We are at the dawn of a multipolar era, marked by an economic war that risks intensifying with the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House. For us Africans, this is a critical crossroads. That is why, this autumn of 2025, I will be publishing my new book, ‘The Emergencies of African Competitive Intelligence’, following the 8th edition of the African Competitive Intelligence Days (#JAIE2025). The book offers an unflinching assessment of our situation and proposes decidedly disruptive solutions to address it, from an asymmetric posture—that of the weak against the strong.
Africa’s human potential and natural resources are constantly praised. Yet, for too long, our continent has been exposed to external dynamics. At the African Centre for Competitive Intelligence (ACCI), our position is categorical: Africa can no longer afford to be a mere spectator or an arena for external rivalries. Our sovereignty, autonomy, the defence of our vital interests, optimal governance, sustainable development, and increased competitiveness demand a paradigm shift. We must contribute to the emergence and consolidation of an authentic African competitive intelligence—by Africans, for the benefit of a competitive and unapologetic Africa. This has been the heart of my commitment and my work for the past 15 years.
Competitive Intelligence: Our Sword and Shield
Competitive intelligence, as we define it at the ACCI, is much more than a concept. It is a “mindset, a framework, and a coordinated process of questioning, collecting, processing, analysing, and legally, rapidly, and securely disseminating useful competitive intelligence for decision-making in competitive, uncertain, or hostile situations” (Gweth, 2015). For Africa, this discipline is of paramount importance. It is not just about reacting to threats; it is about developing a proactive capacity to anticipate changes, identify opportunities, and positively influence our strategic environment. It is our shield and our compass in this new global era.
Since the creation of the ACCI in 2015, I have never stopped hammering home a fundamental truth: the African approach to competitive intelligence cannot simply be a copy-and-paste of Western or Asian models. It must be inherently tailored to our continent’s specific nature: our complex history, our unique development challenges, the nature of our markets, the richness of our cultures, our aspirations for stronger regional integration, and our vision of balanced multilateralism (as promoted by the African Union through its Agenda 2063). The challenges are numerous, and I tackle them head-on in my book: securing our supply chains against global shocks (World Trade Organization, World Trade Report 2023), countering the illicit financial flows that undermine our economies (an alarming finding by the Economic Commission for Africa in 2020), mastering technology transfers and fostering homegrown innovation (a major issue for the African Development Bank in 2024), protecting our coveted natural resources (as reminded by the United Nations Environment Programme in 2022), and building an international reputation that matches our potential (Brand Africa, 2024).
The Pillars of a Robust and Authentic African Competitive Intelligence
In ‘The Emergencies of African Competitive Intelligence’, set to be released this autumn, I detail the pillars upon which this vision of an augmented, authentically African competitive and strategic intelligence must rest.
Firstly, we must develop homegrown human and institutional capacity. This involves training experts who fully embrace their autonomy and African identity, and creating dedicated structures, because as Ndongo Samba Sylla so aptly highlighted (2014), African expertise is indispensable in facing the challenges of economic dependency.
Secondly, it is crucial to establish pan-African cooperation networks and secure information-sharing platforms, a call regularly made by the African Union through its Peace and Security Council.
Thirdly, integrating augmented competitive intelligence into decision-making processes at all levels of governance is imperative. The OECD (2018) has already emphasised the importance of integrating security issues into economic policies, and this is all the more true for us.
Fourthly, and this is a point the ACCI has always forcefully and insistently put forward, we must mobilise the private sector and civil society for a collective ownership of economic competitiveness and security issues. This is the holistic, multi-stakeholder approach we urgently need.
The book will be thoroughly researched, enriched with concrete examples and lessons learned from my own experience. It sets out to demonstrate that by rising to these challenges, Africa can transcend its current role and position itself as an essential and influential player in the global landscape of competitive and strategic intelligence. This is an urgent matter, not for the pleasure of theorising, but to secure our sovereignty, our development, and our prosperity in a world increasingly shaped by economic warfare.
GG