Tuesday, 17 November 2026
11am Washington D.C.
4pm London
5pm Paris / Lagos
6pm Harare
7pm Kampala / NairobiAfrica’s wealth does not simply disappear. It moves through offshore financial centers, shell companies, trusts, and complex corporate structures that obscure who owns it and who ultimately benefits. From Dubai and London to Mauritius and the Seychelles, these networks span continents — and ‘offshore’ does not necessarily mean outside Africa.
The stakes go well beyond vast sums of money leaving the continent. When elites and public officials move their wealth, as well as their families and futures abroad, they insulate themselves from insecurity and failing public services at home. Therefore, those best placed to strengthen their countries can have less personal incentive to do so, while those unable to leave bear the immediate and lasting costs of weak institutions, underinvestment, and lack of development.
Of course, offshore investments can serve legitimate purposes, and not every wealthy individual disengages from their home country. But systems that shield wealth from tax and scrutiny can weaken democratic accountability. Who moves Africa’s wealth offshore? How do these networks work in the modern age? What does all of this uncover about power and neocolonialism? And what happens when those who can build a future elsewhere have less reason to invest in one at home?
Please join us for this upcoming Resistance Bureau program as we follow the money across borders and explore the hidden architecture of wealth, power, and privilege.