French President Emmanuel Macron co-hosted the Africa Forward Summit in Kenya, highlighting Africa's role as a future partner for France. This move follows strategic setbacks in the Sahel and represents a continuation of Macron's plan to rebalance France's engagement across the continent.

Yinka Oyetade is pleased to welcome Paul Melly, Consulting Fellow of the Africa Programme, Chatham House. Emmanuel Macron is co-hosting the Africa Forward Summit in Kenya, the first time France has staged such a gathering in an English-speaking African nation. this comes on the heels of France’s unprecedented strategic setbacks across the Sahel. Melly argues that France’s eastward diplomatic turn is not merely an attempt to “bounce back” after recent reversals, but the continuation of a longer s...