RIYADH, 9 June — On May 25, 1963, when the Organization of African Unity (OAU) was founded, the old guards of the continent hoped that the body would play a vital role in resolving the regional conflicts. Thirty-eight years hence, this mineral-rich huge mass of earth is plagued with multifarious crises and conflicts. What is the future of Africa, and is the present leadership able enough to take it out of this quagmire? To discuss these and some other questions, Arab News organized a round table discussion. Participants were Dr. Mohamadou Labarang, ambassador of Cameroon and dean of African ambassadors; Mohammed Ali Ibrahim, ambassador of Ethiopia; Al-Haji Magaji Mohammed, ambassador of Ethiopia; Al-Haji Ahmadou Deen Tejan-sie, ambassador of Sierra Leone; and Mxolisi Mesatywa, charge d’affaires of South Africa in the Kingdom. Javed Iqbal of Arab News was the moderator.
Arab News: We welcome our honorable guests to this forum, and start the discussion with the first question, “In your view, which factors have contributed to the economic and social crises in various African states in their post-independence era?” We request the ambassador of Cameroon to open the floor.
Labarang: You have started your question with the word crisis, which is what the Western press does when it makes a mention of the African affairs. This is a very unjust approach. The main reason for the present situation in Africa is that the human and the natural resources of the continent are being inadequately utilized to achieve the aims that are incompatible with the Africans’ needs. When Africa became independent, most of its states had an agricultural industry which was being run by the then colonial masters. The produce was specifically marketed to the colonists. We inherited the setup at the time of independence and continued to produce for those markets, never endeavoring to establish industry which could satisfy our own demands.
Consequently, the West strengthened its hold on our productive sector, and controlled the prices. Secondly, at the time of independence, we inherited an educational system which produced white-collar jobs only. Few of the new administrators could satisfy the African social mix. This has caused frustration among the unemployed youth, and contributed to the crises.
Ibrahim: Independence of Africa, unluckily, didn’t bring about the economic liberation.
Colonial powers imported our raw material at very cheap rates and exported the finished product to us at exorbitant prices. Africans were forced to produce what they didn’t consume and consume what they didn’t produce. This contradiction created one of the biggest crises in Africa. Then the Africans who were educated by the colonial administration were made to serve only the colonial interests. Their education was geared toward consumptive patterns rather than technological setup. Before Africa became a colony, it was exporting food while, afterward, it depended on assistance from the West. Another factor which contributed to the present plight of Africa is the brain drain. The educated African elite returned to Europe after independence, leaving a gap in the administrative system and exacerbating our social crisis.
Mohammed: The factors contributing to Africa’s slow progress are lack of technological know-how, a weak economic base in many of the states and difference in the amounts of natural resources that they are endowed with. Then, as the colonial powers were not prepared to leave when they were forced to, they sowed the seeds of discontent among the African masses. Besides, states were carved artificially, which caused the growth of heterogeneous societies and social problems. Today, Africa has a host of issues which have arisen from a lack of technology, weak economic base and the creation of the states of artificial nature.
Tejan-sie: Bad governance is one factor which has caused problems in Africa. Mismanagement in the continent is a common knowledge. This is due to the atrocities emanating from a selective application of the rule of law. Uneven distribution of wealth among the masses is yet another factor contributing to the present state of affairs. Inadequacy in the political education is also to a large extent responsible. People vote not because of the program of a candidate but because of his ethnic and linguistic affiliations.
Roughly 80 percent of Africans are illiterate, making it impossible for them to comprehend issues in their right perspectives. Unemployment has also contributed to the crises. Colonialists produced only doctors, engineers and lawyers, leaving other sectors of society unattended. They left a vacuum, which gave rise to the present state. Mesatywa: For my country, the situation is different today since by 1994, globalization had already started taking root. On top of all the problems which the participants of this forum have earlier mentioned pertaining to the responsible leadership versus followership, institution-building, unbridled expectations, we have had the issue of discrepancy between the white and the black in South Africa. Politically, the emancipation is at the expense of economic emancipation. The present leadership of Africa has to manage and govern according to changed circumstances.
Arab News: It is being said that corruption, tribalism and nepotism are the main factors which have harmed the growth of Africa. Please comment.
Labarang: It has to be understood that in Africa tribal factor is a fact we can’t just ignore. In our culture, social solidarity is a must. The situation becomes bad when tribalism sets in, overruling general interests of a nation. Now, about corruption. The Western press depicts what it calls the corruption of the elite in Africa. This is not the whole truth. It is, in fact, the corruption of the elite that are in contact with the Western world. In our traditional setup, very rarely do we find corrupt tribal chiefs. But then, who is corrupting who? Nobody can be corrupted if there is no corrupter. It is the Westerners who come to Africa and - to acquire our resources - bribe those of us who have been educated by them to serve their interests. One shouldn’t blame only Africans of being corrupt.
Mohammed: Corruption, tribalism and nepotism are not the African phenomena only. In Asia, too, there are problems of nepotism and corruption. In our part of the world, there is always very strong competition for political offices. When our leaders of the past took offices, the world hadn’t become much materialistic. Globalization hadn’t shown up at the world stage. Consequently, there were less corruption and nepotism. Today, when one struggles hard to attain political power, he has to have some loyal people around him. This gives birth to what is called nepotism. But this is true of other continents as well. Why blame Africa alone?
Ibrahim: The existence of tribe is a blessing for Africa. However, whenever there is friction between tribes, external forces hijack the conflict and use it to advance their own political interests. It is up to the leaders of a state to keep everything in balance. My country has in excess of 70 tribes but we have managed to infuse the spirit of nationalism among them.
Tejan-sie: Tribalism, nepotism and corruption are not the sum total of the problems that are African. They constitute only 60 percent of the issues. Economy is still a major factor. Our leaders have failed to attract the right prices for our products. The West determines their rates and they are so low that we cannot pursue our development programs. People are then forced to cause revolutions.
Mesatywa: All these phenomena will never end since it’s a human weakness to have this and have that. What’s important is that we ought to consider the perceptions and the facts behind them. Certainly, all these phenomena have been made to make Africa look like a basket case. There are no nations on the globe that can assert that they don’t have these phenomena, and yet they are successful in what they do. What is important is that our present leadership address all such phenomena and set up institutions transcending them.
Arab News: It is believed that the older generation of African leaders which brought emancipation to their states failed to bring prosperity to their people in the post independence era. How do you comment?
Labarang: The priority of the founding fathers of African states in the 60s was that of politically uniting Africa and they did their best at that even though the results are not what we had expected. Since the 80s, the new leadership has been trying to achieve the economic unity of the continent. I must add that we shouldn’t expect from Africa to attain in 50 years what other continents managed to in centuries. Instead of assailing those leaders, one must consider what they managed to accomplish in available circumstances.
Tejan-sie: Our previous leaders were anxious to get political independence for their masses which they did. And if we assess that leadership against the backdrop of the hike in oil prices and the economic frustration it had brought to the world, then one can assert that they did a good job. Our financial reserves were good and the standard of life was high. But above all, we commend them for bringing emancipation to Africa. This in itself is a great achievement.
Arab News: How far is it true that the administration of some African states is still being indirectly controlled by the West, and that the changes in the leadership are governed by the vested interests of some former colonial powers?
Mesatywa: To a great extent it is true. If someone asserts otherwise, then what’s the state of affairs? In South Africa, President Mandela, through his experience, tried to lead the country and introduced best practices and good governance. He moved along with President Mbeki to achieve this. They are saying that there should be African solutions to African problems. Those who are viewing Africa from outside tend to think that the solutions which are coming from Africa are wrong. I don’t see eye to eye with them. Look at the case of the pharmaceutical companies which lost against South Africa on the point of principle. No organization can say that a patient must die because he cannot afford the medicine. This particular case reveals the vested interests of the West . Whatever the situation, I believe African leaders themselves will determine the course for their states and not someone else.
Ibrahim: I don’t fully agree with the notion that the African administration is indirectly controlled by other forces. There is partial truth in the statement, however. Some former colonial powers do exercise persuasive influence on African administrations. The deep-rooted historical attachment cannot be eradicated overnight. Franz Fannon, the famous Nigerian writer once said, “It’s easier to decolonize a country than a mind.” This influence on African administration comes from Africa’s economic and technological dependence on the former colonial powers. Africa has also received huge amounts of loans and foreign aid to which strings are attached. However, many states have liberated themselves from such control, and are today capable of running their own affairs. Botswana and South Africa testify to this fact.
Tejan-sie: Around 10 years ago, some African states were asked to attend national conferences forced upon them by the West. These fora implied that the incumbent leaderships weren’t adequate and that a change should be brought about. Subsequently, in all those states which had become hosts to such conferences, political crises were created and changes in their administration brought about. But the masses rejected the new faces as their leaders and brought back the old leadership. These conferences were held in the Francophone Africa and served the objectives of the West. This clearly supports the notion that the West does interfere with the political nomenclature of Africa.
Arab News: It is also stated that the OAU has miserably failed to solve the regional conflicts, some of which have plagued Africa since the days of its independence. What do you say?
Mohammed: This is absolutely untrue. The OAU through either its conflict prevention mechanism or its regional associations has resolved a lot of problems. ECOWAS has played a magnificent role. The article of non-interference in the affairs of member states is a source of both weakness and strength since it allows parties to negotiate.
Ibrahim: Organizations have their limitations. Why are the failures of OAU being exaggerated? This body has succeeded in liberating Africa, dismantling apartheid, mediating between Morocco and Algeria and, very recently, between Ethiopia and Eritrea at Algiers. It has, however, failed to resolve the crisis in Somalia, Rwanda and Burundi. But its failures are because it doesn’t have a pan-African Force due to the non-availability of funds.
Arab News: How successful do you think the present leadership will be in dealing with the political and economic crises which Africa faces today?
Mohammed: It’s an uphill task but I’m sure the present leaders of the continent will succeed in overcoming the crises. They have to establish a solid economic base and our economies should be geared towards production rather than towards consumption. The major problem is that we have acquired wrong technologies from the so-called developed states which would never like us to advance. We should also be prepared to fight against debt-servicing which exercises crippling effect on our economies. My country today champions the cause of fight against debt-servicing.
The indebted states also must devise poverty-alleviation programs. People have been adversely affected by globalization. We have to fight against illiteracy and disease. Our leadership is doing a good job and I’m very hopeful and optimistic about the results.
Mesatywa: We see some definite and good programs coming out of the last OAU summit. The presidents of Nigeria, South Africa and Algeria were mandated to go to the G-8 plus 1 summit in Tokyo. They are probably today considered a millennium African blend. There, they were asked not to make any proposals for the debt-alleviation or the e-commerce in Africa. As a result, the three leaders have come up with some concrete suggestions. There has to be overall coordination towards the establishment of an African economic market. This step reflects changed times and circumstances. The regimes that come through coercion won’t be tolerated. Leadership in Africa is coming to the fore and putting itself to the task of determining a new world order.
Arab News: What can you say about the role played by the UN in resolving Africa’s regional conflicts?
Labarang: The UN has been doing its best. The Congo, Sierra Leone, and Liberia are clear examples. However, sometimes the means are not commensurate with the needs which is why some of its endeavors were not as successful as they ought to have been. A pan-African force is now being created to improve the means of OAU. But this new body must be provided with the financial resources and technical and military backup. I believe the UN assistance to the OAU will help solve the crises.
Tejan-sie: The UN has been successful in resolving our conflicts but in order to achieve better results, the body has to restructure itself. Africa is the biggest continent, with the largest population. If there are to be African solutions for the African conflicts, then the OAU must get a place in the Security Council.
Mohammed: Until recently, the role of the UN in resolving the African regional problems has been minimal. It may be because of the first involvement of the UN in the continent in the early 60s in the Congo where it didn’t quite succeed. The real nationalist, Patrice Lumumba was killed. However, it might be because of the coming of Mr. Kofi Annan that it has started playing an active role. I support the notion that the UN must be democratized and Africa be given a seat at the Security Council.