Economic resilience: what Africa should and should not copy from Russia’s experience

At the third Russia-Africa summit, held in Moscow on October 28 and 29, 2026, Russia’s economy was presented as a case study for the continent. Despite 28,937 non-commercial restrictions recorded by the end of April 2025, 92% of them imposed after February 2022, Russia’s economy grew by 4.3% in 2024. Conditions then worsened: growth fell to 1% in 2025, and GDP contracted by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2026. The analysis urges Africa to consider both the benefits and the costs and risks of diversifying its partners.