Macron's vision for mutual aid and partnerships between France and Africa is still faltering
Will France's Africa policy hold?
Macron is having a hard time letting go of past practices.
AFP
Macron was unable to fulfill his promises to Africans.
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In a study on France’s policy toward Africa, recently published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Corentin Cohen, a fellow researcher in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Oxford University, explained that despite the efforts of French President Emmanuel Macron, since the beginning of his term in office, to achieve communication between France and Africa over On an equal footing, his vision of mutual aid and partnerships between France and African countries has not yet succeeded.
Cohen, who is interested in the political economies of West Africa, Central Africa, and Latin America, points to Macron's attempt during his first presidency to revive his country's diplomatic contact with countries across Africa, and the goal of some aspects of this axis was to deal more directly with the legacy of French colonialism in countries French speaking.
He also felt that the increasing prestige of non-Western states, such as China, provided African states with a greater opportunity to establish relations amid an increasing diplomatic rivalry between a host of other nations in Europe and elsewhere.
Promote a diplomatic vision
With this strategy, Cohen says, Macron sought to advance France's diplomatic vision with Africa through more aid and more strong relations between the French and African peoples based on a spirit of partnerships among equals.
Although Macron's efforts created an opportunity for renewed relations, this axis was not as smooth as he had hoped.
Bureaucratic inertia and complications in foreign policy circles sometimes led to a slowdown in the implementation of these policies.
In some cases, Macron's nationalist appeals during his last election campaign seemed to blunt his attempts to make amends to France's troubling colonial history.
On the other hand, the French President's attempts to deepen economic and security relations between the French and African peoples in more equitable ways did not achieve the expected expectations, which indicates the difficulty of expecting to abandon previous practices.
serious look
Cohen argues that in order to keep the momentum of Macron's ambitions for France's relations with African countries, he and his team should take a serious look at what has been done well and can still be improved.
Cohen, who holds a doctorate in political science and international relations from Sciences Po where he lectures alongside the Sorbonne on international relations and African politics, recalled what the French president had done during a diplomatic tour of Africa in November during his presidency. First.
He sent a surprising message to university students in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Instead of declaring that he would turn the page on France's policy on Africa, as most French presidents had done before him, he said there was no page to be turned.
He added that a new era of relations between France and Africa had begun, and that there was a need for the two parties to re-realize their political relations and to recognize their common history.
Hurdles
Cohen pointed out that among the obstacles that prevented the achievement of what Macron wanted was the failure of the French security policy in the Sahel region, which the army is in charge of, in developing effective ways to eliminate extremism, or adapt to the social and political transformations in the region.
Cohen believes that Macron will have to take advantage of previous restrictions on French policy in Africa, and he can take advantage of France's presidency of the Council of the European Union, which ends on June 30, in the possibility of establishing long-term political partnerships between France and other European countries on the one hand, and between African countries and societies on the other hand.
France and its European partners can fulfill their promises to reformulate capitalism.
France can help African countries try to boost their cash potential.
In addition to expanding investments and aid, Paris can support an honest dialogue on the role of corruption and tax evasion, which deprives African countries of between $50 billion and $80 billion in revenue each year.
Macron had promised that the "Covid-19" vaccines would be a symbol of a new partnership between Europe and Africa, and this did not materialize.
However, access to public goods and increased health assistance could be key areas for continued cooperation.
With regard to the relations between the French and African peoples, in light of France's colonial past and as a form of forward-looking compensation, France could provide the opportunity for young people and citizens of former colonies to enroll in the French higher education system, on the same financial terms as French and European citizens.
France could also encourage other former colonial countries in the European Union to do the same, with the goal of developing partnerships across the continent to send students to study and work in Africa.
Concluding his study, Cohen says that Macron's second term is an appropriate opportunity to reimagine France's diplomatic engagement with African countries.
Although Macron has demonstrated a clear desire to make amends for past mistakes, some aspects of his policy ambitions remain mired in outdated approaches to communication.
Determining which methods have worked and which have not is thus an essential step towards ensuring that France builds up its strong influence to achieve partnerships on an equal footing and win-win for African countries.
The increasing stature of non-Western states, such as China, has given African states greater opportunity to establish relations amid growing diplomatic rivalry between a host of other states in Europe and elsewhere.
Although Macron has demonstrated a clear desire to make amends for past mistakes, some aspects of his policy ambitions remain mired in outdated approaches to communication.
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