Kampala Geopolitics Conference 2025

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Panel 5: Navigating Pathways to Sustainable Peace and Development in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Makerere University)

This topic addresses the complex challenges facing the DRC while highlighting concrete opportunities for transformative change toward peace, security, and development. Through evidence-based analysis and practical solutions, participants will examine the interconnected dimensions of governance, security, economic development, and regional dynamics to identify viable pathways toward sustainable peace.

The topic will consider challenges to the governance and institutional transformation in the DRC, the presence of weak state institutions and limited governmental capacity, endemic corruption undermining public service delivery, and challenges to security sector reform and stabilization including the fragile relationships with neighboring countries, the proliferation of armed groups in eastern provinces, complex regional security interdependencies and Resource-driven conflict dynamics.

The topic will also consider economic transformation and inclusive development opportunities, the challenges of exploitative global supply chains for strategic minerals, an extractive resource economy with limited benefits to the citizens, critical infrastructure deficits hampering economic integration, a dominant informal economy with exploitation vulnerabilities, as well as how best we can see opportunities for value-addition initiatives for mineral resources with local ownership models. The insights and commitments generated will contribute to more effective policy approaches for the DRC while offering lessons for other complex crisis environments.

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Panel 3: UN Security Council Reform: The Rationale of Africa’s Quest for Permanent Membership (KAS)

Africa makes up almost one third of the total UN membership. Over 70% of UNSC resolutions concern Africa, and 40% of UN peacekeepers are deployed on the continent. Despite dominating the business of the UNSC, Africa is allocated only three non-permanent seats, without veto power. In 2005, the African Union (AU) adopted the Ezulwini Consensus, demanding two permanent African seats with veto power. The push gained momentum in 2024 when UN Secretary-General António Guterres backed Africa’s inclusion as a permanent member. A month later, the UN General Assembly adopted the Pact for the Future, which calls for an UNSC reform that addresses Africa’s historical underrepresentation.

Africa’s bid for permanent seats at the UNSC also faces competition from Germany, Japan and India who have also indicated similar aspirations. However, with the current systemic rivalry involving, and amongst the Permanent Five (P5) members of the UNSC, the possibility of this reform being vetoed by one of the P5 member states is eminent. The discussion will centre on the merits of Africa’s quest for permanent seats at the UNSC, the shrinking legitimacy of the UN and the challenges posed by emerging multilateral institutions like BRICS.

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Panel 2: AI, Misinformation, and Democracy in Africa: Risks and opportunities (French Embassy)

With Africa increasing internet penetration and social media usage, AI-driven misinformation might be a growing threat to democracy.  This panel will discuss how AI-powered tools, including deepfakes and algorithmic manipulation, can be used in political campaigns and protests in Africa (using some example).

How can AI be used either positively to promote fair elections while preventing disinformation and cyber threats or negatively to disseminate targeted and widespread false information (we can mention the 2017/2022 elections in Kenya for instance)?  Panelists will debate the role of tech platforms, fact-checkers, and government regulations in ensuring a free and informed public. What safeguards are needed to prevent AI from being misused for censorship or mass surveillance?  What could be the role of citizen in making sure of a proper use of IA in the public information? The discussions will also examine how AI can be used positively to enhance civic engagement or transparency in Uganda. At the end of the discussion the panelist will try to propose some recommendations for various target groups (authorities, media, CSO and / or the average citizen)

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Panel 1: Protecting the high seas and guaranteeing their safety and security: what are the strategic stakes for Uganda? (French Embassy)

Geographically landlocked, Uganda its depends on the seas for its supplies, as much as any other in East Africa. The country has a strategic interest in getting involved in regional cooperation initiatives on maritime safety and security, in order to secure the maritime trade routes that are crucial to its economy, like the Suez Canal and the Gulf of Oman. The fight against piracy off the coast of Somalia and the protection of maritime infrastructures are key priorities for ensuring a stable environment for trade and regional development.

At the same time, Uganda has an environmental interest in ratifying and following the negotiations of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) treaty on the protection of marine biodiversity. Adopted in 2023, this international treaty aims to protect marine biodiversity on the high seas by reinforcing the obligations of States to conserve marine ecosystems. This agreement is a true example of international cooperation to ensure equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of marine resources.

This panel will address the challenges of protecting the high seas and ensuring their safety and security, focusing on the role Uganda can play in regulating the seas and protecting its strategic maritime access routes. It will highlight regulatory mechanisms to combat terrorism at sea and regional initiatives to regulate sensitive maritime and fluvial zones. In the context of the Third United Nations Conference on the Oceans to be held in France in June 2025, this panel will strengthen understanding of the BBNJ treaty, which is expected to come into force on this occasion, and will discuss the opportunities related to the protection of marine biodiversity to ensure equitable access and fair sharing of benefits.

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Panel 4: The Future of Peacekeeping in Africa: Comparative Analyses of DRC, Somalia and the Lake Chad Basin (KAS)

Since 2000, the UN has conducted over 50 peacekeeping operations in Africa. Today, only four UN-led missions remain active on the continent. While UN-led efforts are declining, regionally driven peace initiatives are on the rise. With the adoption of the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) in 2002, the African Union (AU) signalled its commitment to taking a larger role in Peace Support Operations (PSOs). Since then, the AU has deployed 27 peace operations and is currently involved in 10 active PSOs across 17 African countries that have been either authorized, mandated, or launched by the AU. Cooperation with the UN remains a priority, particularly in terms of funding and international legitimacy through the UN Security Council (UNSC). The adoption of UNSC 2719 in 2023 introduced a new framework for financing and authorizing AU-led peace operations.

The ongoing PSOs across Africa have adopted varying approaches to peacekeeping. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), MONUSCO operates as a purely UN-led mission, later supplemented by REC-led efforts from the East African Community (EAC) and following diplomatic tensions with Kinshasa, by the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), under the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC), is a regionally driven initiative operating independently, though it has AU authorization. In Somalia, newly established AUSSOM, like its predecessors, follows a hybrid model: it is mandated by the UN Security Council, operationalized by the AU, funded by the EU, and executed by troop-contributing countries (TCCs).

The diversity of peacekeeping models in Africa raises critical questions: Which approach is the most effective? Should peacekeeping be primarily UN- or AU-led? Is a hybrid model preferable? What role should RECs play? And how will these missions be financed as the international community continues to scale back its financial commitments?

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Panel 6: U.S.-Africa Relations 2025-2029: Assessing Trump's "America First" Approach to Africa and Global Development (Makerere University)

This topic examines how Donald Trump's return to the presidency will reshape U.S. policy toward Africa from 2025-2029, analyzing both continuities and changes from his first term while providing a balanced assessment of potential opportunities and challenges for African nations. The analysis focuses on five key dimensions, the Economic Engagement that looks at Trump's shift toward bilateral "reciprocal" trade agreements with African nations, reduced multilateralism, and strategic competition with China in Africa.

The discussions on security cooperation will consider the evolution of counterterrorism partnerships under Trump's "peace through strength" doctrine, with implications for the Sahel, Horn of Africa, and maritime security. Development aid, American soft power diplomacy, is being radically reformed, as evidenced by the administration's actions on USAID. The discussion will explore Trump's proposed transformation of traditional aid mechanisms into "prosperity partnerships" emphasizing private sector investment,, and reduction of perceived bureaucratic inefficiencies.

Other important aspects of the topic would be the energy and resource diplomacy being pushed by the Trump administration, as reflected in Trump's "energy dominance" agenda with Ukraine, Greenland, and Canada. The discussion will explore how this might relate to African resource development, with decreased emphasis on climate initiatives and increased focus on critical minerals access.

Finally, the topic considers the impacts of Trump's "merit-based" immigration proposals on African migration patterns, diaspora communities, and cultural/educational exchanges.

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