Europe and the emerging Africa

Europe and Africa have come a long way. For one thing, we are continental neighbours. We are constrained by the immutable force of geography to work together. Indeed, the ancient Romans mistook the Mediterranean – nostra mare — as an inland lake separating one part of Europe from the other. We also have a shared history. Medieval Europeans regarded Africans as equal but different. You can see it in the great renaissance paintings by the likes of Michelangelo and Raphael.

Today, many of my friends in Europe worry that they are losing Africa to the Chinese. Yes and No.

Many do not realise that the Chinese were the first foreigners to visit Africa. During the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese Admiral Zheng He brought a fleet of over 60 ships, the baochuan, to the East African coast during 1431-1433. He brought with him traders, scientists and explorers. They took back with them African flora and fauna, ivory, gold and other precious commodities. They also took with them a contingent of Africans who voluntarily chose to go to China. It was all a peaceful and civilized affair.

China today is Africa’s leading trading and investment partner. Sino-African trade is currently estimated at US$310 billion, with the EU and the USA trailing behind at US$106 billion and US$100 billion respectively. China engages with Africa on the basis of equality, non-interference in domestic affairs and mutuality of benefit. The Chinese are engaging in building railways, highways and other physical infrastructures. Whereas the Europeans and other Westerners approach Africa as a problem, the Chinese see Africa as an opportunity.

This is not to say that our relations with the Middle Kingdom are without their drawbacks. The Chinese have never even remotely pretended that they are an aspiring democracy. Even a schoolboy knows that Beijing is not your model of the rule of law or political civility. Few of us speak Mandarin. When they are in our countries the Chinese prefer to live in gated expat communities. They rarely socialize with Africans. They are also in the practice of dumping inferior goods that do untold damage to our fledgling industries. Some of their labour practices are horrendously backward.

Ever since the Rome Treaty 1956, the EU has brought Africa into a cooperation arrangement anchored on trade, development assistance and political dialogue. From the Yaoundé Conventions of the 1960s to the Lomé Conventions of the seventies to nineties, to the current Cotonou Partnership Agreement, Europe has invested massively in Africa’s development. For the period 2014-2020, some €28 billion have been committed to Africa under the European Development Fund (EDF).

Many Africans do not realise that the EU funds the overwhelming bulk of the African Union’s annual operating budget (80%). No other donor has made so much commitments to peace and security on our continent. The EU has put aside the sum of €1.6 billion to support the African Peace Facility (APF). These funds support various peace and security initiatives, including peacekeeping operations, capacity building for peace and security and development of early warning mechanisms. My European friends rightly complain that China makes no such commitments and yet continues to reap immense benefits as a free-rider in game-theoretic terms.

In my considered opinion, three issues need to be addressed, if we are to take Europe-Africa cooperation to the next level.

The first has to do with the refugee problem. This is a burning question right now in Europe. Almost everyday, hundreds of hapless African youths take the plunge into rickety boats in an attempt to make it into the Eldorado of Europe. This is on top of the armada of unwashed refugees fleeing war-torn Syria and Iraq. The British can no longer take it. They will soon be voting in a referendum whether or not to remain in the union. The word “Brexit” has found its way into the new lexicon of European affairs.

We have to distinguish between migrants and refugees. In a Europe where population growth has been in reverse, there is an economic case for encouraging skilled migrants to come and work. It is a win-win for everyone. There is clearly a problem with regard to refugees. There have been stories of boats being capsized in the Mediterranean. Some have been shot and killed. There are stories of serious human rights abuses. These are issues that Europe must look into. We need a comprehensive global approach to the refugee question. Europe has vital interests that have to be acknowledged. But it also has global responsibilities that it cannot avoid.

Secondly, the challenge of finalizing the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) need to be revisited. In the case of ECOWAS, I am aware that an agreement had already be finalized at the technical level, but Nigeria would not ratify for fear that it would jeopardise her fledgling industrial sector. As this was going on, news came from last year that the EU was no longer accepting Nigerian agricultural produce, citing EU standards and other familiar stratagems. Few policymakers in Nigeria could notice the synchronicity of these events. These are complicated issues. I cannot pretend that I have a magic wand to solve them. What I would urge is greater flexibility on the part of everyone concerned. Europe needs to understand that Africa cannot persist on the same trajectory that has served us so badly for the better of a millennium. Africa must industrialise and we must leave no stone unturned to become an industrial-technological civilization. If Europe cannot support that ambition, she must get out of our way.

Thirdly, with regard to official development assistance, it seems clear to me that some adjustments will be needed, going forward. There is aid-fatigue everywhere in the OECD countries. We cannot take Europe’s generosity for granted, given that she has troubles of her own at home, notably on the financial situation in Greece. Several of the southern countries – Italy, Spain and Portugal – have severe fiscal deficits that are likely to constrain growth in the coming years. Europe has to operate with greater budget constraints than has been the case heretofore.

This is the time perhaps to rationalize such institutions as the ACP Group, which, in my opinion, have outlived their usefulness. The EU wants to prioritise Africa. All well and good. If the focus has to be Africa, and 48 of the 79 ACP countries are African, then it makes sense to focus on the AU while looking into a regional approach for the Caribbean and the Pacific.

Thirdly, I am persuaded that the private sector can play a highly salutary role in Europe-Africa cooperation. I have given talks to bankers and hedge fund managers in London, Frankfurt, Brussels and Paris. I know the frustration that our businesspeople tend to experience. Whenever the Chinese identify a bankable project in Africa, the Development Bank of China is often close at hand to provide financing. The same cannot be said for European investors. Africa remains a black box for many old-world European financiers. They continue to view our continent with highly twisted blinkers. It does no good both for Europe and for Africa.

We need a different approach – a new framework that will allow business and investment to flourish between our two regions. The European Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS) needs to explore creative ways of bringing our private sectors together and leveraging on the EDF resources and the resources of the European Investment Bank (EIB) to broker deals that work for Africa.

I believe the future of our two continents is bright. We need a new set of leaders to champion the new momentum of solidarity and hope; building on what has worked in the past to create a better future for our people.

(Abridged text of a Paper Delivered at the Conference on Europe and Africa: A strategic Approach, Held at the European Institute for Security Studies, Maison des Recherches, Paris, France, 17-18 February, 2016).

Obadiah Mailafiya