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In this episode of the WASSAP podcast, we take a closer look at how African agency unfolds in real-world partnerships with Gulf countries.

Moving from abstract conceptualization of agency to concrete examples, hosts Desirée Custers and Hubert Kinkoh are joined by Dr. Bob Wekesa and Dr. Amare Aweke, who bring perspectives from South Africa and Ethiopia. Together, they explore how African actors engage with Gulf partners in areas such as investment, infrastructure, and regional security.

Drawing on their research and policy experience, the guests highlight how African countries are not simply responding to external influence, but are actively shaping their...

In this inaugural episode of WASSAP: The Africa-West Asia Podcast, hosts Désirée Custers and Hubert Kinkoh introduce the WASSAP project (West Asia – Sub‑Saharan Africa Partnerships in Flux) and set the stage for the podcast series.

Together with Jan Hanrath, CEO and co-founder of CARPO, and Dr Sebastian Sons, Senior Researcher of CARPO, the episode explores why relations between Gulf countries and Sub‑Saharan Africa are becoming increasingly strategic, how these partnerships are changing in a multipolar global order, how they different between Gulf countries, and why they matter for policymakers, researchers, and European audiences alike.

A central focus of the...