<p>Sub-Saharan Africa is a study in diversity. Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, the region is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources. It&rsquo;s no surprise that it captured the imagination of Europe&rsquo;s earliest explorers &mdash; and that it continues to capture the imagination of current world powers eager to exploit it. And yet despite the region&rsquo;s diversity, Sub-Saharan African countries have common challenges &mdash; transnational terrorism, rapid population growth, endemic poverty and corruption &mdash; that prevent them from capitalizing on their economic potential. The coming years will be critical for the region, especially as its political institutions mature in a rapidly globalizing world.</p>

Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources.

Sub-Saharan Africa

South Sudan

Angola

Benin

Botswana

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cameroon

Cabo Verde

Central African Republic

Chad

Comoros

Cote d'Ivoire

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Djibouti

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Ethiopia

Gabon

Gambia

Ghana

Guinea

Guinea Bissau

Kenya

Lesotho

Liberia

Madagascar

Malawi

Mali

Mauritania

Mauritius

Mozambique

Namibia

Niger

Nigeria

Republic of the Congo

Rwanda

Sao Tome and Principe

Senegal

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Somalia

South Africa

Sudan

Eswatini

Tanzania

Togo

Uganda

Zambia

Zimbabwe

The Post-Apartheid Era Ends

The Politics of Pipelines

Old Leaders in a New Africa

Nigeria: Obstacles to Prosperity

Commodities: A Cautionary Tale

Crossing Borders

A Crude Recovery

Globalization

China in Transition

The Suitors of Sub-Saharan Africa

Assessments

Canada

Paraguay

United States

Venezuela

Egypt

Iran

Israel

Lebanon

Morocco

Palestinian Territories

Qatar

Syria

Turkey

Yemen

Australia

Cambodia

China

Timor-Leste

Indonesia

Japan

Mongolia

Myanmar

Philippines

South Korea

Thailand

Vietnam

Europe

Bulgaria

Ukraine

Russia

Afghanistan

India

Nepal

Pakistan

Flight routes.

Cyber

Economics

Environment, Science & Technology

Military & Security

Politics

As 2026 approaches, we look back at the previous year and consider the top five patterns and trends as measured by geopolitical impact.

2025: A Geopolitical Review

Snapshots

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

Residents wave Somaliland flags as they gather to celebrate Israel's announcement recognizing Somaliland's statehood in downtown Hargeisa, on Dec. 26, 2025. 

Israel establishing military facilities in Somaliland would invite Houthi attacks against the territory and raise the likelihood of renewed disruptions to Red Sea shipping.


Israel's Recognition of Somaliland Raises the Stakes Along the Red Sea Corridor 

Cyprus

Kosovo

The Bulgarian flag and the European flag waving in the wind.

Energy

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Bulgaria Adopts the Euro, U.S.-Venezuela Tensions Persist

A destroyed church is seen in Mosul, Iraq.

The Islamic State's main threat to the West in 2026 will remain its ability to inspire lone-actor violence, though in the coming years the group's African, Afghan and Syrian branches may become increasingly capable of directing mass casualty attacks in Western countries.

The Islamic State's Enduring Threat to the West

Americas

Middle East and North Africa

Asia-Pacific

Eurasia

South Asia

A container ship arrives Oct. 10 at the Port of Oakland, California. In 2026, political calculations among major global players will significantly shape international affairs.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

In 2026, political calculations among major global players will significantly shape international affairs.

2026 Annual Forecast: A Global Overview

Chile

France

The Ukrainian flag is projected on the facade of Berlaymont, the European Commission headquarters, in Brussels on Nov. 18 to commemorate the Nov. 18, 2024, Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Weekly Rundown: A European Council Decision on Ukraine Financing, South Africa Braces for Commission Findings

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (center), flanked by his wife (left) and Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh (right), attends the official inauguration ceremony of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in Guba, on Sept. 9, 2025.

Worsening tensions over sea access and Eritrea's ties to groups opposed to the Ethiopian government raise the risk of intensifying proxy clashes that could quickly escalate into a larger military confrontation.

Assessing the Risk of an Ethiopia-Eritrea War in 2026

A photo taken on Dec. 8, 2025, shows an armored vehicle at the entrance of a blocked road in Cotonou, Benin, near the headquarters of the state broadcaster Benin TV.

The coup attempt will increase political and security risks ahead of Benin's 2026 elections, while the swift, Nigeria-led ECOWAS intervention suggests Abuja is assuming a more assertive regional role with tacit French backing following Paris's troop drawdown.

Benin's Foiled Coup Signals Strengthening Franco-Nigerian Coordination in West Africa

Hong Kong SAR, China

Protesters help an injured demonstrator near burning barricades amid clashes in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on Oct. 29, 2025. 

The Weekly Rundown: Unrest in Tanzania, an EU Summit in Ukraine

U.S.-China Relations

Yemenis stand under a billboard depicting the seizure of an Israeli-linked ship in the sea by Yemen's Houthi-run coast guards during a demonstration staged in solidarity with the people of Gaza and against U.S. President Donald Trump's deal to end the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 3, 2025, in Sanaa, Yemen. 

While the partnership provides tactical benefits, structural limitations on Houthi resources and al Shabaab's financial independence suggest the relationship will remain opportunistic.

The Outlook for Cooperation Between Yemen's Houthis and Somalia's al Shabaab

Guinean junta leader Mamady Doumbouya won the country's Dec. 28 presidential election with 86.72% of the vote, according to preliminary results from the country's General Directorate of Elections, Radio France Internationale reported on Dec. 31. 

Guinea: Junta Leader Doumbouya Elected in Low-Suspense Elections 

The Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group said it had overseen the deployment of interim civilian security and administration officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's eastern city of Uvira to take charge of security and administration until the deployment of a neutral force to the city, Radio France Internationale reported on Dec. 30.

Congo: M23-Linked Administration Emerges in Uvira After Rebels Withdraw Bulk of Forces 

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, and allied groups seized the strategic Al-Taqatu' junction and neighboring localities between the towns of Kadugli and Dilling in the central South Kordofan state from the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, the Sudan Tribune reported on Dec. 30.

Sudan: RSF Makes Further Gains in Kordofan as SAF Reinforces Positions in Blue Nile State

Cote d'Ivoire's ruling Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace, or RHDP, secured a large legislative majority in the country's Dec. 26 elections, winning 197 of the 255 seats in the National Assembly, Radio France Internationale reported Dec. 29.

Cote d'Ivoire: Ruling Party Secures Landslide Victory in Legislative Elections 

The governments of Somalia's Jubaland and Puntland states skipped a meeting convened by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to discuss plans to protect the country's territorial integrity following Israel's Dec. 26 recognition of the independence Somaliland, a breakaway region, Hiiraan Online reported on Dec. 29.

Somalia: Puntland and Jubaland Skip Meeting With Federal Government Over Israeli Recognition of Somaliland

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, warned neighboring countries not to support the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, stressing that Sudan had the right to "defend [its] borders" and would be able to "reach [those who aid the RSF] anywhere," Sudan Tribune reported on Dec. 28.

Sudan: Al-Burhan Warns Against Backing RSF Amid Mounting Speculation of Ethiopian Involvement

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced in a joint declaration with Somaliland's President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi that Israel recognized Somaliland's sovereignty as an independent state, the first country in the world to recognize the breakaway region, The Jerusalem Post reported on Dec. 26.

Israel, Somalia: Israel Recognizes Somaliland's Sovereignty

The United Arab Emirates will provide $1.2 billion to build a section of the proposed 700 kilometer (435 mile) Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the Nigerian presidency said on Dec. 26. 

Nigeria: Government Secures $1.2B in Funding for $12B Coastal Highway Megaproject

Sub-Saharan Africa

SITUATION REPORTS

Guinea: Junta Leader Doumbouya Elected in Low-Suspense Elections

Congo: M23-Linked Administration Emerges in Uvira After Rebels Withdraw Bulk of Forces

Sudan: RSF Makes Further Gains in Kordofan as SAF Reinforces Positions in Blue Nile State

Cote d'Ivoire: Ruling Party Secures Landslide Victory in Legislative Elections

Somalia: Puntland and Jubaland Skip Meeting With Federal Government Over Israeli Recognition of Somaliland

Sudan: Al-Burhan Warns Against Backing RSF Amid Mounting Speculation of Ethiopian Involvement

Israel, Somalia: Israel Recognizes Somaliland's Sovereignty

Nigeria: Government Secures $1.2B in Funding for $12B Coastal Highway Megaproject

Forecasts

ANALYSES

SECTIONS

Explore

Subscribe

Help & Support