The new scramble for Africa requires strategic foresight

The flags have changed — but the goal still is dominance over resources and technology

12 May 2025 – 06:06

by Bryan Silke

Across the continent, a high-stakes geopolitical chess game is unfolding. The players: China, the US and an increasingly assertive Middle East. The board: Africa’s infrastructure, energy, digital backbone and critical minerals. The prize? Long-term strategic influence. This captures the quiet truth behind the flurry of activity we are witnessing across Africa — a new scramble, cloaked not in conquest but in capital. 

Over the past few months Saudi Arabia alone has pledged billions to SA infrastructure, energy and logistics. At face value, this is welcome news for an economy desperate for investment and growth. But we would do well to interrogate: are we securing sustainable partnerships or mortgaging our sovereignty one megaproject at a time? ..

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