Africa is the future. Why everyone must understand it w/Nii Akuetteh

News stories about Africa and the 1.4 billion people who live there, about 17% of the world’s population, have always been systematically de-prioritized in Western media. But it goes deeper than that: For people living in the West and the Global North, especially for those living in the heart of US empire, Africa and Africans have been permanently relegated to the outskirts of our imaginations. Why? Why is it so hard to get people to pay attention to this vast, diverse, important swathe of the world? And as we enter a new era, a 21st-century realignment on the stage of global competition for economic, political, and military influence in Africa from the likes of the US, China, Russia, India, Turkey, and more, and as Africa itself becomes one of the critical sites of resource extraction in the fossil fuel and green energy wars, and as Africans themselves bear a disproportionate amount of the disastrous effects of the climate emergency, will that perpetual relegation of Africa to the status of second-class concern change? And if so, will it change for the better? TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with Nii Akuetteh. A Ghanaian-born policy analyst and activist, Akuetteh is the founder of the Democracy & Conflict Research Institute based in Accra, Ghana, and he is the former executive director of Africa Action and Editor at TransAfrica. This conversation was recorded on June 30, 2023. Studio Production: David Hebden, Cameron Granadino, Adam Coley, Kayla Rivara Post-Production: Cameron Granadino The Real News is an independent, viewer-supported, radical media network. Help us expand our in-depth analysis and coverage from Baltimore to Bangladesh by subscribing and becoming a member today! Donate: Sign up for our newsletter: Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Twitter: