Abstract

How can we think theoretically about Africa’s international relations? Can extant International Relations (IR) theories help us to understand Africa’s international relations? Or do scholars of Africa’s International Relations (AIR) need a new theory or theories to capture Africa’s reality? ¹ Discussions of these questions are long overdue, yet seldom explored. ² This chapter seeks to provide a preliminary assessment of the above questions arguing that though mainstream IR theories provide useful pointers for studying and understanding Africa’s international relations, the individualist worldviews that drive these theories constrain them from providing a comprehensive explanation of key aspects of Africa’s international affairs.