Could the new “scramble for Africa” benefit Africans above all? The latest rush by non-African countries to find avenues for trade and investment on the continent is, the Economist argues, a chance to put Africans in the driving seat (watch, runtime: 04:10). Greater openness, fewer wars, and better macroeconomic policies have all seen Africa as a continent become two-fifths wealthier than it was in 2000, and the scale of foreign interest in setting up agreements now is unprecedented, with a record 320 new embassies built between 2010 and 2016.

But in many countries corruption is still endemic, and even well-intentioned governments sometimes need to be more strategic in securing fair agreements that will benefit them as much as their non-African counterparts.

So how can Africans leverage this foreign interest to come out on top? Voters and watchdogs need to insist on more transparency in the way that agreements are set up and projects implemented, the video says, citing the recent work of Kenyan journalists in exposing scandals connected to a Chinese railway project as a great example of holding leaders to account.