I have been watching CNN Cable News lately and have noticed that there was a dedicated programing called “INSIDE AFRICA”. There had been programs of similar nature on BBC and other Western media. Paying attention a bit to these regularly scheduled radio and TV programs, one is reminded of the renewed interest in Africa and continent’s importance for the rest of world in terms of unexploited resources and manpower as Africa has a huge market as well. We see fierce competition between former colonial Western countries, Russia and China. China’s approach to the African countries involves coming in with know-how and cold cash/credits with construction of insfracture much needed in Africa, while Russia is engaged in boosting security and stability in a number of West Africa countries. Western countries are alarmed by Chinese-Russian recent in-roads into the African Continent. But, their problem is that they have no positive and constructive economic proposals to help and meet the needs of the people of Africa. They are still stuck in past failed and disastrous World Bank and IMF economic restructuring policies. They are doing the same thing over and over again to expect better outcome to keep and consolidate their colonial hold of the continent. It won’t work this time around. Already, we see the rising revolutionary spirit of peoples in Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and more, to expel French troops and curtail French exploitation of these countries’ resources.
However, former colonial masters have cultural advantage over Russia and China. English, French, Portuguese, and even Dutch to lesser extent, are official business languages of the continent. Besides Somalia, Ethiopia and Egypt, there are few African countries who have native official language.
For Russia and China to succeed in their approach to Africa in terms of economic and political cooperation, they need to develop people- to -people relationships with cultural aspects.
South Africa, an economic and cultural giant with progressive political leadership, is a founding member of BRICS, a huge trading block, can bring African countries along these lines.
Warsame Policy & Media Network (WAPMEN) 