At the dawn of a new era in global cooperation, Africa and Latin America are charting a course beyond historical orbit, away from entrenched Euro-U.S. alignments and towards a shared destiny as pillars of the Global South. This evolving partnership promises to reshape the architecture of development, anchored not in dependency, but in mutual growth and South-South solidarity.
Overall South-South trade more than doubled to $5.6 trillion between 2007 and 2023. In 2024, Latin America and the Caribbean saw export growth of an estimated 4.1%, while Africa’s total merchandise trade grew by 13.9% to $1.5 trillion, driven by intra-African trade and progress with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
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The ties between Africa and Latin America are neither new nor accidental. During the slave trade, millions of Africans were transported across the Atlantic to Brazil, the Caribbean, and beyond, creating cultural and demographic bridges that endure today. In the modern era, efforts to institutionalise Africa–South America (ASA) cooperation began in the early 2000s, culminating in high-level summits in Abuja (2006), Margarita Island (2009), and Malabo (2013). These meetings, though ambitious in rhetoric, struggled to deliver concrete mechanisms, as domestic priorities and external dependencies drew both continents elsewhere.
Today, however, a renewed pragmatism is shaping the agenda. Africa, with its 1.4 billion people and the fastest-growing youth population in the world, is eager to find partners for industrialisation, technology transfer, and energy transition. Latin America, meanwhile, home to 650 million people and a hub of biodiversity and agricultural prowess, is seeking diversified alliances beyond its Eurocentric and Sino-centric focus. The conditions for a genuine South–South pact are stronger now than at any time in recent memory.
Nigeria and Brazil’s Landmark MoU
No partnership illustrates this new momentum more vividly than Nigeria and Brazil’s decision to place science, technology, and innovation at the core of their relationship. In August 2025, the two nations signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding in Brasília, witnessed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The agreement prioritises collaboration in space science, biotechnology, green energy, ocean research, and digital transformation.
For Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, the pact offers access to Brazil’s established institutions such as the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) and its decades of experience in satellite technology. This cooperation promises to enhance Nigeria’s own space agency, NASRDA, which has been seeking to expand satellite capabilities for climate monitoring, disaster management, and national security. For Brazil, it secures a strategic partner in Africa—an emerging powerhouse with a demographic dividend and continental influence.
But the deal is not confined to the skies. It includes mechanisms for agricultural collaboration through joint financing initiatives between Brazil’s Development Bank (BNDES) and Nigeria’s Bank of Agriculture, with an estimated value of US$1 billion. This injection of capital is designed to drive mechanised farming, boost food security, and reduce Nigeria’s heavy reliance on imports. Brazil’s expertise in bioenergy and large-scale agricultural production offers precisely the kind of transferable knowledge Nigeria needs to feed its growing population, projected to surpass 400 million by 2050.
SADC Meets ALBA-TCP
Beyond bilateral ties, continental organisations are also laying down frameworks for cooperation. In February 2025, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America–Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The pact promises collaboration across peace and security, industrialisation, education, cultural exchange, and natural resource management.
For SADC’s 15 member states, which collectively represent nearly 400 million people, this partnership provides a bridge into Latin America’s 10-member ALBA bloc, which includes Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia, and Nicaragua. The agreement builds on earlier attempts to foster interregional cooperation and symbolises a new seriousness in building institutional scaffolding for South–South ties.
Officials from both sides emphasised that this is not merely about trade; it is about solidarity and shared development models. ALBA-TCP, founded by Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro, has long promoted social justice and regional integration. SADC, with its focus on industrialisation and peacebuilding, sees clear parallels. Together, the two blocs are creating a space where political dialogue and economic pragmatism meet.
The Economic Case for South–South Convergence
The timing of these agreements is significant. The combined GDP of Africa and Latin America exceeds US$7 trillion, and their shared population of over two billion people represents a vast market and labour force. Africa alone is projected to contribute more than half of global population growth by 2050, while Latin America’s renewable energy potential and agricultural exports are critical to global food and energy security.
Moreover, both regions have a vested interest in reforming global governance structures. Africa continues to press for permanent representation on the UN Security Council, while Latin America seeks greater voice in multilateral finance. Their combined efforts within platforms such as BRICS+, the G77+China, and UN fora amplify the collective bargaining power of the Global South.
These partnerships do not exist in a vacuum; they are aligned with broader international frameworks. Africa’s Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasise industrialisation, climate action, and inclusive growth. Latin America’s CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) agenda similarly underscores regional integration, sustainability, and multipolar diplomacy.
By embedding bilateral and regional agreements within these global frameworks, Africa and Latin America can ensure that cooperation is not episodic but sustained, measurable, and transformative.
Storms on the Horizon
Despite the optimism, obstacles remain. Connectivity between the two regions is limited, with scarce direct flights aside Nigeria and inadequate maritime infrastructure. Trade volumes between Africa and Latin America still account for less than 2 per cent of their total global trade, a figure that underscores the gap between potential and reality. Internal political instability, economic volatility, and competing external influences, particularly from China and the European Union, also risk diluting the momentum.
Yet these challenges are not insurmountable. Investment in logistics, digital platforms, and people-to-people exchanges could bridge physical and cultural gaps. By institutionalising cooperation through regular summits, joint commissions, and academic partnerships, Africa and Latin America can gradually turn symbolic gestures into substantive progress.
What makes this new development pact remarkable is not simply the signing of MoUs or the rhetoric of solidarity, but the fact that both Africa and Latin America are stepping into their roles as co-authors of global development. In an era when traditional powers are preoccupied with their own crises, these two regions are finding common ground in science, agriculture, peace, and culture.
Their cooperation signals a deliberate move towards autonomy, where development is no longer framed as aid dependency but as partnership, innovation, and mutual respect. If sustained, Africa and Latin America could transform the very grammar of global cooperation: from North–South dependency to South–South synergy.
A Constellation Newly Lit
The agreements between Nigeria and Brazil, and between SADC and ALBA-TCP, mark more than diplomatic milestones; they illuminate a constellation of possibilities. Together, Africa and Latin America represent not only vast resources and populations but also a shared determination to define their futures. By anchoring their partnership in technology, trade, and solidarity, they are showing that the Global South is no longer a peripheral actor, it is a central force shaping the world’s trajectory.
The oceans that once separated these continents are fast becoming conduits of connection. The challenge now is to sustain momentum, translate words into action, and build a bridge sturdy enough to carry the weight of two billion hopes across the Atlantic.
