contribute to popular conversations about Africa and to highlight the achievements of the astonishing new generation of leaders for a broader public audience.

This website will serve as a hub for collaborative activity by scholars, activists, and practitioners working on Elite Africa and house a searchable database of primary and secondary materials on African elites.

Kofi Annan (1938-2018), Ghanaian-born diplomat, trained in economics, international relations and management; was the first UNSG to be elected from within the ranks of the UN staff itself and served in various key roles before becoming Secretary General.

Namwali Serpell, Zambia award-winning novelist and writer; Recognised early on with the Caine prize, her numerous subsequent awards include the Windham–Campbell Literature Prize, one of the world’s richest literary prizes.

Mohammed "Mo" Ibrahim, Sudanese billionaire businessman. He worked for several telecommunications companies, before founding Celtel, which when sold had over 24 million mobile phone subscribers in 14 African countries.

The Elite Africa Project

is a Canadian-based global network of scholars working to challenge predominant understandings of Africa and its elites.

Both in academia and in wider public discourse, African elites have either been ignored or depicted as grasping and self-interested. This framing perpetuates negative depictions of the continent and its peoples and draws on a simplistic understanding of what power is and how it is wielded. Our work aims to counter these perceptions by initiating global conversations about “who leads” in Africa and how they do so.

We seek to disrupt and renew both academic and public discussions of African leadership, refocusing attention on a wider, qualitatively different set of elites from those that have predominated in the past (such as the parasitic “Big Men” of neo-patrimonial politics).

This project focuses on Africa’s elites — those who operate at the highest level across a range of domains, wield significant power, and possess expert knowledge, skills, and personal strengths that are deployed in strategic, creative, and generative ways. When we switch frames to consider the continent as embodying and projecting new, generative forms of power, it changes our view of Africa. It may also change how we understand power itself.

This website is the hub for collaborative activity by scholars, activists, and practitioners working on Elite Africa and will house a searchable database of primary and secondary materials on African elites.

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ELITE AFRICA PROJECT DATABASE

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Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Okechukwu Enelamah

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: June 1, 2021
Summary:

Okechukwu Enelamah, former Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, speaks about his experience in Nigeria's politics and economy. He reflects on the challenges during his tenure as a government minister. He emphasizes the importance of economic growth in Africa and the role of the public sector in achieving this.

Read about the interview here.

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Creating Emerging Markets: Okechukwu Enelamah

Creating Emerging Markets
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Interview with Okechukwu Enelamah, a former Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment.

Political
Economic

Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Dr. Manu Chandaria

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: June 13, 2014
Summary:

Dr. Manu Chandaria is the CEO of Comcraft--the largest steel and aluminum manufacturer in Africa. The company has over $2 billion in annual revenues and employed over 30,000 people on three continents. During his interview, Dr. Chandaria speaks about innovative methods and his business strategies when navigating politics in Africa. His religious beliefs and philanthropic works are also discussed.

Read about the interview here.

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Creating Emerging Markets: Dr. Manu Chandaria

Creating Emerging Markets
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Interview with Dr, Many Chandaria, the CEO of Comcraft, the largest steel and aluminum manufacturer in Africa.

Economic
Political

Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Robert Brozin

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: September 23, 2019
Summary:

An interview with Robert Brozin, Co-Founder of Nando's, which now operates over 1,000 restaurants in 35 countries. Brozin emphasizes giving the brand personality by promoting values like pride and passion, and using humour in marketing. In 2010, he shifted his focus to social impact projects, including Goodbye Malaria in Mozambique and the Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator in South Africa, as well as addressing youth unemployment.

Read about the interview here.

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Creating Emerging Markets: Robert Brozin

Creating Emerging Markets
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Robert Brozin's social impact initiatives to malaria prevention and youth employment programs.

Economic
Aesthetic

Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Ouided Bouchamaoui

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: February 9, 2021
Summary:

Ouided Bouchamaoui, CEO of Hédi Bouchamaoui Group and former UTICA President, co-founded the Nobel-winning Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. Her interview covers her upbringing in Tunisia, the family business's transformation, and her leadership in UTICA advocating democracy and gender equality. She addresses Tunisia's challenges under Ben Ali's rule and highlights the Quartet's pivotal role in shaping Tunisia's democracy. She also emphasizes ongoing issues such as political stability, reform, and building trust among the youth in Tunisia.

Read about the interview here.

Creating Emerging Markets: Ouided Bouchamaoui

Creating Emerging Markets
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Interview with Ouided Bouchamaoui about Tunisia's Political History.

Political

Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Hakeem Belo-Osagie

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: March, 2002
Summary:

Hakeem Belo-Osagie's tenure as chairman of United Bank for Africa (1988-2004) showcased the complexities of building a multinational financial institution in Africa. He navigated regulatory challenges in Nigeria, aimed for global competitiveness, faced political upheaval during downsizing and privatization efforts, and addressed the stigma tied to online fraud for Nigerian business leaders in the early 2000s.

Read about the interview here.

Creating Emerging Markets: Hakeem Belo-Osagie

Creating Emerging Markets
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Interview with Hakeem Belo-Osagie about Africa's Financial Institutions.

Economic

Creating Emerging Markets: Interview with Helmy Abouleish

Creating Emerging Markets

Date: August 22, 2022
Summary:

Helmy Abouleish discusses his work in SEKEM, an initiative that promotes sustainable ecological, economic, and socio-cultural development in Egypt. The interview shows how SEKEM helped Egypt counter ecological obstacles, such as pesticides during the 1990s, and the initiative's commitment to "human development" through investing in education, art, and music. International collaboration with SEKEM was also stressed to advance Egypt's sustainable future.

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Read about the interview here.

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Creating Emerging Markets: Helmy Abouleish

Creating Emerging Markets
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Interview with Helmy Abouleish about Egypt's Sustainable Future.

Economic
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