Sarah Soussi, MAIA ’24, Analyzes African Union’s Public Diplomacy Efforts in Published Article

Sarah Soussi, a May ’24 graduate of the Master of Arts in International Affairs (MAIA) program at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, has recently had her work published on the USC Center on Public Diplomacy (CPD) blog. Soussi’s article, titled “The African Union’s Public Diplomacy,” was published in June 2024 and offers an in-depth analysis of the African Union’s public diplomacy efforts.
The article examines the African Union’s evolution since its establishment in 2002. Soussi explores how the organization has developed its public diplomacy practices to pursue its vision of an “Integrated, Prosperous and Peaceful Africa.”
A key focus of Soussi’s analysis is the African Union’s Agenda 2063, launched in 2013 during the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Organization of African Unity. This initiative, as Soussi explains, incorporates themes of Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance to lay out a long-term developmental and integration plan for the continent.
Soussi writes, “The foundations of envisioning a more hopeful, Pan-Africanist vision helped guide its messaging to foster in a new future for the continent. The launch of its main policy, Agenda 2063, displays the real evolution of the AU’s public diplomacy strategy in terms of bringing in the demographic of Africa’s youth, linkage with the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals, and attracting foreign investment from the AfCFTA.”
The article highlights the AU’s focus on engaging Africa’s youth, noting that the continent has “more than 400 million young people aged between 15 and 35 years.” Soussi discusses various youth development programs implemented by the AU, including the African Youth Charter, Youth Decade Plan of Action, and the AU Diaspora Youth Initiative.
Another significant aspect of the AU’s public diplomacy strategy, as analyzed by Soussi, is the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) program. Launched in 2018, this project aims to create “One African Market” and has been instrumental in attracting foreign direct investment to the continent.
Soussi, who specialized in International Communication in her MAIA program and was awarded the Graduate Certificate in African Studies, expressed gratitude to Professor Paul Webster Hare for his guidance and encouragement.
The USC Center on Public Diplomacy blog, where Soussi’s work was published, aims to stimulate dialogue among scholars and practitioners in the public diplomacy sphere. The publication of her article represents a significant achievement for Soussi as a recent graduate, contributing to academic discourse on African public diplomacy efforts.