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Journal of the Institute for African Studies

Special issue: The summit diplomacy of BRICS & Africa: non-western networking and plurilateral diplomacy beyond summits

Guest editors: Prof D. Monyae, Director of the Centre for Africa-China studies, University of Johannesburg, South Africa

Prof S. Zondi, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Johannesburg, South Africa

Editor of Issue: Dr Daria Zelenova, Head of the Research Centre for African strategy in BRICS, Institute for African studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

The “Journal of the Institute for African Studies”, a unique scientific quarterly periodical in Russia devoted exclusively to Africa, launches a special issue on BRICS summit diplomacy & Africa. The Journal is recognized both in Russia and internationally for its socio-political and economic research in the field of African studies. The Journal introduces the achievements of African social sciences to its readers on a systemic basis, featuring contributions from a diverse range of researchers. It’s indexed in DOAJ, RSCI, VAK, CyberLeninka. All papers are published in English and Russian languages.

Concept note:

Summit diplomacy has been argued to be an important phenomenon of the 21st century providing direct dialogue and platforms for coordination on global issues. While most of the research is focused on western-centric summits (especially G7) very few studies are dedicated specifically to the non-western high profile multilateral events and plurilateral diplomacy of non-western powers, including African countries.

Since its launch in 2006 BRICS has held 17 annual summits ending with the adoption of Declarations, where member-states list priorities and views of global governance and economic development. For the past 18 years multilateral summits of BRICS have evolved from intra-state gatherings of the heads of states into global non-western international fora where simultaneously different track diplomacy meetings occur (include. academic, business, NGO, etc). Moreover, BRICS has strategically prioritised flat structure and flexible geometry which eventually led to the three waves of successful expansion of the grouping without Secretariat and Charter.

The special issue aims to explore the complex role of the summit diplomacy that the BRICS summits and satellite events produce for African diplomacy as well as its outreach to African agendas in BRICS.

Main topics:

  • BRICS, UN Security Council Reform and Africa
  • BRICS outreach to Africa: towards an African agenda in BRICS
  • African Union, RECs and BRICS: synergizing efforts
  • BRICS and peace diplomacy in Africa
  • BRICS and digital transformation in Africa (Rio Declaration)
  • The BRICS Bank (New Development Bank) and development financing in Africa
  • South Africa, Egypt & Ethiopia’s participation in BRICS summits
  • Uganda & Nigeria foreign policy priorities on the way to BRICS
  • Plurilateral diplomacy of African countries: G20, BRICS, NAM
  • Summit diplomacy of African countries: what is beyond?
  • Foreign-policy process in Africa in the coming multipolarity era

Submission deadline, abstract – December 15, 2025

 Submission deadline, full text – February 15, 2026

 Author’s Guidelines – https://africajournal.ru/en/for-authors/authors-guidelines/

 E-mail: uch-zap@inafr.ru; d.zelenova@gmail.com