Corentin Cohen

Dr Corentin Cohen is a Junior Research Fellow in Politics at St Peter's College, University of Oxford. Before this, he was a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Research Fellow at the Department of Politics and International Relations (DPIR) at Oxford. Corentin lectures at both DPIR and the African Studies Centre of the University.

Corentin’s research lies at the intersection of international political economy, political sociology, area studies, and history. His work seeks to understand a world in which states and national laws remain formally central, yet numerous transnational actors have established self-regulated systems of governance and accumulation which they claim are more legitimate and efficient. His research focuses particularly on Brazil and West and Central Africa, with a particular emphasis on Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, as well as Angola and South Africa more recently.

Corentin’s current research examines how finance and corporate professionals influence the governance of societies and economies. In the last three years, Corentin has turned his attention to the Big Four accounting firms and global management consultancies. He is currently completing a book manuscript titled Engineers of Value: Management Consultants and Accountants in World Politics, which investigates the pivotal role these firms play in shaping capitalism. The project challenges conventional narratives about the influence of these firms, tracing their impact on the global economy back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries.The project examines how these firms and the ecosystem of intermediaries function as wealth creators, mastering accounting, auditing, and financial strategies to generate asset value. It also examines how they function as actors that shape governance by advising sovereign actors and international organisations. It analyses how these firms have ventured into national branding and development strategies by providing advice on sovereign loans and the transformation of public institutions and bureaucracies, as well as experimenting with new policies.

In parallel, over the past few years, Corentin Cohen has also been researching global value chains connecting Africa, Brazil and Europe, while expanding on his earlier work on gang cultures in Brazil and Nigeria.

Corentin holds a PhD in Political Science and International Relations from Sciences Po in Paris. His doctoral research, based on in-depth—and at times ethnographic—fieldwork, in North East Nigeria and Brazil, developed a political sociology of conflicts. He has examined networks such as brotherhoods and militant organizations. Before joining Oxford, Corentin has taught courses on world politics, international relations, and African politics at both Sciences Po and the Sorbonne.

Throughout his career, Corentin has held visiting fellowships at the University of Cambridge, at the University of Ibadan, and CEBRAP in São Paulo.

Find out about Corentin’s latest publications.