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In this latest episode of our series on Russian influence in Africa, we take a look at influencers like Nathalie Yamb, Franklin Niamsy and Kemi Seba. They have millions of followers on social media, where they share their hatred of the West. For some years now, these personalities have also praised Moscow and its policy of conquest in Africa. It is even said that Kemi Seba has associated with the head of the Wagner paramilitary group.
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Kemi Seba would have received more than 400,000 euros from Yevgueni Prigozhin to strengthen his influence in Africa. In April 2023, on YouTube, he confirmed a partnership with the Russians. “‘Kemi Seba worked with Prigojine’… I can only laugh. I said it in front of millions of people in French-speaking Africa in 2019 or 2020, I don’t know. Without taboos, they want to support us because they know we have the same adversaries. Push, push the West back. If we want to talk to Wagner, we talk to Wagner, if we want to talk to Russia, we talk to Russia. So what?”
read alsoRussian influence in Africa, first episode: the Soviet legacy
In Africa, in recent years, as wars and coups have progressed, pro-Russian governments have come to power. In the Central African Republic and Mali, Wagner’s mercenaries are now on the ground, and tomorrow it could be in Burkina Faso.
read alsoRussian influence in Africa, episode 2: Central African Republic, laboratory of Russian mercenaries
Kemi Seba went so far as to affirm that he had played a role in this: “They have seen that things have moved in Mali, and we have contributed a lot to it.” And he directly threatened other allies of France, such as the president of the Ivory Coast (“Soon Alassane Ouattara…”) or that of Senegal (“Soon Macky Sall. I’m leaving for Russia in a few days”).
Russian conquest strategy
The bond that Moscow has forged with Kemi Seba and others influencers it is not accidental. In Africa, the Russian conquest strategy rests on two pillars supported by Prigozhin: security with the armed Wagner militia and information, or rather disinformation. That’s where these come into play. influencers. In about 10 years, they have managed to convince a part of African opinion of the advantages of Moscow’s arrival in the zone of French influence.
read alsoRussian influence in Africa, episode 3: Madagascar, the 2018 presidential election infiltrated
“In West Africa, people had a very pejorative image of Russia, as a country where if you have black skin you risk your life. And in a few years, the image of Russia has completely changed,” explains Kevin Limonier, Russian-speaking cyberspace specialist.
read alsoRussian Influence in Africa, Episode 4: When Russia Instrumentalizes Family Traditions and Values
“The Russians have become hooked on a certain number of malaises in African societies that they have been able to amplify in a strictly opportunistic way. And that is when a certain number of people appear, people like Kemi Seba, who are going to surf on this positive image that Russia has managed to use social networks to add a geopolitical narrative, that is, the idea that Russia is the last great anti-colonial power. That is the narrative as it has been constructed,” he adds.
