In the spotlight: reconnecting with the new African generations

Audio 04:02

The Montpellier exhibition center, where the Africa France summit will be held, Friday October 8, 2021. © Wikimedia / Jonath841 - Personal work / CC BY-SA 3.0

By: Frédéric Couteau Follow

4 min

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This is one of the themes of the very general 150-page report delivered yesterday, Tuesday, October 5, 2021, to President Emmanuel Macron by the Cameroonian intellectual Achille Mbembe. This report, as a prelude to the Africa France summit which is being held on Friday October 8, 2021 in Montpellier, without the African heads of state,

 "formulates thirteen proposals for the" refoundation "of relations between France and the continent, an old antiphon since independence African. These range from the creation of a fund to support initiatives to promote democracy to programs allowing greater student mobility, including the establishment of a "Euro-African forum on migration"

», Specifies

Le Point Afrique

Achille Mbembe " 

is particularly looking at how" to settle disputes ",

underlines

Le Point Afrique.

He underlines in this regard that "the recognition of the perversion of colonialism, of its nature, literally, of crime against humanity, is important".

He also believes that, "to a large extent, France is away from new movements and political and cultural experiments" carried by African youth and "has forgotten to connect with these currents of the future".

 "

It must be said that the subjects of tension are not lacking at the moment between France and certain countries of the continent. 

Scrambles between Paris and Bamako ...

First of all, the tug-of-war between Paris and Bamako. Yesterday,

Maliweb

points

out,

the Malian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdoulaye Diop, summoned the French ambassador to Mali, following the unfriendly and derogatory remarks made by Emmanuel Macron on the institutions of the Republic of Mali. (…) The Minister invited the French authorities to exercise restraint, avoiding value judgments and called for a constructive approach based on mutual respect, with a view to focusing on the essential, in particular the fight against terrorism in the Sahel.

 "

“ 

Need it be

remembered,”

exclaims

Malikilé, “these remarks (by Macron) had shocked Malians from all sides who therefore demanded more radical measures. "

While this development of the Malian authorities Will close the case?

End of Clap. End of quarrel?

Asks the Malian daily online. Answer: 

This is another story.

 "

For his part, the boss of the French force in Mali, General Laurent Michon, yesterday visited the authorities of the Malian transition. Objective, believes the daily

Today

 in Ouagadougou, "to 

reassure the Malian authorities and say that Paris will always be alongside Mali, for security support in the fight against the terrorist hydra."

 "

However, continues

Today

, “ 

it is difficult to envision a compromise.

"

With

"

on the one hand the government of the Transition in Mali more determined than ever to explore other horizons in the fight against terrorism which has stagnated for more than 8 years and on the other, France which sees a Evil eye this change of course and the rapprochement between Moscow and Bamako through the Wagner company.

 "

... and water in the gas with Algiers

Another subject of tension, this time, between Paris and Algiers… There, the tone dropped a notch in the Algerian and French press. " 

Emmanuel Macron calms things down

," notes

Le Matin d'Algérie

 as

Le Monde Afrique

. Indeed, " 

the French president declared yesterday to wish" an appeasement "on the memorial subject between France and Algeria, and said to have" really cordial "relations with his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

 "

Still, " 

Algiers remains deaf to French appeasement efforts

 ", points

Le Figaro

 in Paris, which quotes a source close to the Algerian presidency according to which ""

Algeria's position remains the same "and the words of the head of the 'French state "do not change anything". On social networks and in the media, the reactions are not more tender,

notes again

Le Figaro.

"Macron tries to coax President Tebboune and justifies himself on hostile statements", headlines the site of the Arabic-language daily Ennahar.

"The president tries to pick up the pieces, but worsens his case," according to the Algerian Patriotic website.

"This is not the first time that Emmanuel Macron has caused a crisis with Algeria" as with "other countries over which he believes he has some tutelage, like Lebanon or Mali".

 "

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