Reclaiming African Values in the Face of Anti-Globalization Discourses: Do African Leaders Leverage X Formerily Twitter to Showcase African Values and Drive Regional Unity?

Grounded in value theory and African conceptualizations of values, this study examines how African heads of state use X (formerly Twitter) as a diplomatic platform. It analyzes how African values are articulated in leaders’ digital diplomacy. Based on multipurpose and multilevel sampling 1,443 posts from 13 African heads of state examined through the Discourse-Historical Approach (DHA). African leaders’ X engagement was categorized into four groups based on their posting frequency: high, moderate, minimal, and inactive. Seven thematic pillars were identified: Unity, Solidarity and Social Cohesion; Conflict Resolution and Diplomacy; Democratic Governance and Leadership; Spiritual Connection to Nature and Environmental Protection; Religious, Cultural Tolerance and Respect; Indigenous Knowledge Production; and Heroism, Independence, and Self-Reliance. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Kenyan President William Ruto emerged as dominant actors who leveraged X to assert Africa’s diplomatic agency and counter antiglobal narratives. Presidents of Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho were inactive. Discursively, the leaders employed nomination, predication, and argumentation, perspectivization, and mitigation strategies. The study calls for African heads of state to actively engage in and project African values to advance the continent’s interests in a more equitable global order.