IV Forum «Russia-Africa: What Next?»

In the spring of 2025, Moscow hosted one of the key events of Russian-African cooperation - from April 22 to 25, the IV Forum “Russia-Africa: What Next?” was held at the MGIMO. The Forum confirmed its status as an authoritative platform for dialog between representatives of Russia and the countries of the African continent, bringing together more than 1500 participants, including delegations from 41 countries. 

The business program included more than 30 events, including expert and panel discussions, round tables, creative brainstorms, and other interactive sessions dedicated to education, sports and space diplomacy, energy partnership, scientific cooperation, humanitarian cooperation, and information security. The Forum also featured sessions organized jointly with the Center for Global and Strategic Studies and the Council of Young Scientists of the Institute of African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the MEB Laboratory of the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the I.S. Turgenev Library and Reading Room of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the I.S. Turgenev Library. The sessions were organized jointly with the Center for Global and Strategic Studies and the Council of Young Scholars of the Institute of African Studies of the RAS Institute of Africa, the MEB Laboratory of the RAS Institute of Europe, the Turgenev Library and Reading Room, and the MGIMO Law Club. The participants had an opportunity to exchange views and develop new approaches to the development of relations between Russia and Africa.

Special attention was paid to the sports and cultural program, which allowed participants to immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the African continent and experience its diversity and color. On the first day of the Forum, the II Russian-African Spartakiade was held, which included sports competitions in soccer, volleyball, and basketball.

Dozens of heads of African diplomatic missions accredited in Moscow, as well as representatives of various Russian ministries and agencies, attended the opening ceremony of the 4th Forum “Russia-Africa: What Next? The ceremony was moderated by I.V. Tkachenko, Attaché of the Department of African States (Sub-Saharan Africa) of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Executive Secretary of the Forum Program Committee. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov delivered a video address to the participants. A.A. Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation, also sent a welcoming address. Among the guests of honor were Rector of MGIMO, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences A.V. Torkunov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation M.L. Bogdanov, Senator of the Russian Federation, member of the group on cooperation between the Federation Council and parliaments of African states A.V. Voloshin, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs L.E. Slutsky, Honorary President of the Institute of African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences A.M. Vasiliev, Deputy Director General of ITAR-TASS, and M.V. Petrov, Head of the Department for Work with Authorities and Diplomatic Missions of African Countries.

During his speech, I.V. Tkachenko, together with MGIMO Rector A.V. Torkunov and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation M.L. Bogdanov, came up with an initiative to organize a Youth Day within the framework of the upcoming Russia-Africa Summit in 2026. This proposal, aimed at strengthening intercultural dialog and development of youth cooperation between the countries, was supported by the participants of the event.

S.I. Surovtsev, Vice-Rector for Youth Policy, Social Work, and International Relations, emphasized in his speech that one of the main priorities of MGIMO is to train new generation leaders who are ready to participate in the implementation of large-scale cooperation projects with African countries in all spheres. Stanislav Igorevich also noted that MGIMO has traditionally been at the forefront of educational partnership with Africa, relying on the rich traditions that were established in the Soviet era and have been preserved until now.

The Forum was attended by leading Russian and foreign experts, including T.E. Dovgalenko, Director of the Africa Partnership Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; V.E. Sergeev, Deputy Director of the International Organizations Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; S.S. Belousko, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; N.V. Novichkov; D.V. Kuznetsov; I.A. Filatova, deputies of the State Duma; representatives of major news agencies; as well as business and academic circles. The headliners of the Forum were Jose Fernando Sambu, consultant on interaction with Africa; Marubini Muswede, Executive Chairman of the African Youth Commission; and Tumelo Ramaphosa, CEO of StudEx Group.

The following exhibitions were presented on the margins of the IV Forum “Russia - Africa: What Next?”: “Africa: Past and Present...,” “Chroniclers of History,” as well as “Explore Uganda,” organized jointly with IFYA, the magazine “New Regions,” and the Embassy of the Republic of Uganda, respectively. The grand opening of the exhibitions took place on April 23 with the participation of A.G. Zabelin, Rector of IFYLA; S.I. Surovtsev, Vice-Rector of MGIMO; V.V. Zhuchkov, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Forum Program Committee and MGIMO analyst; and V.G. Avetisyan, Chairman of the Forum Student Secretariat.

The closing event of the Forum was the Russian-African Concert, which brought together talented performers from Russia and African countries on one stage. The cultural program featured a variety of musical and dance performances reflecting the rich heritage, culture, and traditions of both regions.

As a result of the IV Forum, a number of fundamental documents were signed, including agreements on cooperation in the field of education and science with the organization “Africa House” and the Association “Brotherhood of Madagascar-Russia.” During the closing ceremony, Jose Fernando Sambu, Consultant on Interaction with Africa; Marubini Muswede, Executive Chairman of the African Youth Commission; I.V. Tkachenko, Attaché of the Department of African States (Sub-Saharan Africa); and V.V. Zhuchkov, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Forum Program Committee and MGIMO analyst, signed the final resolution of the Forum.

The IV Forum “Russia-Africa: What's Next?” confirmed the mutual interest of the parties in developing cooperation and identified promising areas for further joint work.