African Initiative: Russia’s new mouthpiece in Africa
Bridging the gap between Africa and Russia: What is the African Initiative’s impact on shaping narratives on the continent?
The African Initiative, located at the Federation Tower West on the Presnenskaya embankment in Moscow, describes itself as a platform to ‘build bridges’ between Russia and Africa. In this report, Code for Africa has pieced together a timeline of when this organisation was started and by whom, including identifying the writers behind some of the African Initiative’s articles.
Social media presence
The organisation has a website, Telegram account, and VK account. Its most active presence is on the ‘African Initiative’ Telegram Channel, with ~1,802 messages since its creation on 28 September 2023. According to the Telegram channel’s bio, the African Initiative is a ‘Russian news agency about events on the African continent.’ As of 02 February 2024, the channel had 21,930 subscribers. Its subscriber base has been on an upward trajectory since the channel was created. It witnessed its highest number of subscriptions on 23 January 2024, when it gained 12,202 news subscribers, representing 55.6% of its current subscriber base.
This surge in subscriptions was on the back of a viral post on the Telegram channel on the same day claiming that US private military company Bancroft is in informal consultations with the Central Africa Republic (CAR) ministry of mining and geology, buttressing rumours about a potential engagement between the two parties. The post, which was forwarded to 23 public Telegram channels and groups, received ~250,000 views and 154 interactions.
Africa Initiative’s most popular post, however, was a 24 January 2023 message about the arrival of 100 Russian military specialists in Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou, with military equipment and weapons. The post indicated that 300 Russian personnel were intended to be stationed in Burkina Faso. It claimed that an additional 200 personnel would arrive in the future. The images accompanying the posts depicted Russian personnel boarding the plane at their departure point and disembarking in Ouagadougou. The tail number of the aircraft that ferried these personnel and equipment seems to have been intentionally blurred in the images CfA collected, making tracking the aircraft difficult. The post was forwarded to 87 public Telegram groups and channels, receiving ∼1.5 million views and 537 interactions.
In the Telegram channel’s first post, Artyom Kureev, who was described as editor-in-chief of the African Initiative, is quoted as saying that the news agency’s main goal is to ‘become that information bridge between Russia and Africa’.
The organisation says its goal is to share insights on Russia’s opportunities in Africa, highlighting the roles of the Russian military, business professionals, doctors, and journalists on the continent. It aims to highlight postcolonial legacies, promote collaboration, and open Russia to its African partners.
On 30 September 2023, the Telegram channel ‘Colonelcassad’ posted a video of a Zvezda TV news story about the launch of the African Initiative. Kureev, whom Zvezda TV described as the organisation’s director-general, said that the African Initiative aims to open up opportunities on the African continent to Russia and its allies, including China and India. This post received ~254,000 views and 2,800 interactions. The same video was also shared on the Telegram channel ‘Unofficial Bezsonov’, where it received ~436,300 views and ~1,200 interactions. Zvezda TV is run by the Russian armed forces.
The African Initiative’s main publication medium is its website, afrinz.ru, created in September 2023. The website has published 551 news articles since its inception. It is registered to an organisation called INITSIATIVA-23 and lists Kureev Artem Sergeevich as the editor-in-chief. The organisation has also registered another as yet unused website under the domain name afrinfo.ru.
Website authors
The afrinz.ru website runs on WordPress; therefore, CfA was able to analyse the identities of authors on the site. The results list the following users as authors: renegadeofage, makeeva, audrey-dubrovskiy, blinov, taysaevsubscribe, apuhtin, nikitinde97, grinui, maxim, oleg-unfileoff, and strunin.
CfA has identified six of the 11 authors on the site:
- Renegadeofage, aka Alexander Kholodov (Александр Холодов)
A Google search shows that ‘renegadeofage’ is associated with Russian journalist Alexander Kholodovm, who is a journalist at Tomix-33, a Russian publication and media outlet. The Telegram channel ‘Tomix’ was created on 14 October 2023 and currently has 1,005 subscribers.
2. Audrey-dubrovskiy, aka Andrei Dubrovsky
Dubrovsky seems to be Kholodov’s colleague, according to several articles published on Tomix. One article was about an upcoming film produced by Dubrovsky and Kholodov, and another states that both journalists won an award for productions they collaborated on.
3. Blinov, aka Artem Blinov
Artem Blinov runs an African-focused Telegram channel called ‘Fear and Loathing in Bamako’. The channel was created on 22 July 2023 and has 4,673 subscribers. The channel posts content about events in Africa. Blinov is named as the author of an article published on African Initiative titled ‘France’s withdrawal from Niger could serve as a prelude to ECOWAS intervention.’
4. Nikitinde97, aka Dmitry Nikitin (Дмитрий Никитин)
Dmitry Nikitin is a journalist at privately-owned Russian media outlet RTVI. During his work, he has received numerous right of replies from former Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. In November 2023, Nikitin participated in an African Initiative roundtable on the peculiarities of foreign information influence and the transformation of information warfare. According to an article about the event, the experts argued that, due to Russia’s increasing influence on the African continent, a comprehensive study of the operations of analytical centres is necessary to develop defensive and proactive campaigns to counter Western propaganda.
5. Grinui, aka Elezavta Antonova
Elezavta Antonova writes for the Russian foreign ministry’s international affairs portal. According to a 2018 Philosophical Anthropology Scientific Web Journal article, Antonova is one of the department heads at the Russian ministry’s international affairs magazine. The article also lists her email address as ‘grinui@rambler.ru’. Antonova and Mikhail Ivanov co-authored an article published by African Initiative titled ‘Hero of honest people. The story of captain Sankara, who was applauded by Gromyko and Harlem.’
(Source: CfA using iphras.ru and interaffairs.ru)
6. Maxim, aka Maxim Reva
Maxim Reva runs a Telegram channel called ‘Maxim Reva’. The channel was created on 26 June 2023 and has 162 subscribers. Reva is an analyst at the Institute of Contemporary State Development, a pro-Medvedev think-tank based in Moscow. Reva’s Estonian residence permit was revoked because he was one of the leaders of the ‘Night Watch’ group, which opposed calls for the removal of the Bronze Soldier monument. This statue was eventually removed in April 2017. Reva also co-authored an article with Matvey Arkov published by African Initiative about an interview with a Malian MP.
Company registration details
Using tictBasis, a company ownership records portal, CfA identified that INITSIATIVA-23 was incorporated on 21 September 2023, with Kureev Artem Sergeevich listed as the company’s chief executive. INITSIATIVA-23’s physical address on its registration documents is 12 Presnenskya Waterfront, Moscow, 123112, Russia. Another company verification portal, spark-interfax.ru, lists Sergeevich as the INITSIATIVA-23 director-general, but states that Volkov Sergey Anatolievich is the company’s founder.
According to various verification portals, including rusprofile.ru, Sergeevich founded a company called Center for International Cooperation, Study in Russian, which was incorporated on 27 November 2017. The rusprofile.ru portal suggests that the company is currently undergoing liquidation.
Kureev is also listed as contributing to the Russian think-tank Valdai Club’s website. The Valdai Club was founded by Russian state actors and Russian leaders contribute to its discussions. This includes president Vladimir Putin, who participated in the plenary session of the club’s 20th anniversary meeting held in October 2023.
On 09 November 2023, Kureev also spoke at an Association of Journalists of Russia and Africa meeting at the MV Lomonosov Russian-African Club at Moscow State University. According to rusafroclub.ru story about the meeting, Kureev relayed his experience of deploying a network of journalists in Africa between September and November 2023.
Launch of a similar ‘African Initiative’ in Burkina Faso
Another association, also called the African Initiative, was launched in Burkina Faso in November 2023. The launched featured the screening of a Russian film. This aligns with the use of Russian films translated into French and local languages as part of influence techniques, tactics, and procedures, as seen previously in the Central African Republic and Mali.
On 19 November 2023, a Facebook page shared a post about the launch of the African Initiative and the film screening held at the Jean-Pierre Palace of Culture and Youth in Ouagadougou. Two other accounts amplified the post, and it received 237 engagements. Burkina 24, Nahouri News, and Africain.info also reported on the post and a clip of the film screening received 674 views on YouTube on 20 November 2023.
According to the association’s president, Soumaïla Azenwo Ayo, the African Initiative aims to strengthen the friendship between the Burkinabe and the Russians. The African Initiative in Burkina Faso was created on 07 November 2023 and officially recognised on 13 November 2023. Its main focus areas are education, culture, and sports.
CfA is yet to establish a direct link between the African Initiative registered in Russia and the one launched in Burkina Faso. However, we continue to investigate further.
Narratives published by the African Initiative in Russia
- Dengue fever and claims of Russian support
The African Initiative has referenced the dengue fever outbreak in Burkina Faso in five of its stories. Two of the articles mention the fever in passing. The African Initiative published its first major article about the outbreak on 13 November 2023. The story was about the arrival of Russian medics in Ouagadougou to assist Burkina Faso in fighting the epidemic. Medics from the Russian military arrived in Burkina Faso on 10 November 2023 amid claims they were Wagner Group troops who had arrived in the country for military operations. The African Initiative article cited local media stories about the medics’ visit to an infectious disease laboratory in Ouagadougou and highlighted statements by Burkinabe opinion leaders welcoming their arrival. The African Initiative shared the same content on its Telegram channel, accompanied by a video of the Russian medics’ visit to the laboratory. The post was forwarded to eight Telegram channels, receiving ~26,700 views and 59 interactions.
On 16 November 2023, the African Initiative published parts of an original statement by Burkina Faso’s Information Agency (AIB), in which the country’s Union of Human and Animal Health Workers blamed the International Monetary Fund and World Bank for the dengue fever outbreak. According to the union, structural adjustments imposed on the country by the Bretton Woods institutions have deprioritised social policies, resulting in the deterioration of the country’s health sector. The union stated that the country’s education and health investments have substantially declined because of these policy adjustments. The AIB statement received 203 interactions on Facebook. The African Initiative also published the content on its Telegram channel, garnering 2,834 views and 58 interactions.
The African Initiative published a monthly news wrap about Russia’s activities in Africa on 18 November 2023. The article detailed the arrival of Russian medical officers in Ouagadougou mentioned above and also stated that this was preceded by a meeting between Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu and his Burkinabe counterpart, Kassoum Coulibaly. The news of the meeting was amplified by 17 Facebook accounts using the copy-paste technique. Among these accounts, 10 are administered from Burkina Faso, two from Niger, and one each from Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo. Two of the accounts are administered from unknown locations.
2. African Corps to replace Wagner in Africa
On 20 November 2023, the African Initiative posted a message on its Telegram channel claiming that its sources had revealed that the Russian military was creating as special unit, known as the African Corps, to replace the Wagner Group in Africa. According to the post, Russian deputy defence minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov will oversee the unit. The post also stated that beyond the usual mandate of carrying out military operations in Africa, the African Corps will also be involved in assisting with infrastructure development and providing humanitarian aid on the continent. The post was forwarded to 51 Telegram channels, receiving 49,600 views and 390 interactions.
On 21 November 2023, African Initiative published a story about the African Corps on its website, suggesting that its establishment is on the back of military successes chalked up by the alliance between Mali and Russia. According to the article, former French colonies, such as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, have demonstrated their fatigue with Western control. The article positioned the African Corps as a panacea to Western influence and other Sahelian issues such as extremism, adding that, beyond its military operations, the entity would also be involved in building infrastructure and solving humanitarian problems. The same content was also posted on the African Initiative’s Telegram channel on 21 November 2023. The post was forwarded to 17 Telegram channels, receiving ~204,000 views and 57 interactions.
The investigation continues
In the evolving landscape of information warfare, dissecting the motivations, affiliations, and narratives of entities like the African Initiative is imperative. The intricate connections uncovered in this analysis warrant ongoing investigation to unravel the full scope of its impact and potential implications on the perception of events in Africa. The African Initiative positions itself as building bridges between Russia and Africa. However, a comprehensive examination of its activities reveals a complex web of connections and potential influence strategies. The organisation’s significant social media presence, particularly on Telegram, shows its efforts to disseminate information. The launch of a similar ‘African Initiative’ in Burkina Faso just two months after the organisation of the same name was launched in Russia raises questions about potential expansion strategies. CfA has not yet been able to establish any links between the two entities; however, our investigations continue.
This report was co-written by CfA senior investigation manager Allan Cheboi and CfA iLAB senior investigative data analyst Eliud Akwei. The report was edited and reviewed by CfA iLAB copy editor Theresa Mallinson and CfA iLAB managing editor Athandiwe Saba. It was approved for publication by CfA editor-in-chief Justin Arenstein.
