How can we ensure that displaced people live in safety and dignity and create a policy that is sustainable at the same time? In this episode, we speak to ⁠Dr. Alexander Betts⁠, the Leopold Muller Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs at the ⁠Refugee Studies Centre⁠, and the Director of the ⁠Refugee Economies Programme⁠, both at the University of Oxford. Alexander has written extensively on the political economy of refugee protection — highlighting how displaced people can access and contribute to economies worldwide. Politics, Re-Imagined is a series by the Department of Politics and International Relations (DPIR) at the University of Oxford focused on exploring tangible and sustainable solutions to the most pressing challenges facing humanity today. Listen on:

Introduction After World War II, the multilateral system was designed to promote international peace, drive economic growth, and ensure global cooperation. Institutions such as the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, and World Trade Organisation established alliances, treaties, and agreements with the aim of achieving shared prosperity. In recent years, however, cracks are beginning to appear within this system. The world has witnessed a sharp increase in geopolitical crises like the Russia – Ukraine war, withdrawals from treaties, trade protectionism and back-sliding democracies. The multilateral system has also failed to deliver comprehensive solutions to global issues such as COVID-19 and climate change. As the inequalities within the multilateral system become increasingly apparent, calls for change are starting to reverberate across the …

International summits are vital to promoting global agreement and laying the groundwork for future international cooperation. The Summit for a New Global Financial Pact took place in Paris, co-hosted by France’s President Emmanuel Macron and Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley. The Summit, organised with the aim of promoting global unity for international financial architecture form, set out to achieve four main goals focusing on fiscal sustainability and climate change in low-income countries. Amid the worldwide increase in extreme poverty and climate disasters, these conferences provide a platform for building coalitions to resolve urgent humanitarian issues. However, there has been a marked decline in international cooperation and the success of these events. In 2022, the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP27 …

On 26 July, Niger’s presidential guard launched a coup against President Mohamed Bazoum, announcing their seizure of power in a televised broadcast. As the dust of the coup begins to settle, Niger — and the international community — stand at a crossroads. The military junta’s success in maintaining power is far from guaranteed and has been widely condemned. Several states and supranational organisations, including the US, France, the EU, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the African Union (AU) have threatened the military junta with sanctions if it does not reinstate President Bazoum, and have even considered military intervention. However, the Sahel’s track record of successful coups suggests that Niger is likely to see further democratic backsliding, …

As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its second year, the Wagner Group has been expanding its Kremlin-backed footprint across the globe. In particular, the mercenary network has been deploying forces in Africa’s Sahel region, revealing how Moscow is strategically blurring the line between “anti-terror” operations, security-for-resources tradeoffs, and covert political influence. In recent months, U.S. officials have accused Wagner of exploiting resources in the Central African Republic (CAR), Mali, Sudan, and beyond in an effort to fund Putin’s “war machine” in Ukraine — a charge Moscow dismissed as “anti-Russian rage”. Beyond the Ukraine crisis, however, the group’s activities and atrocities are painting a dire picture of Russia’s long-term strategy to destabilise Western relationships and gain a foothold in the African …

Africa’s public debt burden has doubled from 2010 to date. Data from the International Debt Statistics Data as of December 2022 shows that African countries owe $ 644855.2 billion (USD). The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank consider 22 low-income African countries to be either in debt distress or at high risk of debt distress as of November 2022. Debt distress in this context means a country is experiencing difficulties in servicing its debt. A high debt burden could risk the continent’s economic growth, development, and climate investments. The additional global economic downturn and falling commodity process could compound the issue for countries on the continent. While there is no immediate threat of systemic and financial collapse due …

In 2015 China launched the Digital Silk Road (DSR hereafter). The DSR is an essential part of the One Belt, One Road (BRI) strategy with significant domestic and foreign policy objectives. China has made enormous investments that have allowed it to achieve rapid technological advancement and economic growth. As of 2021, Chinese firms were three of the world’s largest technology companies by revenue. According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), in 2020 China reported 1.5 million patent applications, 2.5 times more than the second leading country, the United States. The DSR is part of China’s plan to spread its technical and proprietary knowledge by building telecommunications, data, and financial infrastructure in countries participating in the BRI. The Nigerian digital …

Zbigniew Brzezinski noted that the politics of fear is an efficient means of control because it “obscures reason and intensifies emotions.” After more than 34 years in power, President Museveni of Uganda—who toppled Milton Obote’s regime in 1986 after years in the bush with the National Resistance Movement (NRM)—understood the politics of fear better than anyone else. If one still had doubts, the death of around 40 people in Kampala at a political rally organized by Bobi Wine, Museveni’s main opponent, in November came to confirm one thing: it is election season in Uganda. On 14 January 2021, Ugandans will go to the polls. Museveni will most likely win re-election, after having scrapped the presidential term and age limits in 2005 and 2017 respectively. However, this piece argues that the intense politics of fear used by his regime can be interpreted as the possible end of post-liberation politics in Uganda.   Post-liberation …