Professor Landry Signé

A long-term plan is vital to realize the full benefits of U.S.-Africa trade, explains Chris Kirigua, deputy chief of mission for the Embassy of Kenya. On the #ForesightAfricaPodcast with @LandrySigne, he stresses how U.S.-Africa trade provides positive outcomes for all parties.

How could the #AGOA trade program be improved? @CorpCnclAfrica's Florizelle Liser offers several suggestions to provide more certainty for investors and businesses in the U.S. and Africa. Get the full interview on the #ForesightAfricaPodcast with host @landrysigne

Excited to share my latest Brookings Institution article on “Realizing Africa’s digital trade potential under the AfCFTA,” co-authored with our own @ChidoMunyati, Head of Africa and Member of the Executive Committee at the World Economic Forum. Across the continent, digital trade is opening new frontiers for innovation, entrepreneurship, and regional integration—unlocking transformative opportunities for inclusive growth and global competitiveness. In the piece, we discuss key trends, investment opportunities, challenges, and strategies to realize Africa’s trade potential under the AfCFTA. 📖 Read the full article here: brookings.edu/articles/reali… Looking forward to your thoughts and reflections! #ForesightAfrica #AfCFTA #DigitalTrade #Africa #Innovation #EconomicDevelopment @BrookingsGlobal @BrookingsInst @Thunderbird @AfCFTA @wef

How to improve AGOA youtube.com/shorts/qvLBwuB… via @YouTube

Instead of “treating Africa as a single risk category,” policymakers should “concentrate their engagement with the continent’s most structurally resilient economies while tailoring their support to the others,” argues @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

“If policymakers outside of Africa recognized the continent’s resilience, they would direct more capital toward countries whose stable institutions and diversified economies offer genuinely lower risk than prevailing narratives suggest,” writes @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

At a factory in Kenya, shirts made with American cotton are being packed into boxes bound for Alabama. @LandrySigne and guests talk U.S.-Africa trade on the newest episode of the #ForesightAfricaPodcast. brookings.edu/articles/towar…

I am pleased to be speaking at the Powering Africa Summit 2026, taking place in Washington, D.C., on 19–20 March. #PAS26 will provide an opportunity to engage with US and African policymakers, investors, and industry leaders, and to reflect on how partnerships, policy, and capital can support future progress across energy infrastructure, critical minerals, and investment strategies on the continent. I look forward to seeing you in Washington next week. Find out more and register here >> bit.ly/4qlIGVV #PAS26 #PoweringAfrica #EnergyInvestment #CriticalMinerals

After the foreign aid cuts of the past year, economies across much of Africa “have proved more resilient than the prevailing narratives suggest,” writes @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

Read @LandrySigne on Africa’s economic resilience: foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

Instead of “treating Africa as a single risk category,” policymakers should “concentrate their engagement with the continent’s most structurally resilient economies while tailoring their support to the others,” argues @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

.@LandrySigne explains why many African countries “are more resilient than crisis narratives suggest”: foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

After the United States and other major donors slashed foreign aid last year, many African countries “demonstrated that external financing is a supplement to domestic capacity, not a substitute for it,” writes @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

“As the global economic order fragments, many African economies are well positioned to weather the storm,” writes @LandrySigne. foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-…

Excited to share my latest article in @ForeignAffairs: “Africa After Aid.” “When the United States and other major donors slashed foreign aid last year, predictions of African economic catastrophe followed. Across much of the continent, however, economies have proved more resilient than the prevailing narratives suggest.” In the piece, I explore how these cuts have revealed Africa’s economic resilience, and why the continent’s development will increasingly be driven by trade, investment, domestic resource mobilization, and stronger partnerships, rather than traditional aid models. Read more: "Africa After Aid" foreignaffairs.com/africa/africa-… via @ForeignAffairs #Africa #Development #Investment #GlobalEconomy #Policy @BrookingsGlobal @BrookingsInst @Thunderbird

Happy International Women’s Day! Today is a moment to celebrate the remarkable achievements of women around the world and to recognize the power of their leadership in shaping a more inclusive and prosperous future. From communities to global institutions, women continue to drive innovation, strengthen democracy, and advance opportunity for the next generation. When women lead, societies thrive. Deep gratitude to the women whose vision, courage, and commitment inspire us every day.

Africa's creative economy is booming. @LandrySigne unpacks key investment opportunities across the continent in #ForesightAfrica. brookings.edu/articles/the-r…

It’s here! Season 5 of the Foresight Africa podcast kicks off with a conversation on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), past and future. Hear from Senior Fellow @LandrySigne, Kenyan Amb. Chris Kirigua & @CorpCnclAfrica's Florizelle Lizer 🔽 brookings.edu/articles/towar…

*New* Toward a New Era for U.S.–Africa Trade I am delighted to launch the first episode of the Brookings Institution Foresight Africa podcast, Season 5, with a timely and strategic conversation on the future of U.S.–Africa trade, following the reauthorization of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Originally enacted in 2000, AGOA marked a historic shift in U.S. engagement with Africa,from aid to trade and investment. The recent reauthorization, retroactive until the end of 2026, provides continuity, but also raises important questions about the long-term architecture of U.S.–Africa economic relations. To explore these issues, I am joined by two outstanding leaders: • Florizelle Liser, President and CEO of the Corporate Council on Africa • Ambassador Christopher Kirigua, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Kenya in Washington, D.C. Since 2001, African exports to the United States have quadrupled, totaling more than $480 billion. Kenya’s textile industry alone has expanded dramatically, supporting over 60,000 jobs and growing exports from $55 million in 2001 to $600 million in 2024. At the same time, AGOA supports approximately 450,000 jobs in the United States, strengthens logistics and transport sectors, and delivers tangible benefits to American consumers. Yet the core question remains: What comes next? As stakeholders on both sides of the Atlantic call for a longer-term and more predictable framework, this episode explores how the next phase of U.S.–Africa trade can: • Provide certainty for investors and supply chains • Leverage the momentum of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) • Deepen bilateral initiatives, including the proposed Kenya–U.S. trade agreement • Strengthen mutual prosperity in an era of strategic competition The future of U.S.–Africa trade will shape growth, jobs, and geopolitical alignment for decades to come. Now is the moment to move from renewal to reinvention. I am deeply grateful to the extraordinary team whose dedication, creativity, and excellence make this season possible. 🎙️ Listen to the first episode or read here: brookings.edu/articles/towar… #ForesightAfrica #USAfrica #AGOA #Trade #AfCFTA #EconomicTransformation @BrookingsGlobal @BrookingsInst @Thunderbird

Audio trailer: Foresight Africa podcast’s fifth season spotlights US-Africa relations [The first episode will be released on Wednesday, February 25.] I am delighted to announce the return of the Brookings Institution Foresight Africa Podcast for its fifth season, spotlighting U.S.–Africa relations at a moment of profound global transformation. As the global economy is reshaped by shifting trade patterns, technological acceleration, and strategic competition, U.S.–Africa engagement could make a monumental difference. This season goes beyond the headlines to provide the strategic analysis needed to navigate today’s complex economic, legislative, and policy agendas. Together with distinguished guests, we explore the critical issues shaping U.S.–Africa relations, from the future of AGOA to critical minerals and supply chains, energy security, trade and investment, human mobility, and the growing role of AI and emerging technologies in addressing socioeconomic challenges. I am deeply grateful to the extraordinary team whose dedication, creativity, and excellence make this season possible. Join us for bold ideas, forward-looking insights, and practical solutions at this pivotal moment for U.S.–Africa relations. Watch the season preview here: 🔗 brookings.edu/articles/fores… #ForesightAfrica #USAfrica #Trade #CriticalMinerals #AI #Industrialization #EnergySecurity #SupplyChains #AfCFTA #EmergingMarkets #GlobalEconomy #PolicyInsights @BrookingsGlobal @BrookingsInst