Analysis: Why Russia and the west rush to court Africa

Sergueï Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, landed in Cairo late on Saturday, the first leg of his Africa trip that will also include stops in Ethiopia, The Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

Western and Central Africa will host French president Emmanuel Macron, on his first trip to the continent since his reelection. Macron arrived late Monday in Cameroon at the start of a three-nation tour that should lead him to Benin and Guinea-Bissau.

These official state visits come just days after Russia, Ukraine and the UN inked a deal to unblock the grain shipments from Ukrainian ports, the visits highly strategic. Since the war in Ukraine erupted it has had dire effects on the world economy and especially on the economy of developing countries. African nations are among those most affected by ripples of the war.