New Opportunities and Threats: Reimagining Africa’s International Relations in the Midst of COVID-19

IF 0.9 4区社会学 Q3 POLITICAL SCIENCE

Politikon Pub Date : 2021-04-03 DOI:10.1080/02589346.2021.1913801

Dorcas Ettang

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引用次数: 3

Abstract

ABSTRACT Both developing and developed countries have felt the impact of COVID-19 on global politics and trade. The African continent faces new threats in addition to already existing challenges like poor infrastructure, underdevelopment and weak institutions. Through an analysis of official speeches and UN reports on the emerging developments around COVID-19, this paper explores the impact of the pandemic on Africa and answers the critical question of the potential and place for Africa’s international relations in a post-COVID world. While many argue that COVID-19 has further deepened the gap between Africa and the developed world, this paper argues that it has also created opportunities for innovation and a re-emergence of Africa as a more vital continent in global politics and far removed from its colonial legacy. This study finds that Africa’s vast resources and wealth of experts; its innovative local industries and rapid response potential; its active community and grassroots; its committed private sector; the work of the African Union; the continent’s geopolitical and economic position, and its many lessons position it to be a strong player in a post-COVID world.

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新机遇与威胁:在2019冠状病毒病期间重塑非洲国际关系

发展中国家和发达国家都感受到了新冠肺炎疫情对全球政治和贸易的影响。除了基础设施落后、不发达和机构薄弱等现有挑战之外，非洲大陆还面临新的威胁。通过对官方讲话和联合国关于COVID-19新发展的报告的分析，本文探讨了疫情对非洲的影响，并回答了后COVID-19世界中非洲国际关系的潜力和地位这一关键问题。尽管许多人认为，2019冠状病毒病进一步加深了非洲与发达世界之间的差距，但本文认为，它也为创新创造了机会，并使非洲在全球政治中重新崛起，成为一个更加重要的大陆，远离其殖民遗产。这项研究发现，非洲丰富的资源和丰富的专家;创新的本地产业和快速反应的潜力;活跃的社区和基层;其坚定的私营部门;非洲联盟的工作;非洲大陆的地缘政治和经济地位及其许多经验教训使其成为后covid世界的强大参与者。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Politikon POLITICAL SCIENCE-

CiteScore

1.90

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

32 weeks

期刊介绍： Politikon focuses primarily on South African politics, but not exclusively so. Over the years the journal has published articles by some of the world" leading political scientists, including Arend Lijphart, Samuel Huntingdon, and Philippe Schmitter. It has also featured important contributions from South Africa"s leading political philosophers, political scientists and international relations experts. It has proved an influential journal, particularly in debates over the merits of South Africa"s constitutional reforms (in 1983 and 1994). In the last few years special issues have focused on women and politics in South Africa, and the South African election of 1999.