Ostensibly, it was meant to be a compliment of sorts. But it has backfired massively all over Africa. US President Donald Trump had invited five West African presidents to the White House to discuss “trade instead of aid”. While there were various speculations as regards the real reason behind the invitation— especially as the continental giants, Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt were not invited — no one expected that the talking point for African journalists and their publics at the end of the parley would revolve around perceived disrespect of the African leaders.
It happened after the brief speech by the Liberian President Joseph Boakai who President Trump complimented saying, “Where did you learn to speak English so beautifully?” Boakai replied that he schooled in Liberia, prompting Trump to add: “That’s very interesting. I have people at this table who can’t speak nearly as well.”
English?
Perhaps, if that statement had been made by another world leader in a different set of circumstances, it could have been considered a compliment even though that itself would be a hard sell. Liberia is an English speaking country.
Because of the current mood in Africa over the deportation saga of the Trump administration, it was a sad “Aha!” moment for many commentators. The perceived insult wasn’t just in what was said, but what was unsaid. Was President Trump aware that Liberia was founded in 1822 by American freed slaves and declared independence from the American Colonisation Society in 1847? The similarity between the US flag and that of Liberia is so striking that there is no doubt about the latter’s source of inspiration.
Commentators have seized the occasion to exhume Trump’s past insults against Africa, especially his description of some countries as ‘shit-holes’. But Liberian diplomats and those of the other invited countries downplayed the controversy and expressed appreciation to President Trump for including their countries in his plans. Several of them waxed lyrical in their apologia in defence of their host even when the news and social media are clogged with angry outbursts from ordinary Africans who insist on asserting their dignity and calling out any display of arrogance, stereotype, racism or even calculated condescensions, no matter how disguised.
Also, America’s recent request for some African countries to accept hundreds of individuals deported from the US, including those with criminal records, has sparked controversy. Nigeria has, commendably in my view, said an emphatic ‘No’ to that request.
Positive Takeaways
However, the meeting itself recorded some successes in terms of where each country in the discussion stood. America is worried that China and some other rivals are establishing themselves as preferred investors in mineral-rich African countries. As always, the US wants to join the party as a major player.
Trump is determined to reduce America’s reliance on China for metals used in semiconductors, smartphones, clean energy and medical technology. But gone are the days when foreign companies simply dug holes in the ground and carted away minerals for peanuts while the natives were saddled with a denuded environment. The most important point the African leaders at the table made was that mineral extraction should be used to develop local industry and not just sent abroad. They made it clear that they were open to other developed countries who wanted to partner with them too.
The International Monetary Fund estimates the combined gross domestic product of the five countries at about $75 billion.
On the sidelines, Liberia signed a $1.8 billion agreement with Ivanhoe Atlantic Inc., allowing the US miner to rehabilitate and use the country’s railway to transport iron ore from neighbouring Guinea to the export market.
Considering that four of the countries — excluding Gabon — are neighbouring the tempestuous Sahel region, and may be able to serve as a counterpoise to the entrenchment of fundamentalist Islamist groups in the area, Trump encouraged them to “make greater investments in defense, hopefully, of course, buying our equipment.”
Trade!
All African countries must come to terms with the fact that the world we live in today is one in which the United States has shifted its focus from “democratic reforms and the fight for liberty” to “commercial diplomacy”. Emphasis is placed on shared security and economic interests, not democratic reforms. If America can man its corner as it so adroitly does, so can Africa if we put on our thinking caps.
Truly, it was not surprising that Africa’s big players, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and Ethiopia, were not invited, considering their association with BRICS, a group of emerging economies founded by Brazil, India, Russia and China. Already, President Trump has threatened to clamp additional higher tariffs on BRICS members for their “anti-American” policies.
Most of the big economies of Africa are either BRICS members already or observers keen to join as major partners. China and Russia have expanded their influence on the continent, especially in the supply of military equipment. China, especially, has managed to put its nose into every hole that has the prospects of yielding a profit. Its nationals are everywhere on the continent, including seedy villages not yet deflowered by modern civilisation.
At the White House meeting, Gabon’s President Brice Oligui Nguema underscored the mineral wealth of African countries and made a plea: “We are not poor countries. We are rich countries when it comes to raw materials. But we need partners to support us and help us develop those resources with win-win partnerships,” he said.
After a period of stagnation orchestrated by neo-colonial machinations and visionless leadership, African economic growth has accelerated in recent times. Improved terms of trade, better macroeconomic and education policies, and greater demand for services helped Africa’s annual GDP growth. It is often thought that the greatest problem confronting Africa are the low investment and savings rates, a lagging demographic transition as the continent’s high fertility rate creates a bulge in the number of young people requiring education, low productivity, and a low level of exports.
I beg to differ.
Leadership
While those inhibiting factors exist, the greatest problem confronting the African continent as can be seen from the three countries— Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger— that recently quit ECOWAS to form their own Alliance of Sahel States (AES), is LEADERSHIP.
There is something to be said for putting those who are going to witness the future in charge of the process of fashioning out its prospects. Africa’s first challenge therefore is to transition from the gerontocratic stagnation where superannuated principalities are installed in presidential palaces to ‘reign’ and live out the evening of their lives at the expense of a country seeking a new dawn.
Partnerships are desirable; industrialisation is imperative; human capital development is crucial. However, Africa has the youngest population globally, with over 60% of its inhabitants under the age of 25. This is the crux of the matter. We must intentionally map out programmes to yield leadership opportunities to qualified young people. It is their generation that will populate and navigate the tides of the many tomorrows ahead.
Our salvation as a continent will not come from outside. It’s a jungle out there. We can’t compare ourselves to developed countries who have all the institutions to run their countries on auto pilot even where their political leader is ossified. As I have declared in my unpublished book, “Seek ye first the kingdom of good Leadership and everything else will be added unto thee”.
- Wole Olaoye is a Public Relations consultant and veteran journalist. He can be reached at wole.olaoye@gmail.com, Twitter: @wole_olaoye; Instagram: woleola2021
