James Cockayne

James Cockayne has been Managing Editor at MEES since 2013, spearheading the modernization of the publication with the greatly increased use of data analytics. As well as overseeing copy as a whole he regularly writes on overarching themes and has a particular fondness for Mauritania. Prior to taking over as editor James was North Africa Editor and still enjoys the challenge of trying to make sense of Algerian statistics. Pre-MEES James was based in Beijing and Singapore, editing a China-focused publication and writing on pan-Asian themes – knowledge and expertise that has been invaluable at MEES given the growing dominance of Asia as a market for Gulf oil, and booming investment in both directions. James studied Political Geography of Africa and the Middle East at SOAS (London) and later did a Masters in International Relations at Sciences Po, Paris.