The Gulf-Africa Strategic Partnership Initiative (GASPI)

The Gulf-Africa Strategic Partnership Initiative (GASPI) is a high-level platform designed to forge stronger economic and strategic partnerships between Africa and the Gulf Region. The initiative is intended to establish a high-level platform for regular strategic, economic, and financial dialogue between the two blocs. Participants includes governments, public sector organizations, businesses, civil society, and international institutions. 

Gravitas Sovereign and Strategic Advisory, with the support of its partners – ODI Global, Edelman, Sidley Austin, and the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) – is responsible for managing, overseeing, and coordinating all aspects of of this global  initiative.

On February 11-12, 2026, the Government of Côte d’Ivoire will host and co-organize with Gravitas Sovereign and Strategic Advisory the inaugural edition of the Gulf-Africa Strategic Partnership Initiative (GASPI) in Abidjan. It is anticipated that further gatherings will occur every two years.

The inaugural gathering constitute a paradigm shift: instead of the leaders of the entire African continent being invited to visit a given country, this time, Africa, under the leadership of the Host Country is inviting the international economic powers on its soil.   

The Republic and the Government of Côte d’Ivoire plays a key role in supporting this initiative and making its vision a reality. As The Economist recently noted, the country’s economic success is “Africa’s best-kept secret”. The Country’s economic performance in the last 15 years, but also its restored international credibility, gives it a clear and strong legitimacy to take the lead in strengthening  the economic and strategic partnership between African nations and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

The GASPI arises from the convergence of strategic economic and political interests between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations and the African continent. 

Thanks to the region’s abundant hydrocarbons, Gulf countries have built up large, rich pools of capital and world-class enterprises with cutting-edge expertise.  However, the region’s governments are seeking opportunities to diversify their economies beyond fossil-fuel.

Africa has many assets that enhance its attractiveness to the Gulf States. Africa’s population is expected to double by 2050, by which time close to half of the entrants to global labour markets will be African. Africa’s young population provides both an expanding market and a critical source of labour. 

African economies are growing. According to projections made by the Harvard Center for International Development, Africa will continue to include seven of the world’s fifteen fastest-growing economies by 2027, in part due to the rise of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), making Africa the largest free trade area in the world. 

Africa also has an abundance of natural resources and minerals including those relevant to the clean energy transition. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that 60% of the world’s solar resources are concentrated in Africa (compared to only 1% of the world’s installed solar PV capacity), while a study by the World Bank’s IFC estimates African wind turbine potential at 180,000 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity per year, more than 250 times Africa’s electricity needs. 

The Gulf region is also an increasingly important economic partner for Africa. In just 20 years, the UAE has increased its trade volumes with Africa fivefold, thereby becoming Africa’s fourth largest trading partner. Emirati investments in Africa have amounted to USD 60 billion over the last decade. There is potential for further growth in Gulf investment in Africa as Sovereign Wealth Funds from across the region look for international opportunities to deploy their savings from hydrocarbons. 

There is also potential for closer and more strategic political cooperation in a world where structures for international cooperation are in flux. The Gulf States, in particular Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar, are increasingly establishing themselves as key players in international political and strategic affairs. At the same time, the African continent forms a geographical bloc of 54 nations boasting considerable collective weight on forums such as the United Nations and, more recently, the G20. Leaders in Africa, and outside of Africa, are increasingly more aware of Africa’s geopolitical importance.