OMM Newsroom
Russia and African countries are seeking to broaden cooperation in areas ranging from grain supplies and nuclear energy to education, technology and trade routes as leaders meet in Moscow for the third Russia-Africa Summit, which begins Wednesday.
Delegations from 48 of Africa’s 54 countries have confirmed their participation, with 22 represented by heads of state, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov said, according to Anadolu Agency.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye, the current African Union chair, will co-chair the summit. The programme includes summit sessions, bilateral meetings and talks with leaders of African regional organisations, as well as the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum.
Putin is scheduled to meet, among others, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Trade, energy and food security on the agenda
Trade and investment are expected to be central topics, alongside energy, agriculture, infrastructure, food security, science, technology, education and humanitarian cooperation.
Trade between Russia and African countries exceeded $27 billion in 2025, Ushakov said. In 2019, the year of the first Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi, trade stood at around $16.8 billion.
Transport and logistics are also on the agenda. The two sides are discussing ways to expand trade routes, improve connections and increase the range of goods exchanged.
Participants are expected to adopt a final declaration and a Russia-Africa Partnership Forum action plan for 2027-2029. A separate declaration on cooperation in the civilian use of artificial intelligence is also planned, along with intergovernmental and interagency agreements in several sectors.
Energy is among the most developed areas of Russian-African cooperation. One of the largest projects is Egypt’s El Dabaa nuclear power plant, which is being built by Russian state nuclear corporation “Rosatom”.
The summit forum will also discuss nuclear energy, conventional power generation, renewable energy, mining and energy infrastructure. Several African states are seeking additional electricity-generation capacity as demand rises with population growth and industrial development.
Agriculture is another major area of cooperation. Russia is an important supplier of wheat and fertilizers to several African countries.
After the 2023 summit in St. Petersburg, Moscow delivered 200,000 metric tons of grain free of charge to Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, the Central African Republic and Eritrea, fulfilling a commitment announced by Putin.
This year’s talks are expected to cover grain and fertilizer supplies, agricultural technology, food processing and logistics.
Summit format established in 2019
The first Russia-Africa Summit was held in Sochi in October 2019. The second took place in St. Petersburg in July 2023, when participating countries adopted a declaration setting priorities for political, economic, security and humanitarian cooperation.
Leaders also agreed to hold the summit every three years. In between, Russia and African countries developed a ministerial-level format. The first ministerial conference was held in Sochi in 2024, followed by a second meeting in Cairo in December 2025, where preparations for the Moscow summit were discussed.
The Moscow meeting will review the implementation of earlier agreements and set priorities through 2029.
