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Zainab Usman
Senior Fellow and Director, Africa Program

about

Zainab Usman is a senior fellow and inaugural director of the Africa Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C. Her fields of expertise include institutions, economic policy, energy policy, and emerging economies in Africa.

Prior to Carnegie, Usman was at the World Bank initially as part of the prestigious Young Professionals Program and later as a public sector specialist. At the World Bank, she worked on social sustainability, policy reforms, natural resources management, and disruptive technologies. She has worked on these issues in Cote d’Ivoire, Morocco, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of Congo, Serbia, Tanzania, and Uzbekistan. She has also worked at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford and has consulted for the Department of International Development (DfID).

Usman’s research has been published on various academic, policy, and media platforms. She is author of the book Economic Diversification in Nigeria: the Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy, which was selected as one of the Best Books of 2022 on economics by the Financial Times. She is also co-editor of the book, The Future of Work in Africa: Harnessing the Potential of Digital Technologies for All. Usman contributed to the World Bank’s flagship report on Rethinking Power Sector Reforms in Developing Countries. Usman’s other analytical pieces have been published with the journal of African Affairs, the World Bank’s Policy Research and Working Paper Series, and as book chapters in edited volumes with Oxford University Press and James Currey. Her written and broadcast commentary has appeared in Al-Jazeera English, BBC, the Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Project Syndicate, and the Washington Post

Zainab Usman obtained her doctorate (DPhil) from the University of Oxford.

education
PhD, University of Oxford, MSc, University of Birmingham, BSc, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria  
languages
English, French, Hausa

All work from Zainab Usman

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101 Results
In The Media
in the media
Africa’s petrostates are missing out on the oil boom — and it matters

Climate activists might celebrate the contraction in production but countries need to finance their energy transitions.

· August 28, 2024
The Financial Times
article
How Is China’s Economic Transition Affecting Its Relations With Africa?

China’s slowing growth will increasingly impact its economic relations with Africa. Policy directions within African countries and third parties such as the United States will greatly shape how these changes in the China-Africa relationship continue to unfold.

· May 30, 2024
Carnegie Africa Forum
conference
2024 Carnegie Africa Forum
June 27, 2024

Join us for the inaugural Carnegie Africa Forum, a special one-day event that will bring together global thought leaders for discussions on the continent’s role in international cooperation.

  • Redi Tlhabi
  • +25
  • Zainab Usman
  • Mariano-Florentino (Tino) Cuéllar
  • Redi Tlhabi
  • Yinka Adegoke
  • Ambassador Elsie Kanza
  • Ambassador Sékou Berthe
  • Ambassador Alima Mahama
  • Ambassador Youssef Amrani
  • Ambassador Hilda Suka-Mafudze
  • Howard French
  • Raul Alfaro Pelico
  • Katie Auth
  • Professor Yemi Osinbajo
  • Nanjala Nyabola
  • Vincent Makori
  • Bright Simons
  • Hannah Ryder
  • Yacouba Sissoko
  • Jennifer Strong
  • Jane Munga
  • Nicholas Bramble
  • Alex Tsado
  • Julian Pecquet
  • Ambassador Jendayi Frazer
  • Ambassador Tibor Nagy
  • Ambassador Johnnie Carson
  • Ambassador Herman Cohen
  • Jonathan Oppenheimer
commentary
How the AGOA Reauthorization Process Could Help Diversify U.S. Critical Mineral Supplies

The ongoing African Growth and Opportunity Act reauthorization process could facilitate the expansion of U.S.-Africa trade in critical minerals.

· April 30, 2024
In The Media
in the media
Africa: Economics, People and Politics

In this edition of Straight Talk Africa host Vincent Makori explores the interrelation of economy and politics with Zainab Usman

· April 24, 2024
Straight Talk Africa (VOA)
event
What Is the Future of U.S.-Africa Trade Policy?
March 27, 2024

Join the Carnegie Endowment for an informative conversation with leading experts from business, civil society, and government to discuss Professor David Luke’s How Africa Trades and how the United States can rethink trade with Africa.

  • +1
  • Zainab Usman
  • David Luke
  • Florizelle (Florie) Liser
  • Anthony (Tony) Carroll
event
Are South Africa-U.S. Relations at a Turning Point? A Conversation With Naledi Pandor
March 19, 2024

Join the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Africa Program for a fireside chat and audience Q&A with Naledi Pandor, the minister of international relations and cooperation of the Republic of South Africa.

In The Media
in the media
America Should Not Allow Its Trade Program With Africa to Die

Growth and Opportunity Act should be reimagined and made fit for an era of renewed great power competition.

· February 8, 2024
Financial Times
commentary
An African Agenda for World Bank Group Reform

Recommendations from a high-level roundtable on an African agenda for World Bank reform hosted by the Carnegie Africa Program and the African Climate Foundation.

In The Media
in the media
Letter: The Productivity Growth Challenge Is Not Unique to Africa

An exploration of the reality that the productivity growth challenge is not unique to Africa.

· January 18, 2024
Financial Times