Scott Taylor on Africa After Davos: Agency, Integration, and Opportunity in a Transactional World
On March 6, 2026, Scott Taylor, Pardee School Dean and Professor of International Relations, participated in a webinar discussion titled Africa After Davos ’26: Overcoming Uncertainty and Insecurity, honoring the intellectual legacy of his former Dartmouth University professor, Richard Joseph, and engaged with urgent questions shaping African politics following the 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland back in January 2026.
Taylor and Joseph were joined by fellow speakers Adigun Agbaje, Professor of Political Science at the University of Ibadan; and Eghosa Osaghae, Professor of Political Science and Director General of the Nigerian Institute for International Affairs. The webinar was moderated by Mojúbàolú Olufúnké Okome, Professor of Political Science at Brooklyn College, CUNY. Among a wide-ranging discussion, the panelists touched on the need for Africa to redefine its place in the world, the importance of youth and human resources, and the challenges of governance and leadership.
Taylor noted that when Africa appears in elite global forums, it is often discussed through the familiar lens of “African solutions to African problems,” reflecting a renewed expectation of self‑reliance amid shifting international priorities. He highlighted several themes shaping global conversations on Africa: the limited long‑term impact of extractive industries, the opportunities and risks posed by the continent’s large youth population, and the growing importance of African economic integration, particularly through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). He emphasized that declining foreign assistance from Western countries, driven in part by rising military spending and geopolitical pressures, is pushing African countries toward greater self‑reliance, a development that carries both risks and potential opportunities.
He also touched on the rise of a more transactional global order, in which relationships are increasingly based on short‑term interests rather than shared values. In this environment, he argued, Africa can benefit only if African agency is strong, with governments and societies clearly articulating demands to external partners and holding their own leaders accountable. Without this agency, transactional engagement risks deepening patterns of exploitation.
We are in an era of predation, Neo imperialism, neocolonialism, where nations can be or sovereignty is no longer respected… This is a very dangerous world order indeed, especially for Africa… So I think, therefore, given this New World Order, which is a very dangerous place, the only viable solution going forward for African nations… there has to be some unity in that diversity.
Taylor stressed that Africa’s future leverage depends on strengthening regional organizations and collective action. While acknowledging the weaknesses of institutions like the AfCFTA, he argued that deeper integration is essential for Africa to gain structural power in the global system. Alongside institutional reform, Taylor pointed to African‑led private sector development, particularly enterprises that create large‑scale formal employment for youth, as a critical part of the solution, though not a cure‑all.
Despite using a sober analytical lens, Taylor concluded on a note of cautious optimism. Africa’s demographic dynamism, expanding economic networks, and efforts to build indigenous institutions and businesses, he argued, provide a foundation for progress, if matched with stronger integration, clearer agency, and sustained African‑driven leadership in a challenging global environment.
Scott Taylor is Dean of the Pardee School of Global Studies and Professor of International Relations. Dr. Taylor’s research and teaching interests lie in the areas of African politics and political economy, with a particular emphasis on business-state relations, private sector development, governance, and political and economic reform. He is the author of four books and numerous articles in political science and area studies journals. Dr. Taylor has consulted widely in the field of international development, on issues of political economy and governance and democracy and elections for leading national and international organizations and firms. To learn more about Dr. Scott Taylor’s accomplishments, see his faculty profile here.