Русский
Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, held several bilateral one-on-one meetings with the Foreign Ministers of Madagascar, Togo, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Burundi, Guinea and Namibia on the sidelines of the first Ministerial Conference of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum. The meetings took place in Sochi, between November 8 – 11. We provide a brief introduction to each country as follows:
Madagascar
Lavrov met with Rafaravavitafika Rasata, the Foreign Minister of Madagascar. Bilateral trade is currently running at about US$500 million, with Russia exporting polymers and grain, and Madagascar exporting mainly cloves.
GDP (PPP): US$57 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$2,000
Togo
Population: 9.7 million
GDP (PPP): US$25 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$2,800
The Congo
Lavrov met with Jean-Claude Gakosso, the Foreign Minister of The Congo. Bilateral trade is about US$250 million, with Russia exporting grain and the Congo providing some fruits. More on bilateral trade here.
Population: 110 million
GDP (PPP): US$161 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$1,600
Equatorial Guinea
Lavrov met with Simeón Oyono Esono Angüe, the Foreign Minister of Equatorial Guinea. Bilateral trade is minimal however there are discussions concerning energy provisions such as solar panels. Russia currently exports pharmaceutical products, as well as mineral and chemical fertilizers to Equatorial Guinea. See also here.
Population: 1.8 million
GDP (PPP): US$28 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$18,400
Burundi
Lavrov met with Albert Shingiro, the Foreign Minister of Burundi. Bilateral trade is about US$5 million, with Russia exporting mainly mineral fertilizers.
Population: 14 million
GDP (PPP): US$13 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$900
Guinea
Lavrov met with Morrisanda Kouyate, the Foreign Minister of Guinea. Bilateral trade is currently running at about US$9 billion, with Guinea an important source of bauxite. Rusal are operational in Guinea. See also here.
GDP (PPP): US$49 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$1,550
Namibia
Lavrov met with Peya Mushelenga, the Foreign Minister of Namibia. Bilateral trade is currently running at about US$17 million, with the bulk of this the export of Russian fertilizers.
Population: 2.8 million
GDP (PPP): US$31 billion
GDP (PPP) per capita: US$11,600
Summary
The Russian Foreign Minister met with a wide variety of African nations, with some very poor, others doing well, and others with minimal Russia trade but important potential. Russia is building up an impressive diplomatic profile in Africa (use the search term “Africa” in our search box at the top of the page) and it is of note that Russia’s interests lie in assisting a wide variety of countries at significantly differing stages of development.
Russia is assisting many with the exports of fertilizers, which helps with domestic food security, while for others there are opportunities in the mining and energy sectors, as well as exploring general trade items. The coastal nations have maritime potential. The overall political mood in Africa is trending towards Russian positive as many now express significant concerns over their previous relations with colonial Europe, and the general unwillingness of the West to recognise the African continent as a significant future global driver. Africa possesses just under 19% of the global population.
According to the African Development Bank, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the continent is expected to average 3.8% and 4.2% in 2024 and 2025, respectively. This is higher than projected global averages of 2.9% and 3.2%, with the African continent set to remain the second-fastest-growing region after Asia for the coming 20 years.
Further Reading
Russia’s trade and investments in Africa are extensively discussed in our 2024 Russia’s Pivot To Asia guide. This is a complimentary download and can be accessed in English here and Russian here.
