State Capture and the Implications for US-Africa Relations

About the Event

In the post-Soviet era, the phenomenon of oligarchs getting into the business of running the state and eroding democratic institutions led to the coining of the phrase ‘state capture.’ State capture, in addition to the negative impact on democracy, has implications on national security, multilateral relations, and international diplomacy that are not restricted to the former Soviet Union.  White House correspondent Anita Powell moderates a special panel discussion on how state capture has affected a range of bilateral issues with a focus on US relations with the nations of Africa and other parts of the globe. Joining her will be Ambassador Charles Ray, trustee and chair of FPRI’s Africa Program, Michael Walsh, an FPRI non-resident scholar, Robert Benson from the Center for American Progress, Nancy Ries, professor emeritus at Colgate University, and Joel Hellman from Georgetown University to discuss how state capture might complicate a range of bilateral relations for the incoming US political leadership.

Speakers