*DONALD TRUMP’s ELECTION: AFRICA FIRST*
By Andyford Mayele Banda
After the declaration of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States of America (USA) it is a no brainer that a good number of Africans including its leaders are scratching their heads as to what this means and how much aid from the United States will be or not be available for the next four years, either through bilateral arrangements or non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Indeed, the USA has a greater level of influence across the world in many aspects, hence there is greater anxiety not just in Africa but other parts too.
The question is, is it right especially for a continent like Africa in the year 2024, to hinge or lose its hope on an election of a US President?
It is important to note that despite various signature programs from different US Presidents over the years, poverty has continued escalating in Africa pointing to the fact that a US President’s election has never and will not have any impact on the future outlook of Africa. There have been various initiatives from George W. Bush’s President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), Obama’s Power Africa and Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) and Trump’s touted Prosper Africa but none has sorted any problems the continent is facing including in the areas the programs have focused on.
In the midst of African leadership deficiencies, we cannot completely discount the help received from America especially George W. Bush’s PEPFAR program which saved many people living with HIV/AIDS.
However, it will be folly to think Africa’s development and future outlook should be tied to who is elected as President of America.
Many African leaders have sent and are still sending congratulatory messages to Donald Trump on his come back for the top job in the USA, but what does the Trump Presidency mean for Africa? Nothing much really. But of course with renewed rivalry with China over the scramble for resources in Africa needed for energy transition, such as copper and lithium and a number of other metals African leaders should expect to be bullied to align with the US under the Donald Trump Presidency.
Donald Trump’s Prosper Africa initiative in his first term which was designed to assist US companies seeking to do business in Africa may be more aggressive this time as the USA want to counter China in accessing and exploiting Africa’s raw materials as a result of projected demand due to energy transition.
In December 2018, in launching the Trump Administration’s US African policy Ambassador John Bolton set the tone for the administration in a speech where he challenged African governments to choose the United States over China and Russia for their commercial, security, and political relationships. The focal point of Trump’s African strategy could be countering China’s commercial, security, and political influence in Africa. Under Donald Trump, great power competition with China may play a significant role in US-Africa relations. Africa has always been framed as a pawn in a great game, as if it is something to be lost or won and that is not expected to change.
On the other hand, U.S. President Donald Trump naturally shows little interest in Africa. You may recall at a summit in Hamburg of Group of 20 in his first term, President Donald Trump walked out of a working session on Africa. Earlier the same year his Secretary of State Rex Tillerson invited African Union chief Moussa Faki to Washington, and then backed out of the meeting at the last minute. So much disrespect indeed!
In terms of aid, while it was feared in his first term that he would implement deep cuts to foreign aid programs of about 30% which would impact Africa greatly, his administration carried on many of the constructive policies of its predecessors. The continuity was largely due to bipartisanship in Congress.
Henceforth, there is no need to be anxious about who is coming in as the President of the United States. It is clear that growing populations across the world including the US itself presents different dynamics and straining US resources. This should be a wake up call for Africa not to expect a savior from America but focus on sorting out its internal political and economic hindrances as a continent.
What will save Africa, is the restructuring of its economic systems which the United States, Europe, China and now the gulf states have continued to exploit for their own benefits at the detriment of Africans.
Africa must with immediate effect stop the continuous exploitation of its resources by the so – called superpowers to develop their countries. That is the savior that Africa needs. It is clear with many political events that have happened such as the Kenya Gen-z protests, elections in Senegal and Botswana that the African youth will not continue to tolerate propaganda governments but want sustainable jobs and opportunities.
On the other hand, new generation of African leaders must detach itself from colonial political systems of exploitation, tribalism, ethnicity, nepotism but focus on radical reforms and building institutions that will be run by the best educated, passionate and committed Africans.
Africa must therefore strengthen her institutions to ensure that they are run independent of the Big Men African presidents who have perpetually run colonial governance systems only in place to serve and advance personal, ethnic and political interests. These institutions must serve justice and fight corruption to the core.
Indeed, it is clear that in the new Africa there is no place for African Presidents perpetuating colonial motivated exploitive style of governance but progress. It is also clear that the US elections has no bearing on the future outlook of Africa but our radical restructuring of political and economic systems does. Africa must think twice, solve her own problems and reduce overdependence on outsiders like the USA. If anything, Africa has more to offer than it is receiving…..
The author is leader of the People’s Alliance for Change (PAC) in Zambia and a two – time Presidential candidate.
He is also the author of a newly released book ; Economic Systems Dismantling – Why Zambia can a be model for African transformation (available on Amazon and Draft2digital platforms such as apple book store).
