AQ-Aug-Oct-2007 by India Africa Connect

africa Q

Volume 47, No. 3 Aug-Oct 2007

Idea Of A United Africa

A F R I C A

Transition to an African Government Paradigm for a United States of Africa " ALSO in the issue: ! Say India in Sudan ! Roots of the Darfur crisis ! In Conversation: Lt. General J.S. Lidder ! !

Q U A R T E R L Y

Indian Council for Cultural Relations Azad Bhavan Indraprastha Estate New Delhi-110 002 E-mail: africa.quarterly@gmail.com Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers of India Regd No. 14380/61

N D I A N

O U N C I L

F O R

U LT U R A L

E L A T I O N S

africa Q

Indian Journal of African Affairs Volume 47 No. 3, August-October 2007

INDIAN COUNCIL FOR CULTURAL RELATIONS NEW DELHI

Q U A R T E R L Y

contents

A F R I C A

IN FOCUS: MOVING TOWARDS A UNITED AFRICA

Africa needs a self-reliant Pan-African plan of action and vision in order to tackle its historical disabilities. The solution to a united Africa lies in strengthening and widening the compass of Pan-Africanism, says Professor K. Mathews

AFRICAN SOLUTION: THE TRANSITION TOWARDS A UNION GOVERNMENT OF AFRICA

The problems of Africa cannot be solved in an isolated way. There is a strong need to include African citizens in the debates leading up to the formation of a Union Government of Africa, says Tim Murithi

UNITED STATES OF AFRICA: A PARADIGM FRAMEWORK OF AN AFRICAN UNION GOVERNMENT

An African Union study lays down a blueprint for such a confederacy and how it could be given institutional expression through the shared values, interests and ancestry that infuse the idea that Africa is.

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

BILATERAL TIES: SAY INDIA IN SUDAN

Manish Chand writes about the signs of change in the Sudanese capital Khartoum as Africa’s largest country embarks on a modernisation drive and turns eastwards — to India, in particular, with whom it shares some enduring political and cultural affinities.

52 ECONOMIC UNITY: COMESA for Peace, Security and Development

The trade body needs to persuade member-states to respect international and mutual peace agreements, and help initiate a positive environment in the region, says Suresh Kumar.

62 IN CONVERSATION: Lt. General Jasbir Singh Lidder

WAGING PEACE: ROOTS OF THE DARFUR CRISIS

Manish Chand reflects on the festering conflict in Darfur between settled farmers and nomads over the region’s limited resources of land and water and finds out that there are no black and white answers to the ongoing violence in Sudan’s western province.

The force commander of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) talks about the good work Indian troops have been doing in the Arabdominated north and black-dominated south of the country.

36 BUILDING BLOCKS: Need for regional cooperation

The future of regional cooperation in Africa and the rest of the developing world is closely linked with the future of international cooperation, says Sonu Trivedi

64 BOOKS & IDEAS 68 DOCUMENTS INCREDIBLE INDIA: ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS

Known as ‘Emerald Isles’, the Andaman and Nicobar islands are a traveller’s delight. Once a forbidden land, this conglomeration of 572 islands is famous for its marine life, pristine white beaches and palm-frilled coasts. It is the near-perfect haven for snorkelling, scuba diving and trekking.

78 CONTRIBUTORS

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Rates of Subscription Annual Three-year Subscription Subscription Rs. 100.00 Rs. 250.00 US $40.00 US $100.00 £16.0 £40.0 (Including airmail postage) Subscription rates as above payable in advance preferably by bank draft/MO in favour of Indian Council for Cultural Relations, New Delhi. Printed and Published by Pavan K. Varma Director-General Indian Council for Cultural Relations Azad Bhavan, Indraprastha Estate New Delhi - 110002 Editor: Manish Chand Cover Graphic: Computer in front of Sphinx By Bek Shakirov Getty Images ISBN 0001-9828

The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), founded in 1950 to strengthen cultural ties and promote understanding between India and other countries, functions under the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. As part of its effort, the Council publishes, apart from books, six periodicals in five languages –– English quarterlies (Indian Horizons and Africa Quarterly), Hindi Quarterly (Gagananchal), Arabic Quarterly (Thaqafat-ul-Hind), Spanish bi-annual (Papeles de la India) and French bi-annual (Recontre Avec l’Inde). Africa Quarterly (Indian Journal of African Affairs) is published every three months. The views expressed in the articles included in this journal are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the ICCR. All rights reserved. No part of this journal may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any from or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the permission of the ICCR.

Editorial correspondence and manuscripts, including book reviews, should be addressed to: The Editor Africa Quarterly Indian Council for Cultural Relations Azad Bhavan Indraprastha Estate New Delhi-110 002 E-mail: africa.quarterly@gmail.com

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

■ From the Editor’s Desk

One Africa, many dreams…

frica’s quest for unity and solidarity among its 53 countries is an old dream that is constantly finding newer forms and advocates. The idea of a ‘United States of Africa’ is a radical project that goes back to Afro-American poet Marcus Garvey’s radiant vision encapsulated in his eponymous poem where he sings eloquently of “Motherland most bright, divinely fair!/ State in perfect sisterhood united.” Garvey’s ideas flowered into the Pan-Africanist movement revolving around a sense of solidarity aimed at empowering African people regardless of tribe, language, religion or nationality. In 1945, the Fifth Pan-African Congress in Manchester, England, attended by iconic leaders and intellectuals like W.E.B. Du Bois, Patrice Lumumba, George Padmore, Jomo Kenyatta and Kwame Nkrumah, fleshed out the idea and made it a rallying cry for the broader political and economic emancipation of the continent. More than eight decades since Garvey celebrated the innate unity of the African continent and its people, the idea of one Africa has undergone many reincarnations. The African Union, created in 2002 in Durban to succeed the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) that was born over four decades earlier, is the latest embodiment of the quest for African unity and political will to create one geopolitical and economic entity that can occupy its legitimate place on the world’s high table. The idea of the USA, on the lines of the United States of America and the European Union, found a strong advocate in Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi. His ideas were actively debated at the AU summit at Sirte in Libya and at Accra in June this year. The vision of a united Africa is a powerful and stirring one, with enormous consequences for the balance of power in the world, but it has remained primarily a talking point among the intellectual and political elite in the continent. Some have tended to dismiss the idea as utopian while others have seen in it a final solution to myriad problems afflicting the continent. This edition of Africa Quarterly explores the contours of the idea of a ‘Union of African States’ and what it could mean for the continent and the world. Scholar Tim Murithi is the ideal person to offer us an insight into the provenance of African unity and some of the contradictions that stalk this grand vision. In his article, Murithi traces the roots of the idea to the tradition of PanAfricanism and argues for putting people and not politicians or geopolitical calculations at the heart of this unifying project. “The objective behind the US of Africa should not be

primarily one of increasing the level of global competitiveness of the continent. Rather, the primary focus should be on improving the livelihood of the African people as a whole,” he writes. K. Mathews traces the historical evolution of the idea of an “integrated, peaceful and prosperous Africa” and finds powerful arguments to anchor this vision in reality. “Without creating a strong, democratic, independent and self-reliant ‘New Africa’, the continent will continue to remain an easy prey to the penetration of external economic and strategic interests,” says Mathews, who has been following the evolution of African unity for decades. “Africans are one people and have one destiny regardless of the artificial boundaries created by the Europeans. Africa is one and indivisible as you cannot divide the sea or the running water of a river,” he writes. Sonu Trivedi and Suresh Kumar turn their gaze towards regional economic communities that could form building blocks of the grand edifice of a united Africa. Besides enhancing the economic weight of Africa through the creation of a common economic market, sub-regional groupings can “play the role of harmonising inter-regional conflicts and trade disputes so as to further the ultimate goal of a larger and a deeper integration process,” Trivedi writes. Likewise, COMESA, which connects the eastern and southern parts of the African continent, writes Kumar, can spur regional unity through market forces. These eloquent analyses only go to prove that the idea of one Africa is not just a pipedream, but an idea that is slowly but surely inching towards fruition. African unity, political, economic and cultural integration of the continent, could be a boon to stronger ties between India and Africa. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh unveiled a robust vision for India-Africa ties during his recent visit to Nigeria in which he outlined how India can spur the development and resurgence of Africa as an economically vibrant region with a place in the UN Security Council. At the IBSA summit in October, he amplified this vision to include better connectivity between India, South Africa and Brazil — the three powerhouses of Asia, Africa and South America. This enhanced global integration of Africa, some would argue, underscores the need for greater African unity and collective bargaining at international fora. The idea of a federation of sovereign states of Africa, therefore, acquires a new resonance. As Africa engages in a renewed quest for unity, it will do well to hark back to the uplifting words of Ethiopian poet Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin. “Let us unite to give the best we have to Africa, the cradle of mankind./ Let us make Africa the Tree of Life!” Manish Chand

August-October 2007

N E W S

E V E N T S

Nigeria and India FORGE closer ties Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Nigeria, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 45 years, has assumed great significance since it will help broadbase ties between the two countries, says Manish Chand

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua

ndia’s ties with Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producing country, took a big leap forward during Manmohan Singh’s visit to Nigeria in October — the first by an Indian prime minister in 45 years. The two counties transformed their multifaceted relationship by signing four pacts and forging a strategic partnership, marking a new era in Indian diplomacy in the resource-rich continent. The two countries moved beyond rhetoric to flesh out a detailed time-bound agenda for economic, political and energy cooperation that will be at the heart of a new Indian diplomatic thrust aimed at spurring Africa’s development and resurgence as an economically vibrant and peaceful continent. During his visit to the Nigerian capital Abuja (Oct 1416), Manmohan Singh also unveiled a new vision of India’s ties with Africa during his address to the joint session of the Nigerian parliament in which he announced India would be “a close partner in Africa’s resurgence”. Nigerian National Assembly underscored the warmth of its ties with India by braking its Eid recess to hear the Indian prime minister talk eloquently about India’s ties

with Africa going back to the time of shared struggle against colonialism and imperialism. “We envision an Africa that is self-reliant, economically vibrant and at peace with itself and the world. India will offer its fullest cooperation to harness the great potential of the African people. We seek to become close partners in Africa’s resurgence,” he told Nigerian legislators. He also underlined “much greater convergence” between India and Africa on key developmental issues. “We will work closely with the African Union in promoting the achievement of internationally agreed developmental goals. We will share our experiences with African countries on holistic approaches to development,” the Prime Minister added. Ahead of the India-Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi in April next year, Manmohan Singh stressed on the shared destiny and future of the two sides. “We need to establish a sustained dialogue with Africa to identify joint approaches on international issues such as combating terrorism, nuclear disarmament, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, trafficking of small arms and narcotics”. India will work with Africa in the areas of peacekeeping and peace-building. “I believe that India and Africa have a shared destiny and

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

a common future. Ours is a relationship that must now be brought to full bloom. Let us work together to make this happen,” he said. Forging a close strategic partnership with Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country and a leading player in the 53-nation African Union, is one of the key pillars of India’s contemporary partnership with the continent revolving around energy security, trade and technology. Manmohan Singh held talks with Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua on a wide spectrum of bilateral and global issues, including energy security, the intensification of bilateral trade, UN reforms, the Doha development round of multilateral trade talks, climate change and terrorism. In his talks with Manmohan Singh, the Nigerian president spoke glowingly about the deepening of relations between the two countries and stressed that his country considered the Indian prime minister’s visit a “mark of honour”, Nalin Suri, Secretary (West) in the External Affairs Ministry, told journalists. The president also reiterated Nigeria’s support for India’s place in an expanded UN Security Council. Manmohan Singh said India will respect Africa’s consensus on new permanent membership from the continent and supported Nigeria’s quest to play a bigger role on the global stage. The Nigerian president also assured Manmohan Singh that all steps are being taken to ensure the safety and security of Indian workers in the thriving oil industry of the country, especially in the militancy-ridden oil-rich Niger Delta. A memorandum of agreement between the Foreign Service Institute and the Nigerian Foreign Service Academy and another MoU between the Indian Council for World Affairs and the Nigerian Institute for World Affairs were inked after the talks between Manmohan Singh and the Nigerian president. A protocol on Foreign Office consultations, and another MoU on defence cooperation were also signed. Enhanced defence cooperation will entail India helping in the training of Nigerian defence personnel, a process India is already engaged in, setting up of two IT laboratories in the defence academies of Nigeria, technology transfer and joint exercises between the armed forces of both countries. Over the next six months, agreements on trade, double taxation avoidance, bilateral investment and protection and bilateral air service are to be finalised and signed between the two countries. An extradition treaty, another one on mutual legal assistance and two agreements on science and technology and cultural exchange programme will also be ready to be signed before April next year. After the talks, the two countries came out with an ambitious “Abuja Declaration” that enunciates an all-embracing vision of India-Nigeria strategic relationship with special

Q U A R T E R L Y

emphasis on closer energy partnership between the two countries. “Taking into account the commonalities and complementarities between the two countries it was agreed to establish a strategic partnership between India and Nigeria that would cover bilateral economic, political, trade, security, cultural, education, science and technology and international dimensions,” the Abuja Declaration said. India and Nigeria also firmed up an all-embracing agenda for closer energy and economic partnership, that could include new oil exploration blocks and infrastructure deals, and a roadmap for diversifying economic relations in sectors such as railways, agriculture, power, fertilisers, automobiles and small and medium enterprises. The Indian approach to the oil sector in Nigeria is going to be development-oriented and will not be confined to oil and gas but include the development of refineries and infrastructure in Nigeria. The focus is on improving connectivity and enhancing bilateral trade, which is currently estimated to be around $8 billion. With a population of 140 million and considerable revenue from oil exports, Nigeria is the largest trading partner of India in Africa. In his speech to the Nigerian parliament, Manmohan Singh underscored the importance of multi-cultural character of both Indian and Nigerian societies. “India is the largest democracy in the world. Nigeria is the largest democracy in Africa. We are multireligious, multi-ethnic and multi-lingual societies. Our societies embrace modernity while preserving their traditions. There is a natural logic in ties between the two countries,” he told the National Assembly. Envisaging a “partnership for energy security” between India and Africa’s largest oil producer, Manmohan Singh underlined the need to “vastly expand and diversify bilateral trade” between the two countries. “It is a partnership for energy security. Nigeria’s rich natural resources provide the base for our mutually beneficial cooperation for energy security,” he said. “India and Nigeria should also promote research and development in efficiency of energy production, clean technologies and renewable sources of energy,” he added while stressing the importance of Nigeria for energy security of India. Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producing country, has reserves that are currently around 30 billion barrels and are expected to rise to 40 billion barrels by 2010. In endNovember 2005, with the commencement of production at the Bonga Oil Field, Nigeria’s daily output has risen to 2.63 million bpd. Placing India-Nigeria relations in a global context, the prime minister said it was “a partnership to steer the global economic and political agenda towards addressing the legitimate concerns of developing countries”. ■

August-October 2007

N E W S

E V E N T S

IBSA eyes free trade, enters ACTION phase The three IBSA countries cemented their trilateral cooperation by signing seven inter-governmental pacts, reports Manish Chand

t its second annual summit in Pretoria on October 17, the India Brazil South Africa Alliance (IBSA) moved towards a result-oriented agenda of trans-continental cooperation revolving around energy security and people-centred model of social development. The three countries joined hands to promote peaceful uses of nuclear energy, reforms in the UN, a free-trade area and also give a fresh lease of life to the stalled Doha Round of world trade negotiations. Sending out a clear message that IBSA was not merely another transregional talking shop, as some critics contend, the three IBSA countries cemented their trilateral cooperation by signing seven inter-governmental pacts in public administration and governance, tax administration, arts and culture cooperation, higher education, wind resources, health and medicines and social development. On the occasion, IPICO of South Africa, Strategic Consultants of India and Enternet Informatica Limited of Brazil finalised a memorandum of agreement. The cornerstone of this roundtable was the adoption of the “all-embracing” Tshwane IBSA Summit Declaration, envisioning expansion of trade to $15 billion by 2010. The declaration laid down a timebound blueprint for better connectivity among the member countries

through a free-trade area and an environment facilitating inclusive growth with a comprehensive, people-centred social development agenda. “It has been a very successful ses-

sion. It has very much focused on achieving results... to respond to all the challenges that our countries face,” South African President Thabo Mbeki said at the signing ceremony. The inter-governmental pacts, Mbeki said, are designed “to consolidate our relationship”. India’s quest for global civil nuclear integration also received a boost when Brazil and South Africa, members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, extended their support for promotion of peaceful uses of nuclear energy. A joint declaration issued at the end of the summit said the three countries have agreed that international civil nuclear cooperation could be enhanced through acceptable forward-looking approaches in sync with national/international objectives and the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. “Discussions are on. It is a work in progress. We are for peaceful uses of nuclear energy,” said Mbeki. India will

August-October 2007

host the third annual IBSA summit. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Brazilian President Lula da Silva and Mbeki have agreed that IBSA has to move beyond the dialogue front to transform the lives of millions of people, especially the poor. In his opening remarks at the plenary session of the summit, Singh unveiled a unifying vision of trans-national economic and social partnership and pushed for a “time-bound action”. “If the IBSA movement is to catch the imagination of people, we should move from a declaratory phase to one of time-bound action,” he said. Exhorting confidence that the IBSA process was “finally taking off”, he hailed it as “an example for all developing countries, a significant step towards the emergence of global partnerships for development”. Singh called for expansion of trade ties among IBSA countries to the tune of $18 billion by 2012 and a common social development strategy that can benefit millions. Singh, Lula and Mbeki also called for acceleration of negotiations for the India-SACU (Southern African Customs Union)-Mercosur Free Trade Area (FTA). The FTA will connect economically vibrant regions of India, SACU and Mercosur. Known as the Common Market of the South, Mercosur is home to over 250 million people and accounts for more than three-quarters of the economic activity on the continent. SACU consists of five member states — Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland. It is the most economically active area in Africa. ■

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Highlights of the Tshwane IBSA SUMMIT declaration

he leaders committed themselves to deepening of South-South cooperation for sustainable development and

eradication of poverty. ■ The leaders welcomed the launch of the Women’s Forum in IBSA and committed themselves to promotion of gender equality and women’s rights. Demanding reforms in the United Nations, they said expansion of the Security Council in permanent and non-permanent categories of membership is essential for greater representation from developing countries. ■The leaders also committed themselves to nuclear disarmament and peaceful use of nuclear energy under the International Atomic Energy Association safeguards. ■ The leaders urged the international community to adhere to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and demanded more quantifiable greenhouse gas emission

reduction targets in the post-2012 period under the Kyoto Protocol. ■ The leaders reaffirmed that terrorism constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. They also underlined the need for a comprehensive convention against international terrorism. They emphasised that international cooperation in combating terrorism be conducted in conformity with the UN resolutions and international conventions. ■ The leaders reiterated their firm belief in the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). They acknowledged that the PanAfrican Infrastructure Development Fund will help accelerate Africa’s growth and development. Noting that the WTO Doha Round of trade negotiations was entering a critical stage, they said that agriculture remains the key to the conclusion of the dialogue. They called for the removal of longstanding distortions and restrictions in international agricultural trade, such as subsidies and trade barriers, that affect the agricultural exports and domestic production in developing countries.

August-October 2007

The leaders took note of the initiatives being taken for the establishment of the India-MERCOSUR-SACU Trilateral Free Trade Agreement. Welcoming the progress in negotiations between MERCOSUR and SACU, the leaders supported a proposal to hold a trilateral ministerial meeting in 2008. ■ The leaders underlined the need to provide a greater voice for and participation by developing countries in the Bretton Woods Institutions. ■ The leaders remained concerned that many developing countries are still far from achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). ■ The leaders recognised the importance of the IBSA Fund Facility for South-South Cooperation and sought to evolve a more effective mechanism for better utilisation of the same. The leaders called for the establishment of joint projects and collaboration for increased usage of alternate sources of energy such as biofuels, synthetic fuels, wind and solar energy to help achieve the objective of energy security. ■

N E W S

E V E N T S

‘Take up challenges, grasp opportunities’ Extracts from the speech by External Affairs Minister at the IBSA Editors Conference in New Delhi on September 5, 2007

t is a matter of great satisfaction to be present at the concluding session of the IBSA Editors Conference. I am glad that an idea that I recall was mooted even as finishing touches were being put to the Joint Communiqué of the IBSA Foreign Ministers during our meeting in July this year, has been brought to fruition so soon. The media in India has been historically free, and dynamic. During the years of our freedom struggle, our national leaders had fought for and won the right to express their views and to openly debate in print the issues of the day. Indeed, many of our freedom fighters were themselves journalists, editors or proprietors of newspapers. Newspapers like Young India and The Harijan published by Gandhiji, or the Al-Hilal and the Al Balagh published by Maulana Azad as well as the National Herald edited by Pandit Nehru, played an important role in mobilising the masses and in raising the awareness of current issues amongst our people. In Brazil and South Africa, the media have led equally important campaigns for the economic empowerment and self-realisation of the people. Today, the global challenges facing our rapidly developing and modernising societies are huge; so too are the global opportunities. Poverty, economic and social inequalities, inequities at a global level or threats such as terrorism to our multi-ethnic, multi-religious societies are some of the major challenges. Our cooperation, exemplified in the IBSA forum, can provide valuable answers to these challenges. In the last three years since the first IBSA Trilateral Commission meeting was held in New Delhi in 2004, we have identified several important areas of cooperation, such as energy, education, agriculture, health, science and technology, public administration and revenue administration. Several IBSA working groups have met. We are looking to develop further people-to-people relations — perhaps through meetings of parliamentarians, members of civil society, through cultural and educational exchanges and through tourism. Indeed, meetings such as this one are intended to show the way forward. There are many important themes that await deliberation at the highest levels — themes such as inter-connectivity, mega-diversity and energy security, which can reinforce our trilateral cooperation and expand the horizons for the development of our rapidly-expanding economies. I want to thank our guests from Brazil and South Africa for responding so readily to our invitation for this visit. I do hope that they have also found some time to see something of India beyond this conference hall. Let me wish all of you a pleasant time for the rest of your sojourn in our country. ■

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee

We are looking to develop further peopleto-people relations — perhaps through meetings of parliamentarians, members of civil society, through cultural and educational exchanges and through tourism. Indeed, meetings such as this one are intended to show the way forward. There are many important themes that await deliberation at the highest levels — themes such as inter-connectivity, mega-diversity and energy security, which can further reinforce our trilateral cooperation.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

‘This century definitely belongs to us’ Extracts from the speech by Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma at the IBSA Editors Conference in New Delhi on September 1, 2007

Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma

here is much that we share, despite the long distance involved when it comes to commuting. That is one of the issues that IBSA is addressing to improve, the connectivity, to ensure there is movement of people. That is what our Prime Minister had said at the last IBSA Summit in Brasilia that we should convert this association into a peoples' movement. India, Brazil and South Africa represent three vibrant democracies. All three countries have multi-cultural societies, are multi-religious and pluralistic. Therefore, as democracies, the leaders of our countries understand the problems that confront the civil society as well as the aspirations of our people. IBSA has made an impact in addressing some of these issues in a trilateral context and also in the global context. We saw our leaders and our countries coming together at the WTO, in the crucial talks in the Doha Development Process. Navtej Sarna told me about the sessions with the media on issues of globalisation, economic order and new technologies. The media has changed in the last few decades. But they still have a long way to go. There are many issues that have been not addressed properly, especially those pertaining to developing countries. I do not find adequate analysis and correct reporting on some of the social issues that concern our societies. Though there is international focus when it comes to Africa, on what is happening in Africa with regard to its development, issues related to poverty and hunger, our own voice and analysis have not made a global impact, as it should have. Therefore, perhaps the time has arrived for us to put our minds togethhe conference of editors from India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) held in New Delhi, India, early in September, offered editors the opportunity to forget deadlines and gain the space to explore ideas on the media and the role of journalists in a changing world. The two-day conference took as its theme, “Globalisation, Emerging Powers, and the World Order: Challenges and New Roles for Media in IBSA” and got off to a start on September 1 with a scene-setter opening address by Minister of State for

er on how to strengthen the media within the IBSA trilateral movement so that we can make our own contributions to the global media scene. It is important that as we move forward we ensure that within IBSA, our economic cooperation, our partnership has a demonstrative effect so that the others in the world take note how these three vibrant democracies of Asia, Africa and Latin America can make their own contributions in resolving global problems; and also to ensure that our process of development and economic growth is sustainable and inclusive, and that it reaches out to those who have been left out in the past. We are trying to do that in India. I know South Africa and Brazil are equally conscious about ensuring inclusive growth, especially for the people living in rural areas, people who are part of the agricultural work force, or unorganised labour. As our economies grow, we will have resources to ensure that there is adequate allocation for the social sector especially health and education besides rural infrastructure which is very important for our countries. The time has come for India, Brazil and South Africa, to provide leadership as emerging powers. I have no doubt that this century does belong to us. ■

Working towards a brand new world External Affairs, Anand Sharma. In the early 1980’s, when the globalisation debate first emerged in academic circles, there was talk about the need for South-South dialogue. More than 20 years later here was such a forum. As South African President Thabo Mbeki remarked at an IBSA business meeting in Brazil last year, “IBSA is an idea whose time has arrived.”

August-October 2007

Common themes emerged. The need for journalists to create the space and interest in IBSA — move away from western role models and give readers a different world they can aspire to. There was consensus that what was needed was a media forum to define a new southern paradigm. However, it would be impossible for editors to organise this on their own; the forum would have to be facilitated within the IBSA process. (Nalini Naidoo, Political Editor, The Natal Witness)

N E W S

E V E N T S

Celebrating India in South Africa

standing ovation for renowned ghatam (clay pot) percussionist Vikku Vinayakram ended a series of public performances, including theatre, music and dance, that were part of a nine-week (August 23 to October 31) long festival of Indian culture organised by the Indian mission in Johannesburg. Titled “Shared Histories, Celebrating India in South Africa”, the extravaganza, part of the annual Arts Alive Festival supported by the City of Johannesburg, featured contemporary and classical music, theatre, dance, craft, food, film and literature. Leading exponents and performers enlivened the India festival. “The objective was to celebrate India’s 60th anniversary of Independence by providing a platform for dialogue and collaborative work between eminent Indian and South African musicians, crafts persons, literary figures and dancers,” said Navdeep Suri, Indian Consul-General in Johannesburg, who initiated the concept and then got Sanjoy Roy of Teamwork Films in New Delhi to coordinate it. Roy said the festival had been so well received that it would certainly be back next year, with newer elements. “As an inaugural event, especially with bringing events such as the masterful puppetry of Dadi Pudumjee to South Africa for the first time, we are very pleased with the responses we got, and it is bound to grow from here,” Suri added. “Particularly gratifying was the way in which local dancers, writers and craftsmen interacted with those we brought from India.” For dancers from the Jhankaar School of Dance in Lenasia, the huge Indian township south of Johannesburg, it was a fitting way to celebrate their 21st anniversary performing alongside celebrated dancer Gilles Chuyen in folk

Navdeep Suri, Indian Consul-General in Johannesburg.

An artiste from Ishara performs with puppets at the festival.

The festival featured contemporary and classical music, theatre, dance, craft, food, film and literature. and contemporary genres. The festival included ‘Words on Water’, where writers from the two countries shared ideas on contemporary writing in India and Indian writing in English for a South African audience, including themes such as “Sex and Sexuality in Indian and South African Writing”. Indian author Namita Gokhale recounted how her daughter’s class teacher had persecuted her at one stage for her mother being a “pornographer”, while the supposed erotic passages she read out were rather tame by Western standards. “If Tarun (Tejpal, her co-panelist) writes about sex, he is a stud; if I write it, I’m a slut”, Gokhale said of the discriminatory approach to erotic writing in India. Other elements of the festival included the ‘Indian Spice Trail’, highlighting cuisines from different regions of India; a retrospective of films featuring Sharmila Tagore, and music performances by the celebrated music group Mrigya. As part of the retrospective, Tagore also visited Durban and Johannesburg. One of the highlights of the festival was the performance by Dadi Pudumjee and his team of puppeteers in a show titled “Images of Truth”, in which actors with masks and puppets portrayed the universal message of Mahatma Gandhi and his struggle against apartheid and communal violence. The festival ended with an exhibition of Indian textiles, including centuries-old pieces, at Museum Africa where master weavers from India showcased their skills of tapestry and imagination. ■

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Sonia meets Mbeki, discusses closer Congress-ANC ties

ongress chief Sonia Gandhi and South African President and ruling ANC leader Thabo Mbeki agreed to forge closer links between their parties as part of a process to strengthen Indo-South African ties. Gandhi was accompanied by India’s Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma in a visit “to strengthen and consolidate political, economic, trade and cultural relations between the peoples of South Africa and India”. The two leaders met at President Mbeki’s residence in Cape Town. Gandhi and Mbeki agreed to forge closer links between the Congress and the ANC as part of the process to strengthen ties between India and South Africa, and with the Workers’ Party of Brazil within the India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) context. Gandhi also expressed interest in South Africa’s Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) programme, which aims to speed up the economic

advancement of the black majority. In the backdrop of their historical ties, South Africa and India regard themselves as strategic partners. Gandhi also visited the South African Parliament and delivered the Mahatma Gandhi Peace Lecture. The Congress president later met former President Nelson Mandela and presented him with a book on the Mahatma. “It’s a privilege, a visit to South Africa wouldn’t be complete without calling on Madiba (Mandela),” Gandhi said. ■

Sonia Gandhi and Mbeki agreed to forge closer links between the Congress and the ANC as part of the process to strengthen ties between India and South Africa and with the Workers' Party of Brazil within the India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) context.

India sends $250,000 in aid to flood-hit Uganda

ndia will provide an emergency assistance of about $250,000 to Uganda that has been facing a flood fury in recent months. The floods in northern and eastern parts of Uganda have reportedly killed several people and affected 3,00,000. Devastating floods have lashed across 20 African countries over the last two months, killing over 300 people and affecting at least 1.5 million. They have been described as the worst floods in Africa in the last 30 years. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sent a letter of condolence to Ugandan President Yoweri Kugata Museveni on the loss of life and property. The Prime Minister also announced an emergency assistance of about $250,000 “as a token of India’s solidarity with the government and people of Uganda”, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Navtej Sarna said. “This amount can be used to provide

The floods have destroyed thousands of thatched huts in Uganda.

relief supplies from India or for local procurement,” he added. Conservative estimates put the total number of people killed in floods, from Ethiopia to as far west as Senegal, at 250. Aid agencies say a million people have been affected and expect the death toll to rise. Though the waters have receded, hundreds of thatched huts and drowned

August-October 2007

acres of sorghum crops now turned brown and fetid in the sun. Meteorologists say Uganda’s weather has become erratic, with unprecedented spells of drought followed by floods. The United Nations fears the floods could lead to outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera and dysentery. ■

N E W S

E V E N T S

Court allows Hindu pupil to wear a nose stud

chool governing bodies will be forced to review their codes of conduct to allow for cultural and religious exemptions. This is the upshot of a Constitutional Court judgment in the case of a Durban mother who challenged her daughter’s school after it refused her permission to wear a nose ring. Navi Pillay and her daughter, Sunali, 18, began their legal battle with Durban Girls’ High School three years ago, when Sunali, then a Grade 9 pupil, pierced her nose. The school’s code of conduct prohibited pupils from wearing jewellery other than small earrings and wristwatches. Sunali is now a journalism student at Rhodes University in Grahamstown. The Durban Equality Court ruled in favour of the school, but the Pietermaritzburg High Court overturned the decision. The school then took the matter to the Constitutional Court, which found that the school’s governing body had discriminated unfairly against Sunali by refusing to grant her an exemption. Sunali said the nose ring was an expression of her culture and religion. Navi Pillay said she felt “blessed” by the judgement. “It is a great victory for parents and children, especially for a child who had

Sunali Pillay was threatened with expulsion.

Navi Pillay and her daughter, Sunali, 18, began their legal battle with Durban Girls’ High School three years ago, when Sunali, then a Grade 9 pupil, pierced her nose.

to cut her dreadlocks or remove her headscarf,” she said. But some headmasters and teachers in Durban are not very happy with the ruling. “Will Zulu children ask to come to school barefoot, saying it’s their culture? What happens when a Christian pupil wears a large crucifix, or a

Muslim pupil comes to school with a beard?” a former deputy principal was quoted as saying in the Daily News. Another teacher said: “School heads go to a huge amount of trouble to establish a culture for their school. Dress codes are not an isolated issue. They are linked to commitment, discipline, identity and self-pride and are intimately connected to all the things a school stands for.” But Navi Pillay said the court’s decision was not a threat to discipline at schools. “Schools are not about churning out robots. By allowing kids to be themselves, they learn more about themselves. How can this affect discipline?” she said. “It has been traumatic three years and I am thrilled Sunali had the final say. We are revelling in a wonderful feeling of closure. This was over for Sunali and me a while ago, but we continued with the case because of other young girls who might want to wear nose studs.” “I am so proud of Sunali. Her final two years at school were stressful. But this has turned her into a woman of substance and we have to thank her old school, the school governing body and the education department for being obnoxious. This made us more determined to prove that she had a right to wear her nose stud to school.” ■

Play at historic prison marks Gandhi Jayanti in South Africa

n enthralling performance by the Ishara Puppet Theatre Trust led by master puppeteer Dadi Pudumjee and the launch of a children’s book on the life and times of the Mahatma marked Gandhi Jayanti in South Africa. The play “Images of Truth” was performed at Constitutional Hill, once the Old Fort Jail where Gandhi, and later Nelson Mandela, were imprisoned during their fight for freedom in South Africa. Invited guests included former prisoners such as Prema Naidoo, now a councillor of the same city where he

was among the second generation of South African Indians tortured for their firm belief in the Gandhian principles of non-violence and freedom for all human beings. Speakers reminded the younger generation that Gandhi’s ideals and principles were born in South Africa. The book Picture Gandhi by Sandhya Rao, a writer of children’s books, was also officially launched at the function. The book tells the story of Gandhi in a fun way for children without sounding like a history textbook. ■

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

New book on timeless India-Egypt ties

ore than 2000 years ago an Indian sailor was found on one of the Red Sea coasts; he was close to death and was taken to the authorities in Alexandria. Convalescing shortly thereafter, the sailor made an offer that if they let him go to his home country he would guide the Egyptians through a direct sea way to India shorter than any other. This event represents the start of direct communications and trade exchange between Egypt and India.” A new book, India and Egypt… Influences and Interactions, traces the origins of historical links between Egypt and India to ancient times through a collection of research conducted by Egyptian and Indian scholars. The hundreds of images in the book help the reader see the differences as well as the similarities between the two cultures, revealing, for one, how far back Egyptian and Indian cultures have interacted in the field of art with paintings, sculptures and different motifs. Indian artefacts like pots or cosmetic cases were discovered in ancient Alexandria. Painted on these pots were pictures of ancient Egyptian gods like Anobees. Another surprising discovery in India was a collection of small

bronze statues of Horus, another ancient Egyptian god, in the hoary Indian city of Gandhar. The book also speaks about business ties between the ancient civilisations. It highlights how old trade routes played an important role in cementing trade exchange and relations between the two peoples. The book has been translated into Arabic by Mohamed Hamed Ali and Khaled Nagy Ali, who work as translators in the Indian embassy in Cairo. The Arabic text has been edited by Basheer Ahmed, director of the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture in Cairo. ■

The hundreds of images in the book help the reader see the differences as well as the similarities between the two cultures, revealing, for one, how far back Egyptian and Indian cultures have interacted in the field of art with paintings and sculptures.

Avoid the underwater crowd by diving off the beaten track

ith underwater sport gaining in popularity worldwide and with millions of people getting a diving licence, the number of neoprene-suited holidaymakers at a popular spot can almost outnumber the fish. Yet adventurous sportsmen and women may still discover some of the finest areas which the aquatic world has to offer, provided they are prepared to fly several hours by aeroplane to get there or else forego a few creature comforts. Many of the lesser-known areas owe their lack of pop-

ularity to their remoteness, lack of tourist infrastructure or political uncertainty. A good example is Sudan. The coral reefs here offer a riot of colour with a wide variety of marine life. They lie in the so-called Coral Triangle where the Pacific and Indians oceans meet. These reefs are among the best in the world. Marine biologist Matthias Bergbauer from Berlin says there are more fish and coral species in these parts than anywhere else in the world. ■

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

Moving towards a UNITED Africa Africa needs a self-reliant Pan-African programme in order to tackle its present disabilities. The solution to a united Africa lies in renewed Pan-Africanism, says Professor K. Mathews “The Vision of the African Union is that of an Africa, Integrated, Prosperous and Peaceful, an Africa driven by its own Citizens, a Dynamic Force in world affairs” (AU Commission, May 2004) [1]

Introduction

frica today is a continent on the cusp of history and destiny. It is on the threshold of a new era. Much of the world sees Africa as one of two extremes. It is either viewed as a continent beset by genocidal warfare, corrupt leaders and rampant poverty or a region about to enter a renaissance. Immense and placed at the dawn of the universe, it occupies one-fifth of the earth’s surface and yet suffers an “intolerable absence” in world affairs crimping its destiny. The continent contains fabulous resources, great peoples, underground treasures — but at the same time largest number (34/50) of least developed countries of the world. But today in the first decade of 21st century Africa there is growing optimism about the future of Africa. The most important development in this direction was the transformation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) into a stronger African Union (AU) formally launched in Durban in July 2002. African leaders took another giant step at the Fourth Ordinary Session of the AU Summit held in Abuja, Nigeria, in January 2005 to consider the proposal of the Libyan leader, Muammar Qaddafi, for rapid acceleration of political integration of Africa. The Seven Member Committee of Heads of State set up at the Abuja Summit reaffirmed at the next Summit in Sirte, Libya, July 2005 that “the ultimate goal of the African Union is full political and economic integration leading to the creation of the United States of Africa”. The ninth summit of the AU held in Accra, Ghana, on July 1-3, 2007 was exclusively devoted to a debate on the proposal to create a Union Government of Africa as a step towards the eventual creation of a United States of Africa (USA). But the majority of “African leaders rejected the idea as premature and unrealistic. While stressing that a United States of Africa was the ultimate goal of the African Union, the leaders decided to

BROTHERS IN ARMS: Unless Africa can talk and act with greater cohesion, it will continue to be ignored by the richer countries.

accelerate the economic integration of existing Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in Africa as a step towards the creation of an African Common Market. They argued that the creation of a United States of Africa would require a change of constitutions, and referendums. They favoured an evolutionary process not a revolutionary one. The 2007 Accra debates in fact resembled the debates that took place at Addis Ababa at the founding Conference of the OAU in May 1963. Indeed the ongoing debate on the creation of a Union Government for Africa as a step towards the final establishment of a United States of Africa by 2015 is not a new one. The term “United States of Africa” was first coined by the Afro-American activist and poet, Marcus Garvey, in his poem ‘Hail, United States of Africa’ in 1924: “Hail, United States of Africa-Free, Hail, Motherland most bright, divinely fair! State in perfect sisterhood united. Born of truth, mighty thou shalt ever be.”

August-October 2007

A F R I C A Garvey’s ideas greatly influenced the growth of PanAfricanist movement that culminated, among others, in the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in Addis Ababa in May 1963 and the creation of the African Union (AU) in Durban in July 2002 and the new proposal for the creation of a United States of Africa by the year 2015. The United States of Africa is a name sometimes given to one version of the possible future unification of Africa as a continental sovereign federation of states similar in formation to the United States of America or the idea of the United States of Europe. An attempt is made in this paper to trace the evolution of the vision of a United Africa and the various attempts at unification of Africa. In order to understand what is happening today and explore the prospects and possibilities of this process we may start by looking at the historical process of the political unification of Africa, particularly the notion of Pan-Africanism. African Unity in Historical Perspective Africa has a long history2. The discovery in Chad in 2003 of the oldest Australopithecus (Toumai) aged seven million years represented a confirmation that Africa is the motherland of humanity. Africans were the first to initiate the gigantic human adventure of progress. Africa was the birthplace and source of civilisation for the longest period in the history of humanity, a period that people persist in describing wrongly as “Prehistoric” for want of written records. At the dawn of “Antiquity”, Africa remained through Egypt, the driving force and teacher of the world with its art of writing and centralised authority, its architectural monuments such as the Pyramids, and its sciences and other achievements. That period accounted for one of the high points in the history of humanity. In fact, the mother of Egypt was Nubia, together with its pre-Saharan extensions, while Egypt itself was undoubtedly the renowned civilisation of the Nile3. This whole period of mankind’s history had specific characteristics. It was from the intermingling of various ecological and often complementary regions that major achievements of the Africans emerged. Firstly, Koush — a period similar to that of the Assyrians; then followed the period of Christian Nubia and then by Carthage with its memorable encounters with Rome. Then we have Axum, Tekrour, Ghana, Kanem and other empires in Africa. This was followed by one thousand years of tremendous and wide-ranging progress throughout the continent from the 7th to the 17th centuries. It was during this period that the northern part of the continent transformed itself into a great commercial hub that gave rise to extensive Muslim space which in turn created an impressive civilisation born of the interaction and fusion of numerous prestigious heritages bequeathed by ecumenism (Byzantine, Turkish, Arabian, Persian, Indian, Chinese, European and the African Sub-Sahara). This crude but prosperous period was also marked by the Fatimides, Almoravides, Almohades and Mali, and saw the blossoming of Llibella in Ethiopia (13th century), and of Zera Yacob (15th century). It saw the prosperity of the Yoruba kingdoms and the Hausa

Q U A R T E R L Y

The slave trade and colonisation played the role of not only slowing down but also of fracturing Africa’s progress. Having been bled by force, for four centuries, of its best brains and manpower, and of between 30 and 100 million of its best sons and daughters, this state of affairs left indelible marks on the continent; it left lasting scars not only in terms of property but also in terms of human assets. States, the Benin and Gao empires (in West Africa), the kingdoms of Kongo, Luba, Lunda and Great Zimbabwe, to the south of which flourished the Egypt of Salah Ed Din and the redoubtable Mamaluk. During this period Africa was replete with autonomous civilisations, both small and extensive, and yet sufficiently harmonious. When the Portuguese with Bartholomew Diaz followed by Vasco Da Gama appeared on the Indian Ocean after having sailed around the entire African landmass in the 15th century in search of “Christians and spices”, the contemporary world was, as it were, already in the making. On the other hand, a black Diaspora sprouted across the continents, while new African hegemonies with increasingly close links with the slave trade system (Bornu, Ashanti, Dahomey, Bambara and Moose) were undergoing spectacularly qualitative changes. All this took place before the 19th century and portrays Africa as a continent brought together, willingly or by force, by African conquerors who at times were inspired by a proselytising Islam, through Chaka, Osman Dan Fodio, El Hadj Omar, Samory Toure, Tippu Tib, Mirambo, El Mahdi and others, some of whom were already faced with the colonialist invasion of European powers. Consequently, the African continent space criss-crossed by external interests — not without heroic resistance and various forms of rejection strategies — missed out on the historic initiative of past Africans. Only the apocalyptic upheavals of the two World Wars, the crisis of the colonialist system and the dogged outcries of oppressed peoples, paved the way for independence. This unique evolutionary trend was part of the historic march to progress of the people of Africa. The slave trade and colonisation played the role of not only slowing down but also of fracturing Africa’s progress. Having been bled by force, for four centuries, of its best brains and manpower, and of between 30 and 100 million of its best sons and daughters, this state of affairs necessarily, left indelible marks on the continent; it left ineffaceable scars not only in terms of property but also in terms of human assets. Africa has, besides, been long exploited. The European “scramble for

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

CHAMPION OF PAN-A AFRICANISM: Pan-Africanism became increasingly identified with Ghana under Kwame Nkrumah’s leadership in the years following the country’s independence in March 1957.

Africa” in the late 19th century artificially divided up Africa among various European powers. The Berlin Conference of 1884-85 was an attempt by European leaders to add some kind of international European agreement to the carving up of Africa that was already underway. A series of European treaties during 1890-91 confirmed many of the internal colonial boundaries of the African continent. Africa was balkanised beyond recognition. Shackled by colonisation, hundreds of thousands of Africans were killed in wars of conquest and “pacification”. Subsequently, further hundreds of thousands of Africans lost their lives in individual wars, such as the war against Nazism. Then came the dirty colonial wars in which Africans were turned against one another for mutual extermination. The above are some of the factors that militated against development in the continent. The pitiable predicament of Africa arises from Africa’s history in terms of the slave trade, colonisation and continued subordination in the world economic and social system. Evolution of Pan-Africanism African unity is closely intertwined with the evolution of Pan-Africanism. Pan-Africanism has been, and remains the most ambitious and most inclusive ideology that Africa devised for itself since the 19th century4. No precise definition of PanAfricanism is available. The conceptual notion of PanAfricanism provided the philosophical framework for such ideas as a ‘United States of Africa’, an ‘African Federation’, or a ‘Union Government of Africa’ — essentially stressing the need for continental African unity as a means to achieving African liberation and development. Over the years, Pan-Africanism has become part and parcel of an emergent African nationalism, serving as a beacon light in the struggle for independence, a prerequisite for the forma-

tion of regional federations of self-governing African communities, which could evolve into a Pan-African Federation or a United States of Africa. Pan-Africanism became increasingly identified with Ghana under Kwame Nkrumah’s leadership in the years following that country’s independence in March 1957. Nevertheless, it is important to trace certain historical factors which gave rise to Pan-Africanism before it found a base in Africa. Their impact was felt by Africans within Africa, and Africans of the Diaspora in the Americas and the Caribbean. As Kwame Nkrumah points out: “Pan-Africanism has its beginning in the liberation struggles of African-Americans, expressing the aspirations of Africans and peoples of African descent. From the first Pan-African Conference, held in London in 1900, until the fifth and the last conference (sic) held in Manchester in 1945, African-Americans provided the main driving power in the movement. “Pan-Africanism then moved to Africa, its true home, with the holding of the First Conference of Independent African States in Accra in April 1958, and the All-African Peoples’ Conference in December of the same year…”5 The ideology of pan-Africanism with its many forms of expression was not only a movement that brought together people of African origin. Pan-Africanism basically is a recognition that Africans have been divided among themselves. It was also a strategy for social solidarity, as well as cultural, political and economic emancipation6. Like all ideologies, PanAfricanism set up a vision of what was desirable in the future, rather than what actually existed. Pan-Africanism is motivated by ideas that emphasises the cultural unity and political independence of African states. The key conceptual themes emerging from Pan-Africanism are the ‘redemption of Africa’, and ‘Africa for Africans’. As Timothy Murithi rightly points out: “Essentially PanAfricanism is a recognition of the fragmented nature of the

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

The main ideas underlying PanAfricanism originated around the 19th century at the height of slavery and at the dawn of colonialism. The history of the movement of Pan-Africanism has been defined by controversy. There have been debates as to whether it is possible to move from the rhetoric and theory of Pan-Africanism towards concrete action. Pan-Africanism originally arose as a reaction to the dehumanisation of the Africans by the slave traders and colonialists. existence of Africans, their marginalisation and alienation whether in their own continent or in the Diaspora.”7 Pan-Africanism as an idea can be traced back to the 19th century. Historically, Pan-Africanism has been expressed in different forms by various actors. There is no single definition of Pan-Africanism and in fact we can say that there are as many ideas about Pan-Africanism as there are thinkers on PanAfricanism. It may, however, be noted that it is the global dispersal of peoples of African descent that is partly responsible for the emergence of the Pan-African movement. In fact, PanAfricanism has taken different forms at different historical moments and geographical locations. What underpins these different perspectives on Pan-Africanism is the belief in some form of unity or common purpose among the peoples of Africa and the African Diaspora. The main ideas underlying Pan-Africanism originated around the 19th century at the height of slavery and at the dawn of colonialism. The history of the movement of PanAfricanism has been defined by controversy. There have been debates as to whether it is possible to move from the rhetoric and theory of Pan-Africanism towards concrete action. PanAfricanism originally arose as a reaction to the dehumanisation of the Africans by slave traders and colonialists. There are four major themes that constitute the key components of PanAfricanism, namely (a) an expression of pride and achievement of Africans; (b) the idea of returning to Africa, a notion mainly promoted by Africans in the Diaspora, notably Marcus Garvey; (c) liberation from colonialism and all forms of oppression; and (d) African unity as a primary objective in the struggle for liberation and development. African unity became a goal as part of the struggle for liberation from European colonialism. The goal of continental unity was driven forward by the vision of Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of independent Ghana and a revolutionary pan-Africanist. Implicit in the notion of Pan-Africanism is the idea that a remedy to the effects of colonialism, alienation and marginalisation is the forging of African unity. However, the challenges to African unity have stayed on. Julius Nyerere, the first

Q U A R T E R L Y

President of Tanzania, rightly observed that the danger to African unity was going to come from external forces. Prior to the inaugural meeting of the OAU in 1963, Nyerere argued that “African unity must come, and it must be a real unity. Our goal must be United States of Africa.” The more conservative African leaders dissented from this view due to their reluctance to relinquish power and privilege, and avoid having a higher authority to monitor their affairs within their national territories. In his seminal work Black Africa: Economic and Cultural Basis of a Federal State8, Cheikh Anta Diop, the well-known Senegalese historian and politician, argued for the need for a federation of African states “from the Tropic of Cancer to the Cape, from the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic”, when Africa’s independence had been established and consolidated. He was effectively making the case for political and economic PanAfricanism. He knew that this would not be an easy task. He observed that “no concrete way has yet been proposed that might lead inevitably and rapidly to the federation of African states, with partial or full surrender of local sovereignty. For all the fine public statements, multifarious individual and general interests are at work to make people cling to the established frontiers of the various territories.”9 Mamo Muchi rightly observes that Pan-Africanism emerged as a form of protest against the degradation of slavery, colonialism and racial discrimination. However, it also has a transformative dimension in that it seeks to map out a vision for a new Africa and her descendants in the Diaspora. This is in fact the more important dimension dealing with the projection of an ideal for uniting and freeing Africans and Africa.10 Only through Pan-Africanism can Africa begin to redefine the terms of engagement with the rest of the world, particularly the West. Institutionalisation of Pan-Africanism Various Pan-African Congresses and Pan-Africanist institutions like the OAU and the AU represent institutionalised Pan-Africanism. Pan-African Conferences and Congresses were the first attempt to institutionalise the idea of PanAfricanism. It was formally inaugurated at the First PanAfrican Conference held in London in July 1900, organised by Henry Sylvester Williams of Trinidad. The professed aim of the conference was to “fight the aggressive policies of British imperialists”. Between 1900 and 1919 when the first of the DuBoisian series of Congresses began to convene, Pan-African activity was akin to protest activity.11 Between 1919 and 1994, a total of seven Pan-African Congresses were held to propagate the idea and strengthen the movement. Through the efforts of Dr. W.E.B. DuBois, known as the father of Pan-Africanism, four Pan-African Congresses were held between 1919 and 1927. The First Pan-African Congress which met in Paris in February 1919 made an appeal to the Paris Peace Conference (which ended the First World War) to end the exploitation of the black races by the white imperialists and demanded the right of the colonised peoples of Africa to self-determination.

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

This and the other three Congresses held in 1921 (London, Brussels and Paris), 1923 (London and Lisbon) and in 1927 (New York) merely called for reforms and urged that Africans be granted a voice in their own governments and stressed the development of Africa for the benefit of Africans rather than for the profit of the Europeans. The Fifth Pan-African Congress held in Manchester, England, in October 1945 marked a turning point in the growth of Pan-Africanism. As Kwame Nkrumah, the main organiser of the Congress pointed out, while the four previous Pan-African Congresses were promoted and supported by Negro reformists from outside the continent of Africa, most of the 200 delegates attending this Congress were from Africa. This Congress greatly facilitated the awakening of African political consciousness that transformed the Pan-African movement into a mass movement of Africa for Africans. It called for Africa’s political and social emancipation. It was also quite explicit on the question of African unity and stressed that the artificial divisions and territorial boundaries created by the colonial powers were deliberate steps to obstruct the political unity of the African peoples. Here the link between Africa’s independence and its unity was made abundantly clear. This was in fact, the first organised attempt to assert what is generally called the ‘African Personality’. After the Manchester Congress with the return of African leaders and delegates to their respective home countries we witness the growth of micro-nationalisms in various African colonies. The interest in wider Pan-African federations declined. In West Africa as elsewhere the question of national self-government became the dominant issue in the following years. The 1950s witnessed the intensification of nationalist struggles in various African countries.12 At the same time, a number of African patriots believed and asserted that self-government represented only a means to ultimate Pan-African aims of political unity, cultural emancipation and economic independence. For instance Dr. R.N. Duchain of Liberia in his Pan-African Manifesto warned that no imperialist nation would welcome the emergence of a strong Africa capable of playing an important role in world affairs. “Most will dread it, while a few which pretend to be friends of Africa wish a free Africa checkered into a multitude of small nations constantly at loggerheads with one another, so as to have a better chance to exploit them.” To ensure African unity and survival, he called for the formation of a Pan-African Federation extending over the whole of Africa and to the south of the Sahara “where Africans will rule themselves and enjoy fully in liberty, and… the inalienable rights of man”. It should be noted that the proposed

Federation embraced African descendants “scattered abroad who want to come back to their motherland and integrate in African life”.13 The independence of Ghana in 1957 marked the beginning of a new phase in the growth of Pan-Africanism. PanAfricanism remained in the realm of ideas until Ghana became a sovereign state. Ghana’s independence removed one of the disabilities under which the movement had operated earlier, namely, the absence of a base in Africa to operate. In fact, from then onwards Pan-Africanism ceased to be in the realm of ideas, but moved into the realm of practical politics and power rivalries. From 1958 onwards, African leaders began to meet at conferences of independent states as well as in non-governmental gatherings of leaders of nationalist movements and trade unions. This period also witnessed increasing political, ideological and power rivalries and conflicts among African leaders which adversely affected the growth of the Pan-African Movement. The first Conference of Independent African States (CIAS) was convened by Kwame Nkrumah in Accra in April 1958. On the question of African political unity, it was evident that the African states had begun to put national sovereignty above ideological considerations of PanAfricanism. It is pertinent to note that though the Conference resolutions recommended a number of steps to promote African unity (including the creation of a African Common Market), they made no mention either of the creation of a United States of Africa, or the eradication of colonial boundaries — two of the fundamental aims of the Pan-African movement until the Fifth Pan-African Congress in Manchester in 1945. It is also pertinent to note that it was at the All African People’s Conference (AAPC), also held in Accra, Ghana, in December 1958 that these key Pan-African issues were again brought up. It was quite clear that while the governmental groups began to preoccupy themselves with traditional power politics above considerations of a Pan-Africanist ideology, the non-governmental or people’s groups aggressively carried forward the pristine ideals of Pan-Africanism unrestrained by the contamination of political power and rivalries. However, the goal of Pan-Africanism, namely the eventual creation of a United States of Africa, became a more serious preoccupation with Nkrumah and a few others than it had been hitherto. Even the idea of regional groupings began to be looked upon as a possible basis for the greater aim of a United Africa. Out of this preoccupation emerged the Ghana-Guinea-Mali Union led of 1958 led by Kwameh Nkrumah, the Pan-African Freedom Movement for the East, Central, and South Africa (PAFMECSA) in 1958, and the later formation of blocs such as the “Brazzaville”, “Casablanca” and “Monrovia” blocs. Also from

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

1958 onwards, Pan-African endeavours began to gain the favour of a ‘National Personality’ within African unity. The attention of organisations in Africa other than governments overwhelming preference was to create a loose organisation (‘people’s Pan-Africanism’) and have since resulted in African based on status quo. As a result, the Charter of OAU signed youths, women, journalists, farmers and trade unions con- at the 1963 Addis Ababa Conference embodied a tragic comvening conferences themselves.14 promise that suited the personal political aspirations of the These developments led to growing political and ideologi- African Heads of State and Government. Interestingly howcal polarisation in the Pan-African movement among inde- ever, many ironically hailed the formation of OAU as the pendent African states. At the Second All-African People’s greatest achievement of the Pan-African movement since it Conference (AAPC) held in Tunis, Tunisia, in January 1960, was formally launched in London in July 1900. Ghana’s proposal for political union of Africa was rejected. The emerging division between the radical and conservative groups OAU and Pan-Africanism of African states was confirmed at the Second Conference of Independent African States (CIAS) held in Addis Ababa in The establishment of OAU in 1963 was the culmination of June 1960. At this conference, the majority of African leaders successive attempts at establishing an inter-African organisarejected the idea of a political union as premature, instead pre- tion.17 The emotional impetus for OAU’s birth was provided ferring some sort of functional cooperation among African by the colonial situation. The deep-rooted unity of African states. The Nigerian delegate told the gathering that Ghana’s states manifested itself first in the development of Pandemand for immediate political unity was merely a ploy to Africanism as an expression of African cultural nationalism and later in what was called the make Nkrumah the ruler of the whole of Africa! However, The emerging division between the “African Personality”. The broad aims and objectives of by the end of 1962, a number radical and conservative OAU, as set out in Articles II of neutral Africa leaders such and III of its Charter, were to: as Emperor Haile Selassie of groups of African states was promote unity and solidarity of Ethiopia and Julius Nyerere confirmed at the Second the African states; coordinate of Tanzania among others began to call for reconciliation Conference of Independent African and intensify efforts to achieve a better life for the peoples of between the radical States (CIAS) held in Addis Ababa Africa; defend their sovereignCasablanca and conservative Monrovia blocs. There devel- in June 1960. At this conference, the ty, territorial integrity and independence; eradicate all forms oped a growing trend towards rapprochement in African majority of African leaders rejected of colonialism from Africa; and promote international cooperpolitics in 1962-63. It was the idea of a political union as ation, with due regard to the under these circumstances premature, instead they preferred Charter of the United Nations that the historic Summit of 30 Heads of States comprising all some sort of functional cooperation and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. the independent African states among African states. Other provisions of the was held in Addis Ababa in OAU Charter affirmed the May 1963 which led to the principles of equality of all formation of the first major Pan-African organisation, namely the Organisation of African Member States with each other; non-interference in the internal affairs of other states; respect for existing frontiers of memUnity.15 The question of African unity, as to what form African unity ber states; and peaceful settlement of disputes. The charter should take, became the cardinal issue at the Addis Ababa equally condemned all forms of political subversion and assasConference.16 Not unexpectedly, the vast majority of African sinations and bound the Member States in a pledge to work Heads of State attending the summit opposed Nkrumah’s for the liberation of African peoples then still under colonial radical proposals for African Unity. Even normally radical rule in Southern Africa. states like Modibo Keita’s Mali joined in opposing Nkrumah’s The OAU Charter was indeed a reflection of a compromise position on aspects such as the defence of the existing fron- between prevailing opinions, especially among the Casablanca tiers. According to Modibo Keita, the colonial system divid- and Monrovia Groups, envisaging a unity transcending ethed Africa but it permitted nations to be born. He said: “Present nic and national differences. From the point of view of Panfrontiers should be respected and sovereignty of each state Africanism, the OAU Charter adopted at the Addis Ababa must be consecrated by a multilateral non-aggression pact.” summit in May 1963 as a pivot on which African unity would The general desire to protect national sovereignty and iden- revolve remained practically a dead letter. Firstly, it was a comtity was overwhelming. Many even questioned the validity of promise charter in which the radical states who were zealous the Pan-African idea and of an ‘African Personality’, describ- for unity conceded vitally to the conservatives who did not ing it as a reflection of an inferiority complex. In fact, far from even raise a faint echo that such a problem existed. It is pertisupporting the ‘African Personality’, most leaders were in nent to note that the word ‘Pan-Africanism’ does not appear

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

even once in the whole Charter! It was clearly based on the principle of unrestrained national sovereignty which militates against wider unions. It may be noted that five out of the seven basic principles of the OAU Charter (Article III) are clearly in defence of sovereign rights of member states and the protection of their Heads of State and Government. The very first principle, namely “sovereign equality of all member states” is a clear rejection of the Pan-Africanist contention that there were many unviable and very small “sovereign” states in Africa. The political foundation of OAU, notably the blatantly hypocritical principle of “non-interference in the internal affairs of member states”, the toleration extended to all regimes whatever their nature, the respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty of existing states, amounting as it does to absolute recognition of colonial frontiers, and are all fundamental breaks with pristine Pan-Africanism. The VIth and VIIth Pan-African Congresses The limitation of OAU has been clear to many militants and Pan-Africanists ever since its inception. Thus it was not surprising that in the 1970s efforts were made to revive the PanAfrican Movement and the Pan-African Congresses. The early 1970s represented the decade of a renewed onslaught by liberation movements in Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bisseau, Zimbabwe and South Africa against colonisation and settler minority racist rule. Therefore, the organisers wanted to provide concrete support for the liberation efforts. The VIth PanAfrican Congress was held in June 1974 at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and was attended by 52 delegations from Africa and the Diaspora — it was at once the most representative and the most controversial of all Pan-African Congresses. As was to be expected, this Congress mirrored the global ideological and political struggles of the period and their manifestations within the Pan-African world. The lead in many cases was taken by the liberation movements. Perhaps,

the greatest weakness of the Sixth Pan-African Congress was its inability to transform all the good resolutions into concrete organisational and institutional frameworks of action.18 The VIIth Pan-African Congress was held 20 years later in April 1994 in Kampala, Uganda. More than 30 African countries were represented by different political forces and groups, especially opposition and pro-democracy groups and youth and women groups. Over 1,000 Africans and those in the Diaspora turned up to witness the re-awakening of a PanAfrican movement that had been held in abeyance since the last gathering in Tanzania in 1974. The Kampala Congress placed emphasis on mass grassroots and popular participation.19 There was concerted effort among the participants to transform the Pan-African Movement into an authentic voice of Africa and the Diaspora. Briefly, the Seventh Pan-African Congress succeeded in laying the foundations for a firm bridge joining Africans on the continent and those in the Diaspora at various levels. There was a general awareness among the participants of the primacy of collective action in order to deal with the threat posed to the African race. AU and the Revival of Pan-Africanism The establishment of AU in July 2002 replacing the 39-yearold OAU in a way symbolised a revival of Pan-Africanism.20 The ideological basis of AU as that that of its predecessor, the OAU, is pan-Africanism — that is, a desire to promote unity, solidarity, cohesion and cooperation among the peoples and states of Africa. The problem of creating political and economic unity in Africa, for which OAU was created in 1963, remained an unfinished task. Pan-Africanism may have accelerated the achievement of political independence for black people, but economic independence remained the crucial problem. It was in an attempt to tackle this fundamental problem that OAU was replaced by AU. The OAU was more political than economic in its orientation21 and was conceived

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

primarily out of a determination to safeguard and consolidate resurrected from the ashes of continuing conflicts, famine, Africa’s political independence, sovereignty and territorial poverty and marginalisation in the world and achieve African integrity. The formation of AU, on the other hand, was Renaissance. It is this vision that led to the transformation of prompted by the need to address socio-economic and politi- OAU into the African Union. The change from OAU to AU cal challenges facing the continent in the 21st century. The idea in a real sense represented a qualitative improvement in the of African political unification as advocated by Kwame process of inter-African cooperation and integration that is Nkrumah could not find support among the vast majority of expected to impact positively on the living conditions of African leaders in the 1950s and 1960. The majority of African Africans and in the long run, lead to political and economic states then were not ready to come together in a strong union union of the continent. Of course, AU does not provide for of African states. The decade of the 1990s, however, witnessed an end to the sovereignty of Africa’s individual states or to the major developments marking a crucial turning point in African creation of a United States of Africa. The AU vision foresees history. Among others, the emergence of a United Europe fol- a peaceful, integrated and prosperous Africa, driven by its peolowing the Maastricht Treaty ple, a dynamic force in the in 1991, confronted Africa and global community.22 The 1990s witnessed an The objectives of AU are the rest of the Third World efflorescence of democracy all different and more comprewith enormous challenges. Africa needed to undertake a over the continent. In the 1990s hensive than those of OAU. The main objectives of AU, as serious reappraisal of its standmulti-party elections were contained in its Constitutive ing in the comity of nations. Act, are to: achieve greater Otherwise its increasing held in more than 30 unity and solidarity between marginalisation could have countries across Africa. African countries and the peodelinked it from the world ples of Africa; defend the economy. These considera‘African Renaissance’ soon sovereignty, territorial integritions prompted OAU to ty and independence of its attempt to establish a new Panbecame the buzzword member states; accelerate the African economic grouping. for the emerging generation political and socio-economic Thus the OAU at its 27th integration of the continent; Annual Summit in Abuja, of African leaders, notably promote and defend African Nigeria, on June 3, 1992, Nelson Mandela and common positions on issues adopted the Abuja Treaty to of interest to the continent and establish the African Thabo Mbeki of South Africa. its peoples; and to promote Economic Community democratic principles and (AEC) by the year 2025. After ratification the Abuja Treaty came into force on May 12, 1994. institutions, popular participation and good governance and Primarily, AEC aimed at promoting economic, social and cul- promotion of peace and stability and human rights in Africa. tural development and the integration of Africa — in order to In order to achieve these objectives, AU has created various increase economic self-reliance and promote endogenous and institutions such as the Peace and Security Council. self-sustained development. The process of establishing AEC Significantly, AU also adopted a Non-Aggression and was to continue for 34 years passing through six major stages Common Defence Pact early in 2005. The African Union is moulded on the lines of the European through the consolidation of the common market structure; an African Monetary Union, African Central Bank, a single Union and seeks a higher form of collaborative union for the African currency and creation of an African Union, and a Pan- continent. Unlike its predecessor — the OAU — AU has the right and power to intervene in the internal affairs of its memAfrican Parliament. The historic transition from apartheid to democracy in ber states in respect of grave circumstances such as war crimes, South Africa, also in May 1994, was another major develop- genocide and crimes against humanity.23 It ensures respect for democracy, human rights, the rule of ment in Africa. The 1990s also witnessed an efflorescence of democracy all over the continent. In the 1990s multi-party law and good governance and promotes social justice. It also elections were held in more than 30 countries across Africa. promotes rejection of impunity, political assassinations and ‘African Renaissance’ soon became the buzzword for the acts of terrorism. It condemns and rejects unconstitutional emerging generation of African leaders, notably Nelson changes of government.24 The AU has been conceived as an Mandela and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa. Many African institution with a re-invigorated mandate and vision for the leaders started using the term as away of comparing the past continent. In the short span of six years of its existence (2002“Old Africa” with the emerging “New Africa” in order to 08), AU has proved much more effective and forward looking chart the future at a time of far reaching continental changes. and has made modest progress in many fields. The establishThe idea of an African Renaissance embodies the vision of a ment of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) in March 2004 and more dynamic, stable, united and prosperous Africa. Many the all important Peace and Security Council in May 2004 are new African leaders believed that Africa was capable of being significant achievements. Although PAP does not yet have full

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

legislative powers, it is expected to do so in five years’ time, when its members will be elected directly by full universal suffrage. Eventually, it will become AU’s law-making branch. Without peace security, the main driver of AU, there can be no economic development. The main challenges facing PSC are the creation of the proposed African Standby Force (ASF) and AU’s Early Warning System. To be set up in a phased manner by 2010, the ASF will undertake peacekeeping operations, including military interventions, if justified. It will also be concerned with humanitarian operations and post-conflict peace building.25 A key objective will be eliminating the occurrence of unconstitutional changes of government in Africa. It may be noted that remarkable progress has been made by AU in the resolution of many conflict situations in Africa in recent years, such as those in the Comoros, Burundi, Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Sudan, Ethiopia-Eritrea, Somalia, the Great Lakes Region, Chad and Central African Republic. One of the most serious crises faced by the continent is in Darfur, Western Sudan, which has experienced the most catastrophic humanitarian situation since 2003. The ongoing crisis in Darfur has come to be seen as a test for the African Union. The deployment of a Military Observer Mission in Darfur (AMIS) was created in pursuance of the humanitarian ceasefire agreement of April 8, 2004. Currently a hybrid UN-AU Mission in Darfur (Unamid) is in operation. The introduction of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) has been another important aspect of AU’s work. Africa has often been, and not without reason, criticised for poor governance, where many African leaders mismanage their economies, become dictators and put their personal interests above that of the nation. To deal with this problem, the APRM was set up to encourage member states to ensure that their policies and practices conform to agreed political, economic and corporate governance values, codes and standards enshrined in the New Partnership of Africa’s Development (NEPAD), adopted by the African Heads of State in 2001. The APRM is an African owned and managed process that will measure four substantive areas: democracy and political governance; economic governance and management; corporate governance; and socio-economic development. It is important to note that so far some 26 countries have voluntarily agreed to subject themselves to such scrutiny.26 Sub-Regional Groupings and African Unity It may be noted that Pan-Africanism today manifests itself mainly in the form of regional cooperation and integration schemes in Africa. Regional cooperation is not entirely new in Africa. In the colonial era, cooperative arrangements existed among territories ruled by each colonial power. Africa had and still has quite a number of them but they are mainly noticeable for their failure to achieve anything meaningful in their respective regions. There is no denying the fact that regional cooperation is the surest way forward for the continent’s economic development.27 Institutions for regional cooperation have been created in Africa since independence. The main purpose of these

Regional cooperation is not entirely new in Africa. In the colonial era, cooperative arrangements existed among territories ruled by each colonial power. Africa had and still has quite a number of them but they are mainly noticeable for their failure to achieve anything meaningful in their respective regions. organisations is to promote trade and development within specific regions. They have also made it easier for the African Union to deal with specific conflicts by collaborating with them. Regional organisations are playing a significant role in building up the strength of African unity. The AU has collaborated with these organisations on different issues. It is pertinent to note that in its interventions, the AU will not always take the lead on specific challenges and will occasionally refer to the efforts of the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) established around the continent. Presently there are 14 major regional groupings in Africa out of which the following eight are recognised by AU: the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the East African Community (EAC), and the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD). These Regional Groupings though to some extent have made some progress, they share certain problems which have hindered cooperation. There is lack of unity and commitment among them and often reaching an agreement has become difficult. Certain obstacles faced by all the regional groupings are: political instability and economic nationalism of individual states, difference in ideology, language and culture, and heavy dependence on external aid. Another problem is the existence of several organisations with conflicting aims. There are numerous obstacles to be overcome if regional integration in Africa is to succeed.28 It would be difficult at present since most African resources are tied to the interests of the western world and directed by external decision-makers.29 Many experts hold the view that it would be unrealistic under the present world economic order in which most African resources are tied to the economic and strategic interests of the developed world, purely dependent on and directed by external decision-makers.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Another question that is often asked is whether or not the former colonial powers would readily give up their spheres of influence and their sources of raw materials. This is particularly true of France’s politico-economic dominance over its former African colonies. The Rationale for African Unity For years, African politicians from all parts of the continent have called for African unity. They have presented the political and economic arguments for unity, but they have not always set out the details of how it could be achieved.30 It must be remembered that out of the 48 states of the sub-Saharan Africa more than 25 have populations of less than five or six million inhabitants and that only Nigeria has a population of over 100 million. Most of them have small internal markets, limited infrastructure, new and fragile borders and economies vulnerable to fluctuating world prices. Some 17 of them are landlocked. As many have rightly pointed out, no African state is economically large enough to construct a modern economy alone. Africa as a whole has enough resources for the much needed industrialisation.31 Without access to a larger market area that could only be created through economic integration, it is impossible for these small countries to grow economically and develop. Economic and political integration, therefore, become the essential element for the sustainable development of Africa.32 A united Africa would also command more respect in the world on account of its larger market and greater economic and military power and potential. Regional unity increases comparative advantage when it comes to negotiating in international forums. Undoubtedly, prospective investors would be more inclined to invest in a united Africa, particularly if they can be assured of access to larger markets. A united Africa

Q U A R T E R L Y

would also have access to more human and material resources. Another argument in favour of a united Africa is that it would be able to mount a credible defence force to guard African interests against internal and external attacks. Most African countries, particularly the former French colonies, depend on French forces for their security thus jeopardising their own sovereignty. Individual African states also spend a disproportionate amount of their national budgets on defence. Through pooling of their defence capacity, African countries can spend less on defence and gain better security. As Kwame Nkrumah rightly noted, “it is ridiculous, indeed suicidal, for each state separately and individually to assume such a heavy burden of self-defence”.33 The artificial borders that separate the national territories of African states — being coextensive of the imperialist objectives of the colonial powers — are divisive of peoples united by history and geography. The political map of Africa contains hardly any border that has not destroyed the natural unity of extensive regions. It may be said that the main difficulties that beset contemporary Africa are principally rooted in the territorial shredding of the continent. To strive for political unification of the continent is the crucial need for the rebirth of an African power. In this regard, Africans could draw inspiration from the recent history of big powers around the world such as the United States, Soviet Union, China, India, Germany and an emerging United Europe. The example of the United States of America is most striking. Alexander Hamilton devised a programme to use economic policy as an instrument for American unification and power. It was through diplomacy and war that the United States territory was broadened: war against Mexico and the Civil War. The history of the formation of the United States of America in the late 18th century must serve as a lesson and reason for hope for the African peoples. The vastly diverse

August-October 2007

I N

F O C U S

nationalities, cultures and languages of America did not set themselves up as independent nationalities but melded into one impressive nation. The American example negates the argument according to which it is impossible to bring all peoples of Africa together.34 The vast economic power of the erstwhile Soviet Union was founded on the immense geo-economic space of the USSR. A vast territory with considerable agricultural space, abundant natural resources and a sizeable population are the factors that enabled the USSR to become a modern industrial power. This is also applicable to the post-Soviet Russia. The same could be said of China, which, with a territory of about 10 million square kilometres and a population of over one billion, has made spectacular progress since its 1949 revolution in becoming a nation of the first order. The example of India is also pertinent. In the 5,000 years of its history, India was never united: it had always been a group of different states. It may be worth recalling that there were 554 separate Indian states at the time of its independence in 1947 that occupied twothirds of India while the rest of India was British India. The heroic efforts of Sardar Vallabhai Patel led to the establishment of the foundation of a union of India and its later success and strength. Otherwise India would not have been what it is today! At the Vienna Congress in 1815, Germany was composed of 39 autonomous states under the honorary presidency of the emperor of Austria. The Germany that emerged from the Vienna Congress was characterised by an impressive number of internal customs

duties that hampered commercial growth, promoted English goods, and prevented the attainment of territorial unity and German economy could hardly develop. It was the creation of the German Customs Union (Deutscher Zolverein) which became a solid instrument for the subsequent unification of the country under the aegis of Berlin in 1870. This helped generate the renaissance of contemporary German power. A telling lesson indeed for Africans, confronted as they are with the same problems as the Germans were in the aftermath of the Vienna Congress. The rebirth of German power following its territorial unification in 1870 demonstrates that unity is the prime source of the power of the peoples. If there were any need for further proof to enlighten Africans about the need for economic and political unity, we could turn to modern Western Europe, a continent composed of old nations that for centuries settled disputes through blood and gore. Western Europe whose economic growth had to suffer between the two world wars because of the autarchic policies of national governments, awakened its leaders at the end of the 1940s to embark in the direction of forming a single vast west European geo-economic and political space, in the face of American and Soviet hegemony. For the promoters of the European Economic Community, created in 1957, the idea was to enhance economic growth within a vast transnational space encompassing the territories of all the member states. The establishment of the European Union (EU) in 1993 following the historic Maastricht Treaty of 1992 and the creation of a single European currency â&#x20AC;&#x153;Euroâ&#x20AC;?

August-October 2007

A F R I C A in 1999, have led to commendable economic, technological, scientific and political successes — it is an example that Africa can profitably endeavour to follow. Conclusion Fifty years have passed since most of the existing states in Africa acquired formal political independence. However, as the NEPAD document (2001) rightly points out, “the poverty and backwardness of Africa stand in stark contrast to the prosperity of the developed world”. The challenging task before Africa is to build a strong continental state, powerful enough to keep all intruders out, rich enough to bring prosperity to all its citizens. In short, Africa needs a self-reliant Pan-African programme in order to tackle its present disabilities. In other words, the solution to the problems of Africa lies in renewed Pan-Africanism.36 For over a century now, various African leaders have called for African unity, but there was no unanimity as to the methods and means to be adopted to achieve that ideal. The inauguration of AU in 2002 was a historic milestone for the continent. It offers a major opportunity for Africa to establish and provide an effective and legal and institutional mechanism to promote unity and prosperity. Of course there are many hurdles to make the AU vision of an ‘Integrated, Prosperous and Peaceful Africa’ into a reality. The formation of a ‘United States of Africa’, a ‘Union Government of Africa’, and one army is now within the realm of possibility.

Q U A R T E R L Y

The AU has laid the foundation for such an evolution. In order for AU to succeed, there has to be genuine commitment to unity and a strong political will to implement its plan of action. Africa’s present day leaders have an opportunity to learn from the mistakes of the past and prepare Africa for its rightful place in the family of nations. Dr. Nkrumah’s scheme for one government for the whole continent may appear utopian. Yet, indeed, borders in Africa are arbitrary, states are hardly established, and are often so tiny as not to be viable. They have no national basis, barring a few exceptions. If the present states have no national basis, if they cannot thrive and grow, why indeed should they not be grouped into One big State? Such is the rational basis of Kwame Nkrumah’s thesis. It is the opposite of utopia. What is utopic is to persevere in trying to build an Africa into a mosaic of pseudo-states. Without creating a strong, democratic, independent and self-reliant ‘New Africa’, the continent will continue to remain an easy prey to external economic and strategic interests. Africans are one people and have one destiny regardless of the artificial boundaries created by the Europeans. Africa is one and indivisible as you cannot divide the sea or the running water of a river. As Nkrumah rightly noted in 1963, “divided we are weak; united, Africa could become one of the greatest forces for good in the world”.37 The true aspirations of Africans are summed up by the Ethiopian poet laureate, Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin, who wrote: “Let us unite to give the best we have to Africa, the cradle of mankind. Let us make Africa the Tree of Life!” ■

Notes and References 1. AU Commission, 2004-2007 Strategic Framework of Decline of Pan-Africanism”, Nigerian Journal of International the African Union Commission, May, p. 7 Affairs, Vol. 5-7, 1983, pp. 45-61 2. UNESCO, UNESCO History of Africa, 8 Vols. 13. R. N. Duchain, The Pan-African Manifesto, Accra, 3. Hoffman, M. A., Egypt Before the Pharaohs: The Guinea Press, 1957, p. 9 Prehistoric Foundations of Egyptian Civilization, London: 14. See V. B. Thompson, op. cit., Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1980; and Lewis, B., The Arabs in 15. For details see, Chimelu Chime, Integration and Politics History, London: Hutchinson University Press, 1970 Among African States, Uppsala, Scandinavian Institute of 4. See Tasjudeen Abdul-Raheem, (Ed), Pan-Africanism, African Studies, 1977, pp. 140-200 London, Pluto Press, 1996 16. Ibid., 5. Kwame Nkrumah, Africa Must Unite, New York, 17. K. Mathews “The OAU and Regional Cooperation in International Publishers, 1970 Africa”, in N. N. Vohra & K. Mathews (ed.) Africa, India and 6. Timothy Murithi, The African Union: Pan-Africanism, South-South Cooperation, New Delhi, Har Anand Peacebuilding and Development, Aldershot, England, Ashgate Publications, 1997, pp. 205-229 Publishing Ltd. 2005, p. 7 18. See Speeches and Documents of the VIth Pan-African 7. Ibid, p. 8 Congress, Dar es-Salaam, 1975 8. Cheikh Anta Diop, Black Africa: The Economic and 19. For a detailed Report on the VIIth Pan-African Cultural Basis of a Federal State, Chicago, Lawrence Hill Congress, See, West Africa, 25 April, 1 May, 1994, pp. 736-47 Books, 1984 20. See K. Mathews, “The African Union and the 9. Ibid, p. 17 Renaissance of Pan-Africanism”, India International Centre 10. Mamo Muchi (Ed.) The Making of the African Nation: Quarterly, Vol, 31, No. 1, 2005 Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance, London, Adonis & 21. Ibid., Abey Publishers, 2003, p. 7 22. See Timothy Murithi, op. cit., 11. V.B. Thompson, Africa and Unity: The Evolution of 23. Article 4 (h) of the Constitutive Act of the AU Pan-Africanism, London, Longman, 1969 24. Article 4 (m), (p) and Article 30 of the Constitutive Act 12. K. Mathews, “A Polemical Note on the Growth and of the AU

August-October 2007

A F R I C A N

S O L U T I O N S

Grand Debate: Towards a FEDERAL UNION of Africa The problems of Africa cannot be solved in an isolated way. There is a strong need to include African citizens in the debates leading up to the formation of a Union Government of Africa, says Tim Murithi

F Introduction

This paper will assess the origins of Pan-Africanism and disive years after the inception of the cuss the norms that animated this movement. It will then African Union (AU) in July 2002, it is assess how Pan-Africanism was institutionalised in the form appropriate to reflect on the debate on of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and the presentthe prospects of further continental day African Union (AU). It will argue that the Grand Debate integration and the impending transi- on the Union Government is only the latest incarnation of an tion to the Union Government attempt to institutionalise Pan-Africanism. Understanding the Project. During the Eighth Ordinary reasons why Pan-Africanism gained currency as a movement Session of Assembly of Heads of State and liberatory ideology will help us to understand this Grand and Government of the African Union Debate. The past in this sense is influencing the present and (AU) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from January 29-30, 2007, a will ultimately inform the future. We can also question decision was taken to devote the next meeting of the Assembly whether the Union Government of Africa Project will be built to an elaborately titled “Grand Debate on the Union on a solid enough foundation to realise the aspirations of PanAfricanism. Government”. From May 8-9, 2007, What is Panthe Executive Council Africanism? of Ministers of Foreign Affairs met in Durban, It is often assumed South Africa, to brainthat the process of storm the state of the continental integration Union. The question began with an arises as to whether this Extraordinary Summit is the appropriate debate of the Organisation of to be had at this time, African Unity (OAU) when the continent is convened in Sirte, afflicted with so many Libya, in 1999. In fact, other problems and the process began with challenges? To what the Pan-African extent are the majority of African people aware Signing the Charter of the Organisation of African Unity in Africa Hall, May 25, 1963. movement and its that this debate is going on? If they are not aware, who is hav- demand for greater solidarity among the peoples of Africa. To ing this conversation on their behalf? How can a Union understand the emergence of the African Union, we need to Government Project succeed if it does not have the buy-in and understand the evolution of the Pan-African movement. A review of the objectives and aspirations of Pan-Africanism the support of the people of Africa? But before we can even begin to grapple with these ques- provides a foundation to critically assess the creation of AU and tions this paper seeks to pose the question: How we have got its prospects for promoting the principles and norms of peace to the point that we are discussing a Union of Africa and development. Historically, Pan-Africanism — the perception by Africans Government or the so-called United States of Africa? Only by tracing the trajectory of the evolution of the notion of Pan- in the diaspora and on the continent that they share common Africanism can be begin to contextualise the impetus behind goals — has been expressed in different forms by various the impending “Grand Debate on the Union Government”. actors. There is no single definition of Pan-Africanism and in

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

fact, we can say that there are as many ideas about Pan- darity amongst Africans. Genuine dialogue and debate in Africa Africanism as there are thinkers of Pan-Africanism. Rather will not always generate consensus, but at least it will be diathan being a unified school of thought, Pan-Africanism is logue among Africans about how they might resolve their more a movement which has as its common underlying theme problems. If ideas are not designed by the Africans themselves, the struggle for social and political equality and the freedom then rarely can they be in the interests of Africans. from economic exploitation and racial discrimination. It is interesting to note that it is the global dispersal of peo- The Organisation of African Unity ples of African descent that is partly responsible for the emergence of the Pan-African movement. As Hakim Adi and In the 20th century, the idea of Pan-Africanism took on an Marika Sherwood observe in their book Pan-African History: institutional form. Initially, there was the Pan-African Political Figures from African and the Diaspora Since 1787, Congress which convened in the United Kingdom and the “Pan-Africanism has taken on different forms at different his- United States of America, under the leadership of activists like torical moments and geographical locations”. the African-American writer and thinker W.E.B. du Bois; the Adi and Sherwood note that, what underpins these differ- Trinidadian Henry Sylvester Williams; and inspired often by ent perspectives on Pan-Africanism is “the belief in some form the ideas of people like the Jamaican-American Marcus of unity or of common purpose Garvey. These ideas were adopted Pan-Africanism is a recognition and reformed by continental African among the peoples of Africa and the African Diaspora”. One can also of the fragmented nature of the leaders in the middle of the 20th cendetect an emphasis on celebrating tury. existence of Africans, their “Africanness”, resisting the exploitaKwame Nkrumah who later marginalisation and alienation tion and oppression of Africans and became the first president of Ghana, their kin in the Diaspora as well as whether in their own continent or Sekou Toure of Guinea, Leopold staunch opposition to the ideology of Senghor of Senegal, Banar Abdel in the Diaspora. Pan-Africanism Nasser of Egypt, Ali Ben Bella of racial superiority in all its overt and seeks to respond to Africa’s covert guises. Algeria took the idea of PanPan-Africanism is an invented Africanism to another level on May underdevelopment. notion. It is an invented notion with 25, 1963 when they co-created the Pan-Africanism calls upon a purpose. We should therefore pose Organisation of African Unity Africans to draw from their own (OAU). The principles of OAU kept the question what is the purpose of Pan-Africanism? Essentially, Panthe spirit of Pan-Africanism alive. strengths and capacities and Africanism is a recognition of the The primary objective of this princibecome self-reliant. fragmented nature of the existence ple was to continue the tradition of of Africans, their marginalisation and solidarity and cooperation among alienation whether in their own continent or in the Diaspora. Africans. Pan-Africanism seeks to respond to Africa’s underdevelopDuring the OAU era, the key challenge was colonialism. ment. Africa has been exploited and a culture of dependency Since 1885, however, in what was then known as the on external assistance unfortunately still prevails on the con- “Scramble for Africa”, European colonial powers had tinent. If people become too reliant on getting their support, colonised African peoples and communities across the entire their nourishment, their safety, from outside sources, then continent. The Belgians were in the Congo, the British in they do not strive to find the power within themselves to rely East, South, West and North Africa. The French were in West on their own capacities. Africa, Somalia, Algeria and other parts of North Africa while Pan-Africanism calls upon Africans to draw from their own the Italians were in Somalia. The Germans, who later lost strengths and capacities and become self-reliant. their colonies following their defeat in the Second World War, The idea is a recognition that Africans have been divided had to relinquish Namibia and modern-day Tanzania. Africans among themselves. They are constantly in competition among had successfully fought on the side of the allies in the Second themselves, deprived of the true ownership of their own World War and after its conclusion brought their struggle for resources and inundated by paternalistic external actors with independence back home to Africa. ideas about what is “good” for them. Modern-day paternalism The OAU embraced the principle of Pan-Africanism and is more sophisticated and dresses itself up as a kind and gen- undertook the challenge of liberating all African countries tle helping hand with benign and benevolent intentions. In from the grip of settler colonialism. The main principle that reality, it seeks to maintain a “master-servant” relationship and it was trying to promote was to end racial discrimination upon does not really want to see genuine empowerment and inde- which colonialism with its doctrine of racial superiority was pendence of thought in Africa. The net effect of this is to dis- based. In addition, OAU sought to assert the right of Africans empower Africans from deciding for themselves the best way to control their social, economic and political affairs and to deal with the problems and issues they are facing. achieve the freedom necessary to consolidate peace and develPan-Africanism is a recognition that the only way out of this opment. existential, social, political crisis is by promoting greater soliThe OAU succeeded in its primary mission, with the help

August-October 2007

A F R I C A N

S O L U T I O N S

of international actors, in liberating the continent on April 27, issued reports acknowledging their failures. The impetus for 1994 when a new government based on a one-person-one- the adoption of a new paradigm in the promotion of peace and vote came into being in South Africa under the leadership of security in the African continent emerged following the Nelson Mandela. The OAU, however, was not as effective in Rwandan tragedy. monitoring and policing the affairs of its own Member States Regrettably due to the doctrine of non-intervention, the when it came to issues OAU became a silent of violent conflict, witness to the atrocipolitical corruption, ties being committed economic mismanby some of its agement, poor goverMember States. nance, lack of human Eventually, a culture rights, lack of gender of impunity and equality, and poverty indifference became eradication. entrenched in the The preamble of international relations the OAU Charter of of African countries 1963 outlined a comduring the era of the mitment by Member “proxy” wars of the States to collectively Cold War era. So in establish, maintain effect, the OAU was a and sustain the toothless talking “human conditions shop. The OAU was for peace and securiperceived as a club of ty”. However, in parAfrican Heads of African leaders at a meeting of the OAU. allel, the same OAU States, most of whom Charter contained the provision to “defend the sovereignty, were not legitimately elected representatives of their own citterritorial integrity and independence of the member states”. izens but self-appointed dictators and oligarchs. This negative This was later translated into the norm of non-intervention. perception informed people’s attitude towards OAU. It was The key organs of OAU — the Council of Ministers and the viewed as an organisation that existed sans any impact on the Assembly of Heads of State and Government — could only daily lives of Africans. intervene in a conflict situation if they were invited by the parties to a dispute. Many intra-state disputes were viewed, at the The African Union time, as internal matters and the exclusive preserve of governments. The African Union came into existence in July 2002, in The OAU created a Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Durban, South Africa. It was supposed to usher Africa into a Management and Resolution in Cairo, in June 1993. This new era of continental integration leading to deeper unity and instrument was ineffective in resolving disputes on the conti- resolution of its problems. The evolution of AU from the nent. Tragically, the Rwandan genocide which was initiated Organisation of African Unity was visionary and timely. The in April 1994 happened while this OAU had failed to live up to its norms mechanism was operational. It was The African Union has emerged and principles. Africa at the time of also during this last decade of the 20th the demise of OAU was a continent as a homegrown initiative to century that the conflict in Somalia effectively take the destiny of the that was virtually imploding from led to the collapse of the state, and the within due to the pressures of conflict, violence in Sierra Leone, Liberia, continent into the hands of the poverty, underdevelopment, and pubAngola, the Democratic Republic of African people. However, there lic health crises such as malaria, tuberthe Congo (DRC) and Sudan led to is a long way to go before the culosis and HIV/AIDS. The OAU the death of millions of Africans. effectively died of a cancer of ineffiAU’s vision and mission These devastating events illustrated ciency because it failed to live up to its the limitations of OAU as an institufounding ideals of promoting peace, is realised. tion that could implement the norms security and development in Africa. and principles that it articulated. Despite the existence of The African Union has emerged as a homegrown initiative to OAU’s mechanisms for conflict prevention and management, effectively take the destiny of the continent into the hands of the Rwandan tragedy demonstrated its virtual impotence in the the African people. However, there is a long way to go before face of violent conflict within Member States. The United AU’s vision and mission is realised. Nations did not fare any better as all of its troops, except the The AU is composed of 53 member states. It is run by the Ghanaian contingent, pulled out of the country leaving its AU Commission based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The people to their fates. Subsequently, both the OAU and the UN Chairperson of the Commission is Alpha Oumar Konare. Its

August-October 2007

A F R I C A top decision making organ is the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government, its executive decision-making organ is the Executive Council of Ministers, who work closely with the Permanent Representatives Committee of Ambassadors in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The AU has also established a range of institutions which will be discussed below. If we know the “purpose” of Pan-Africanism then the steps to achieve its goals become clearer to understand. It is in this context that we can begin to understand the emergence of AU. It would be a mistake to view AU as an aberration that just emerged in the last few years. It would be more appropriate to view AU as only the latest incarnation of the idea of PanAfricanism. The first phase of the institutionalisation of Pan-Africanism was the Pan-African Congresses that were held from the end of the 19th century and into the beginning of the 20th century. The second phase was the inauguration of the Organisation of African Unity. The third phase is in effect the creation of the African Union. However, it will not be the last phase. Subsequent phases and organisations will bring about evercloser political, economic and social ties among African peoples. In fact, African unity is an idea that can be traced back to the 19th century. The African Union is a 21st-century expression of a 19th-century idea. As such it is an imperfect expression, but nevertheless the best expression of Pan-Africanism that can be brought forth at this time. A United States of Africa or a Union of Africa? The agenda to establish a Union Government of Africa or the so-called United States of Africa (USA) is well underway. At the core of this debate is the desire to create several ministerial portfolios for AU. During the Fourth Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government held from January 30-31, 2005, in Abuja, Nigeria, AU agreed to the proposals made by the Libyan government to establish ministerial portfolios for the organisation. At the Sixth Ordinary Session of the Executive Council of AU Ministers, Libya proposed the establishment of the post of a “Minister of Transport and Communications” to help unify the transportation system among Member States under the competence of AU. The ministry, Libya proposed, would oversee airports and ports of Africa’s capital cities, highways, inter-State railways, Stateowned airline companies which would become the basis for a single African airline company. Ultimately, Libya proposed that this would lead to “the creation of a post of Minister of Transportation and Communications”. Similarly, Libya also proposed the creation of the post of Minister of Defence to oversee “a joint policy on defence and security of the Union and provide for the reinforcement of peace, security and stability on the continent”. This Libyan proposal noted that the provisions of the AU Constitutive Act of 2000 and the AU Protocol on Peace and Security of 2002 have effectively established a “Joint Defence Framework”. As a logical step in the implementation of the Protocols and establishment of the institutions of AU, the Libyan proposal emphasised the importance of establishing this post to over-

Q U A R T E R L Y

Paul Kagame, the President of the Republic of Rwanda, arriving at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, Ethiopia, to attend the Third Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union in July 2004.

The African Union is a 21st-century expression of a 19th-century idea. As such it is an imperfect expression, but nevertheless the best expression of Pan-Africanism that can be brought forth at this time. The agenda to establish a Union Government of Africa or the so-called United States of Africa is well underway. At the core of this debate is the desire to create several ministerial portfolios for the African Union. see and “defend the security of Member States against any foreign aggression and to achieve internal security and stability”. In addition, Libya also proposed the establishment of the post of an “African Union Minister of Foreign Affairs”. Central to its argument was that AU countries undermine their own influence when its 53 foreign ministers, each individually representing their own governments, speak simultaneously and occasionally in contradiction with each other. The Libyan proposal noted that this post was necessary in order to expedite the “continent’s political, economic and social integration and to reinforce and defend unified African positions on issues of mutual interest” in the international sphere.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A N

S O L U T I O N S

Building Blocks In order to respond to these proposals, the AU Assembly decided to “set up a Committee of Heads of State and Government chaired by the President of the Republic of Uganda and composed of Botswana, Chad, Ethiopia, Niger, Senegal and Tunisia” to liaise with the Chairperson of the AU Commission submit a report by the next summit in July 2005. The Committee convened a conference under the theme “Desirability of a Union Government of Africa”. The meeting included members of the Committee, representatives of the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), technical experts, academics, civil society and Diaspora representatives, as well as the media. The conference came up with three key conclusions including the recognition that the necessity of an AU government was not in doubt; that such a Union must be of the African people and not merely a Union of states and governments; that its creation must come about through the principle of gradual incrementalism; and that the role of the RECs should be highlighted as building blocks for the continental framework. Following the submission of this report the Assembly reaffirmed “that the ultimate goal of the African Union is full political and economic integration leading to a United States of Africa”. The Assembly further established a Committee of Heads of State and Government to be chaired by President Olusegun Obasanjo, Chairperson of the African Union, and composed of the Heads of State and Government of Algeria, Kenya, Senegal, Gabon, Lesotho and Uganda. More specifically, the Assembly requested the Committee to consider “the steps that need to be taken for the realisation of this objective, the structure, the process, the time frame required for its achievement as well as measures that should be undertaken, in the meantime, to strengthen the ability of the Commission to fulfil its mandate effectively”. The Limits of Imitation It is likely that the acronym for the United States of Africa (USA) will lead to allegations of imitation. This will foster accusations of a copycat approach to African integration. Some leaders may harbour hidden agendas in terms of seeking to rival the power of other global players. However, this cannot be achieved overnight. Misguided agendas can ultimately sabotage efforts to promote genuine and sustainable continental integration. The key aspects of the US of Africa include the following: ■ A top-down approach to continental integration ■ Governed by the whimsical will of the leaders of African governments ■ A tendency towards undemocratic practices ■ Through its formulation, which largely excluded African civil society, will be governed by the rule of Heads of State However, the objective behind the US of Africa should not be primarily one of increasing the level of global competitiveness of the continent. Rather the focus should be on improv-

The objective behind the United States of Africa should not be one of increasing the level of global competitiveness of the continent. Rather the focus should be on improving the livelihood of African people. For this to happen, further continental integration has to be motivated by the founding principles of Pan-Africanism, namely a commitment to democratic governance, human rights, and the rule of law. Anti-democratic actors who proclaim the importance of establishing a United States of Africa should not be allowed to replicate the anti-democratic policies and practices at a continental level. ing the livelihood of African people as a whole. For this to happen, further continental integration has to be motivated by the founding principles of Pan-Africanism, namely a commitment to democratic governance, human rights protection and the rule of law. Anti-democratic actors who herald and proclaim the importance of establishing a United States of Africa, should not be allowed to replicate the anti-democratic policies and practices at a continental level. It may, therefore, be more appropriate to speak of a Federal Union of Africa (FUA) rather than a United States of Africa, since this will begin to delineate and demarcate and articulate the founding principles of a union of African countries and their societies. The features of a Federal Union of Africa would include the following: ■ At once federal in nature ■ Based on the democratic will of its people ■ Governed through the consent of African people ■ Governed by the rule of law and the protection of human rights for all African peoples Including Civil Society in the Debates leading up to the Union Government of Africa There is also the issue of the extent to which AU is consulting the wider African public on the issue of the Grand Debate. The AU has established a website inviting contributions to this Grand Debate. However, some civil society activists have argued that an African Union Government would be a pipedream without laying the foundations for genuine African citizenship. Therefore, informed discussions and consultations on this issue have to include civil society organisations. The AU has also designated the African Diaspora as the sixth region of the African Union, and therefore it would be useful to also include this constituency in the debates leading up to the formation of the Union Government of Africa.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Conclusion Africa’s destiny and Africa’s destination is without doubt continental unity. There have been many institutions that have laid the foundations for the transition towards the proposed Union Government of Africa. The AU is the latest vehicle to orient the continent towards its destiny of unification. The recently proposed Union Government of Africa if and when it is inaugurated will also serve as a vehicle of further continental integration. The events surrounding the creation of the African Union and the debates on the proposed Union Government of Africa have surpassed the theoretical and academic analysis of the emergence of this continental organisation. Today, there is a dearth of policy analysis on the creation of the AU. This paper sought to provide a broad outline to fill up some of the gaps that exist in terms of the establishment and evolution of AU and the proposed creation of a Union Government of Africa. The paper has argued that it is necessary to include African citizens in the debates leading up to the formation of the Union Government. It also suggests that the Union Government should not be based on imitation but draw from the political exigencies and requirements of the people of Africa. Ultimately, the Union Government project is a welcome initiative but its success will be judged by the

extent to which it improves the livelihood and well-being of Africans on the continent. ■

Notes 1. African Union, Eighth Ordinary Session of Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from January 29-30, 2007 2. Hakim Adi and Marika Sherwood, Pan-African History: Political Figures from African and the Diaspora Since 1787, London: Routledge, 2003, p.vii. 3. Timothy Murithi, The African Union: Pan-Africanism, Peacebuilding and Development, (Aldershot, England: Ashgate Publishing Ltd., 2005). 4. Organisation of African Unity, Charter of the Organisation of African Unity, (Addis Ababa: OAU, 1963). 5. Solomon Gomes, “The Peacemaking and Mediation Role of the OAU and AU: What Prospects?”, Paper submitted to the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR) policy seminar, Building an African Union (AU) for the 21st Century, Cape Town, South Africa, August 20-22, 2005. 6. Organisation of African Unity, Charter of the Organisation of African Unity, (Addis Ababa: OAU, 1963). 7. Organisation of African Unity, Rwanda: The Preventable Genocide, A Report by an International Panel of Eminent Personalities, Addis Ababa: Organisation of African Unity, 2000; and United Nations, Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Actions of the United Nations during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, New York: United Nations, 1999. 8. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of Transport and Communications (Item Proposed by the Great Libyan Arab Jamahiriya), Executive Council Sixth Ordinary Session, EX.CL/165(VI) Add.5, Abuja, Nigeria, January 24-28, 2005, p. 1.

9. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of Transport and Communications, p.1. 10. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of Defence (Item Proposed by the Great Libyan Arab Jamahiriya), Executive Council Sixth Ordinary Session, EX.CL/165(VI) Add.6, Abuja, Nigeria, January 24-28, 2005, p. 1. 11. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of Defence, p.1. 12. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of Defence, p.1. 13. African Union, Establishment of a Post of Minister of AU Minister of Foreign Affairs (Item Proposed by the Great Libyan Arab Jamahiriya), Executive Council Sixth Ordinary Session, EX.CL/165(VI) Add.7, Abuja, Nigeria, January 24-28, 2005, p. 1. 14. African Union, Decisions and Declarations, Assembly of the African Union, Fourth Ordinary Session, Assembly/AU/Dec.69(IV), Assembly/AU/5 (IV) Add.1-5, Abuja, Nigeria, January 30-31, 2005. 15. African Union, Decision on the Report of the Committee of Seven Heads of State and Government Chaired by the President of the Republic of Uganda on the Proposals of the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Assembly/AU/Dec 90(V), Fifth Ordinary Session, Sirte, Libya, July 4-5, 2005. 16. African Union, Decision on the Report of the Committee of Seven Heads of State and Government, Fifth Ordinary Session, paragraph 5.

August-October 2007

B U I L D I N G

B L O C K S

Need for regional COOPERATION The future of regional cooperation in Africa and the rest of the developing world is closely linked with the future of international cooperation and the world economy, says Sonu Trivedi

egional cooperation and integration is a major process and a key factor of evolution in internal and international politics. The years since 1990 have witnessed a renewed and stronger trend for regional and bilateral economic groupings worldwide led by developed countries and followed by developing countries. There has been widespread recognition among several nations that under the present conditions, joining regional cooperative groupings is an appropriate transitional strategic response to the intensification of the ongoing process of globalisation. The future of regional cooperation in Africa and the rest of the developing world is closely linked with the future of international cooperation and the world economy. In Africa, as in other parts of the world, many countries have become members of two or more regional economic organisations with overlapping privileges and obligations. The basis for regional cooperation lies in common and shared national interests deriving from propinquity, similarity of socio-political systems, comparable levels of development and complementarities of economies and affinities of language, culture, historical tradition and religion. The smallness of most of the Third World countries’ individual markets compels them to join forces to develop their industries and reap the benefits of economies of scale, attract foreign investors by organising a ‘frontier-less’ market with a critical mass of potential consumers and create the job that their constantly expanding populations demand. [i] No African state is large enough to conduct a modern economy alone. Cooperation in all spheres and at all levels is as necessary and as desirable in Africa as anywhere else. It has therefore become imperative for Africa to map out a strategy of ‘regional cooperation and integration’ and lay the foundation for sustainable development in the 21st century. The establishment of the African Union was a step in that direction. Furthermore, the New African Initiative (merger of the Millennium African Renaissance Partnership Programme (MAP) and the OMEGA Plan) launched in July 2001 and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) launched in October 2001, which provides a blueprint for

Africa’s development, call for a new relationship of partnership between Africa and the international community, especially the highly industrialised countries, to overcome the development chasm that has widened over centuries of unequal relations. The idea of an African common market or an economic community, as an approach to integration at the continental level was reflected in the resolutions of various Pan-African conferences held during the early years of African independence.[ii] The demands for the Pan-African unity were especially noticeable in the early 1960s after most of the African states achieved independence. This was realised in the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in 1963. A number of regional economic organizations were established within the different subregions in Africa, such as the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) in West Africa, Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Southern Africa, Maghreb in North Africa, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and Economic Community for Central African States (CEEAC/ECCAS) in Central Africa.[iii] The end of the Cold War and the emergence of a united Europe after the establishment of the European Union (EU) confronted Africa and the rest of the developing world with enormous challenges. Consequently the OAU in June 1991, at its 27th annual summit in Abuja, Nigeria, adopted the Abuja Treaty to establish the African Economic Community (AEC) by the year 2025.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A This Treaty came into force in May 1994. Since then the idea of African unity and cooperation has assumed new dynamics and direction. The Abuja Treaty also recommended the establishment of an African Union (AU) and a Pan-African Parliament (PAP). The OAU endorsed the Abuja Treaty proposal for an African Union (AU) in 1999.[iv] The OAU summit in Lome in July 2000 declared the establishment of the AU by a unanimous decision. It came into existence on May 26, 2001. The AU that has replaced the OAU aims at “achieving greater unity and solidarity between the African countries and the peoples of Africa” and “accelerate the political and socio-economic integration of the continent”.[v] These regional blocs or economic groupings have the common goals of economic transformation and development, implicitly including eradication or reduction of poverty in the process. In other words, economic cooperation and integration is not an end in itself but rather a means towards sustainable economic development. This article focuses upon the African experience in regional cooperation and integration, and the efforts made for building a deeper regional integration scheme for buttressing an ‘integrated union of African States’.

Q U A R T E R L Y

If enough political will is mobilised, then Africa can address the problems of social and political exclusion, authoritarianism, economic mismanagement and corruption. Political will may be forged through the mobilising force of the Pan-Africanist ideal even as the AU embodies Pan-Africanism in its latest guise. the case of “assertive regionalism” can be cited as a viable way forward in the divided state that Africa still finds itself in.[xvi] Taken together, both these frameworks provide a nuanced assessment of the African actors that can play a role in peace and security. Their comparative advantage lies in the way they translate the normative commitments into empirical outcomes so as to make a positive difference for Africans caught up in conflict and security. Theoretical Analysis

Framework Africa has been variously defined as “a cultural mosaic in transformation”[vi], or placed somewhere between “globalisation and marginalisation”.[vii] Despite, the heterogeneous nature of Africa, socio-political unity may still come about because of the existence of the ideology of Pan-Africanism.[viii] Such a mobilising and unifying politico-ideological force brought leaders to focus on commonalities rather than differences.[ix] Unity is understood as a means to an end. If enough political will is mobilised, then Africa can address the problems of social and political exclusion, authoritarianism, economic mismanagement and corruption.[x] Political will may be assembled through the mobilising force of the Pan-Africanist ideal, and the AU is the embodiment of Pan-Africanism in its latest guise.[xi] The AU practises a type of Pan-Africanism that can meet the needs of the African people, and allow them to be self-reliant. It offers “African solutions” to “African problems”.[xii] With regard to intra-African developments in recent years, the sub-regional effort for promoting African unity has also been recommended.[xiii] From this perspective, two different frameworks can be identified for promoting Pan-Africanism — a renewed sense of African solidarity and unity in the form of a federalist solution for AU, where the sovereign responsibilities to a greater extent are discharged together with higher authority, such as a Pan-African Parliament. In this vein, AU will become an agent to intervene, when necessary, in the affairs of its Member States to stop war crimes and genocide. This requires the need to transform Africa’s political landscape and reduce the salience of the imposed and artificial state borders.[xiv] The other framework emphasises on the role of the sub-regional organisations and the role they have assumed since 1990.[xv] Here,

The academic study of international relations and regional integration schemes require a theoretical formulation to broaden the scope of its understanding of international reality. It is very useful to study theories alongside performing empirical analyses. Wil Hout (1999) has studied various theories of international relations and its implications on regional integration.[xvii] In the context of Africa, it can at best be said that the neo-realist theorisation that is based on security-related forms accruing relative gains and warding off threats is not relevant. Largely, the schemes in Africa are based on neo-liberal theorisation of interdependence and cooperation. They tend to see regional arrangements as regimes through which the allocation of certain public goods can be established. The Member States try to obtain preferential entrance to core countries and try to set limits on the policies of these countries.[xviii] Of late (1990s) the proliferation of regional integration schemes in Africa as elsewhere largely justifies the neo-functionalist argument, which has been developed most clearly with respect to European integration. It assumes that problems of increasing interdependence would lead governments to cooperation. Policy coordination would spread from one issue area to another and the “spillover” effect would result in deepening integration. Africa’s adoption of a policy of regional cooperation and integration has been more conducive to African realities and could perhaps result in Africa’s capacity to better coexist within the world of regionalism and globalisation. African leaders have long envisaged regionalism as a viable strategy to pursue with a view to uniting the continent both politically and economically. While regionalism in Africa has taken different forms to accommodate the changing national, regional and international environment, all organisations that aim to integrate regional economies in Africa have adopted

August-October 2007

B U I L D I N G

B L O C K S

market integration as a component of their strategy so as to increase intra-regional trade. Although this strategy is not going to solve Africa’s economic problems in “totality”, it will certainly not be counterproductive to the African agenda. The model for such integration is the European Union, highly regarded by most African leaders as a solution to Africa’s growing marginalistion within the world economy.[xix] The creation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the successful EU monetary integration have only served to reinforce the commitment of the African leaders. Beginning of the Safari Following independence, there was universal agreement on Pan-Africanism as an effective means of attaining the twin objectives of growth of the continent. However, no consensus was reached among African leaders, policymakers, and thinkers on how to approach Pan-Africanism. Two points of view, diametrically opposed to each other, dominated the debate: continentalism and functionalism. The continentalists, or the radicals, called for immediate political unification of the continent — namely, the formation of a United States of Africa — on the grounds that what Africa needed was an integration of common economic functions. The functionalists, or the conservatives, by contrast, were in favour of creating subregional groupings as a realistic basis for political unity. The lack of an agreed-upon strategy, in the euphoria of independence, resulted in a disorderly cooperation drive at all levels; a host of cooperation schemes were established in an uncoordinated manner.[xx] Continental Level Although several attempts have been made at the continental level to attain the highly ambitious objective of a united Africa, all but one have unfortunately failed, mostly because of such factors as divergent ideologies, different languages, colonial heritage, national interests and personal rivalries. Notable examples were Nasser’s Afro-Asian Peoples Solidarity Organisation (AAPSO), Nkrumah’s Conference of Independent African States (CIAS), the Pan-African Freedom Movement of East and Central Africa (PAFMECA), the AllAfrican Peoples Conference (AAPC), the Union Africaine et Malagache (UAM), and the Casablanca Bloc.[xxi] The exception was the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), agreement on which was signed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 1963 by heads of state and government of 32 independent countries. The establishment of OAU, the predecessor of AU, was a response to the challenges posed by the problems of African countries. It was through the endeavours of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and President Sekou Toure of Guinea, representing respectively the Monrovia and Casablanca groups of independent states that a Charter creating OAU was approved at Addis Ababa on May 25, 1963.[xxii] It pledged the coordination of African economic, diplomatic, defence, education and health policies. The OAU through its numerous summits, resolutions, dec-

larations and decisions, especially at meetings held at Algiers (1968), Addis Ababa (1970 and 1973), Libreville (1978) and Lagos (1980) kept the continental integration agenda in focus laying stress on its essentiality for the welfare of the peoples of Africa. The OAU was established with the object of promoting unity and international cooperation among African states and for eradicating all forms colonialism from the continent. Another aim was that it should lead almost immediately to the establishment of a “Union Government” of all African states. The OAU succeeded in speeding up the political emancipation of the greater part of the continent. It effectively presented the African viewpoint on many vital international issues. Its most significant achievement is that it has served as an important stabilising influence in the continent and assisted in the settlement or containment of many political and other disputes among its members that might otherwise have developed into serious conflicts leading possibly to war. Another respect in which the OAU has justified its creation is the way in which it has succeeded in maintaining a generally independent stance on important world issues and in consistently refusing to allow it to be deflected from its main objective of protecting African interests despite all kinds of external pressures from the big powers. In this respect, the organisation has proved far more effective than any comparable groupings in other parts of the developing world. In spite of persistent and well-meaning efforts directed at continental unification during the 38 years of its existence the OAU has, however, failed to unify the diverse African continent. It proved ineffective and was at the risk of challenges posed by the emerging regional blocs, liberalisation of world trade, rapid technological changes and globalisation of world production. Further, the position of the fragmented and vulnerable national African economies in the world economy continued to weaken and the continent’s marginalisation in world affairs kept on growing.[xxiii] For example, the OAU failed to bring to an end civil wars and military conflicts in Angola, DRC, the Great Lakes region and Sierra Leone. Various plans and proposals for African unity such as the Lagos Plan of Action remained on paper. Abuja Treaty and AEC Despite the formation and functioning of the numerous Regional Economic Cooperation schemes (RECs) and the implementation of the Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs), the pace and pattern of the Africans socio-economic development continued to be characterised by declining GDP, food insecurity, unemployment, crippling external debt burden, poverty, and unsettled political conditions in many African countries. It was against this background of economic decline leading to marginalisation of the continent on the international scene that the OAU Member States adopted the Abuja Treaty (1991). With its adoption in Nigeria on June 3, 1991, by the majority of OAU Member States, the idea of African unity has assumed new dynamism and relevance. The essence of the treaty was a proposal to establish an African Economic Community (AEC) “in order to foster the eco-

August-October 2007

A F R I C A nomic, social, cultural integration of the African continent”. According to this proposal, existing regional economic communities such as SADC, COMESA, ECCAS, EAC, ECOWAS and AMU justify the creation of AEC and indeed form the foundation of the AEC. The Abuja Treaty formally came into existence in May 1994. The treaty also recommended the establishment of an African Union and a Pan-African Parliament (PAP). AEC and PAP were scheduled to be established by the year 2025, that is, over a period of 34 years in six phases — Preferential Trade Area (PTA), Free Trade Area (FTA), Customs Union (CU), Common Market, African Economic Community (AEC) and the creation of Pan-African Parliament elected by continental universal suffrage.[xxiv] It was the first attempt to date that provided a legal framework for realising the long cherished goal of economic integration across Africa. It clearly articulated principles and objectives of economic integration and prescribed the setting up of institutions and mechanisms for implementing the treaty. The AEC treaty assigned a central role to the existing regional cooperation schemes sponsoring a new challenge to the continental integration process. Besides pursuing their specific mandates pertaining to their respective geographic areas, RECs were to serve as programme executing bodies for AEC. They were called upon to expedite and consolidate the achievements of their stated objectives, as they were to serve as ‘building blocks’ of the proposed AEC. The Member States under the treaty reaffirmed and pledged to adhere to a legal system of the community, peaceful settlement of disputes, promotion and protection of individual socio-economic, political and human rights, and popular involvement through NGOs. The Member States were asked to harmonise their development strategies and policies and to refrain from adopting measures inimical to the attainment of the objectives of the treaty. It aimed at replacement of the market-oriented integration approach by the production-centred approach. This called for shifts in the development objectives and priorities of Member States’ governments. African Union: A New Beginning The persistent adverse political and economic conditions and dissatisfaction with the ineffective working of the OAU led African leaders to search for an alternative organisation, leading to the establishment of the AU. This latest and the most ambitious unification dispensation enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the AU designed on the lines of the European Union identifies the need to set up a number of component institutions and structures in a regional and global environment abounding in integrative arrangements with varying levels of capabilities in terms of managerial skills, materials resources and political will pursuing comprehensive and often overlapping mandates.[xxv] The Sirte (Libya) summit of OAU on March 2, 2001, marked a new dawn in Africa. It unanimously declared the

Q U A R T E R L Y

establishment of the AU replacing the 38-year-old OAU. The AU came into existence on May 26, 2001, after obtaining required ratification of two-thirds (37) of the 53 Member States of OAU. It was formally launched in Durban in July 2002. This event signified a major landmark in the “grand old vision” for a “United States of Africa”. The AU is expected to provide a new launching pad for greater continental cooperation and integration.[xxvi] The Sub-Regional Level Uncoordinated action at the sub-regional level has paralleled the hasty move at the continental level. The tendency to increase sub-regional cooperation efforts has been due, in part, to the frustration faced at the continental level. The drive towards regional integration in Africa can be divided into two waves: the first took place during the postindependence period, that is, in the 1960s and early 1970s, with an extension for Southern Africa to around 1980. The second wave is quite recent; its start might be put around the time of the signing of the Abuja Treaty on the African Economic Community in 1991. Both waves have been influenced by the views and ideologies of their respective periods and by events outside the African continent. The formation of the regional integration groupings belonging to the first wave is well documented.[xxvii] The West and Central African sub-regions have been the most active, whereas North Africa has made less significant efforts. The experience of the East and Southern African subregion was disappointing until 1981 but it has since turned out to be promising. The West African Sub-Region Geopolitically, the West African sub-region consists of 15 countries, including eight former French colonies, four British colonies, one Portuguese, and one Spanish.[xxviii] The former French colonies have been the most active group in the subregion and in the continent as a whole in terms of economic cooperation. Thanks to them West Africa has become the most active sub-region in terms of cooperation initiatives.[xxix] Economic cooperation in the sub-region, as in the other sub-regions, dates back to the colonial era. The Bank of West Africa (BAO) was established in 1901; it served as an issuing institution for all French colonies in West and Central Africa. In 1955 the BAO was split into two separate issuing institutions: the Bank of French West Africa and Togo (AOF) for West Africa, and the Bank of the French Equatorial Africa and Cameroon (AEF) for Central Africa. In 1959 the first bank was renamed the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO). In 1959, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, and Niger signed the Treaty of the Council of the Entente States, to which Togo acceded in 1966. The objectives of the grouping were mostly political in nature. In the same year, the West African Customs Union (UDAO) was established, but it collapsed after a short life. The Organisation of Senegal River States (OERS) was established on the grounds that it was the

August-October 2007

B U I L D I N G

B L O C K S

offspring of the interstate committee founded in 1963 for the development of the Senegal River Basin. The founders of the OERS therefore requested that their organisation be acknowledged as the nucleus of the proposed enlarged community. However, the OERS ultimately failed to achieve its objectives and broke down in November 1971. The OERS was followed in early 1972 by a new organisation — the Organisation for the Development of the Senegal River (OMVS), consisting of Mauritania, Mali, and Senegal. The main objectives of the OMVS in terms of trade and development were similar to those of the defunct OERS. The three member countries of the OMVS, together with Benin, Burkina Paso, Cote d’Ivoire and Niger, had earlier constituted the West African Customs and Economic Union (UDEAO). Political considerations, which dominated integration dynamics in the continent, led the countries of the UDEAO to expand the union’s activities by transforming it into the West African Economic Community (CEAO). The member countries, all French-speaking, wanted to assert their common identity vis-a-vis the English-speaking countries in the sub-region; in particular, Nigeria, which was trying to play a leading role in the sub-region, suggested the formation of a pan-West African cooperation arrangement embracing all the countries of the sub-region. The CEAO treaty was signed in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, in 1973 and came into force the same year. The leaders of Nigeria never gave up their dream of leading a comprehensive pan-West African cooperation arrangement embracing all the countries of the sub-region. In May 1975, the Lagos Summit of Heads of State and Government adopted the draft treaty to create the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the basis of the Lome proposals. By December 1975, all 15 signatories had ratified the treaty, and Cape Verde adhered soon after. Another pan-West African cooperation arrangement, the West African Clearing House (WACH), was established in 1975. The initiative came from the Association of African Central Banks (AACB) in 1973, when it adopted sub-regional payments systems and required all African sub-regions to establish their own clearing-houses. At its operational inception, the WACH had a membership of eight central banks representing 13 countries: BCEAO (for Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Senegal, and Togo) and the Central banks for Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and The Gambia. The Central banks of Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania subsequently joined the WACH respectively in 1978 and 1980, thus raising the membership of the WACH to 10 central banks for 15 countries. In the fiscal year 1984-85, the Bank of Mali became part of the West African Monetary Union (WAMU). The Central African Sub-Region The Central African sub-region comprises 11 countries, five of which are former French colonies, three Belgian, and three Portuguese.[xxx] The apportionment of the sub-region among the three colonial powers has undoubtedly had a strong bearing on cooperation efforts among the now independent countries of the sub-region.

As in West Africa, the former French colonies have been the most active group of countries in this sub-region as far as regional cooperation is concerned. Cooperation among them can be traced back to 1910, when the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Congo, and Gabon were integrated in what was then called French Equatorial Africa, which had a governorate-general and a high commission in Brazzaville. The governorate-general was intended to undertake a limited range of common services, but it nonetheless followed strong centralising policies. Because the member countries were not quite satisfied with the way resources were allocated, they decided in 1956 to end the federal system and instead to elect territorial governments. However, although they favoured political independence, the four newly independent states maintained most of their former economic links and in October 1957 established the Customs and Fiscal Convention, which in June 1959 became the Equatorial Customs Union (UDE). Following the unification of Cameroon in 1961, a convention was signed in June that year providing for progressive integration of the Cameroon market into the UDE and for other forms of cooperation comparable to those existing among the UDE’s four member countries. While efforts were on in the next three years to put this convention into operation, a problem arose concerning the location of a projected oil refinery. This issue drew the attention of the partner countries to the necessity of having a common development strategy and sparked off a series of meetings and commissions that finally led to the formation in December 1964 of the Economic and Customs Union of Central African States (UDEAC), which aimed at attaining not only a common market but also the ambitious objective of economic union. The treaty entered into force on January 1, 1966. Two years later, the treaty faced its first crisis when Chad and CAR left the union in April 1968 in a dispute over the distribution of the solidarity fund’s resources and the location of new industries. The two countries then joined with Zaire to form the Union of Central African States (UEAC), which was more political than economic, but the relevant treaty has never been ratified. In December 1968, CAR rejoined the union.[xxxi] The four member-countries of the union decided to enlarge it to include the 11 countries of the sub-region. To this effect, they invited the other seven countries to attend the 17th Summit Meeting of Heads of State and Government of UDEAC, held in Libreville, Gabon, from December 17-20, 1982. The meeting agreed in principle to create the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), which will cover a total area of about 3 million square kilometres and comprise a total population of well over 60 million. The agreement received the blessing of the OAU and the ECA. As stated previously, the five French-speaking countries in the sub-region, together with the French-speaking countries in West Africa, have been enjoying a common monetary system that was integrated into the French system from 1901 to 1955. The Bank of West Africa (BAO) was established to serve as an issuing institution for all French colonies in West and Central Africa, but in 1955 was split into two issuing

August-October 2007

A F R I C A institutions: the Bank of French West Africa and Togo (AOF) and the Bank of French West Africa and Cameroon (AEF). In 1959 the first bank became the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), and the second became the Bank of Equatorial African States and Cameroon, which was reorganised and renamed in 1972 as the Bank of Central African States (BEAC), comprising Cameroon, CAR, Chad, Congo, and Gabon. Equatorial Guinea joined the bank in January 1985. The two central banks of West and Central Africa have continued issuing the same currency, the CFA, which is called “the franc of the African Financial Community” by the BCEAO and “the franc of financial cooperation in Central Africa” by the BEAC. It is important to note that UDEAC and BEAC have been developed independently and on a parallel basis; there has been no coordination between them, which is reflected in the independence of their decision-making centres and the presence of Chad in BEAC only. Another monetary arrangement, the Central African Clearing House (CACH), was created by the six member countries of BEAC as well as Zaire. The agreement was signed in January 1979 and became effective in May 1981 after its ratification by the contracting parties. After some operational difficulties, it commenced operations on February 1, 1982. Its major purpose is to foster trade, mainly between the BEAC member countries on one hand and Zaire on the other; the obstacles related to intra-BEAC trade in terms of payments are eliminated by the use of only one currency, the CFA, in circulation in all member countries. The former Belgian colonies of Burundi, Rwanda, and Zaire tried to have their own cooperation arrangements. They created the Economic Community of the Countries of the Grand Lakes (CEPGL) in 1976, which was actually a continuation of the old economic union formed in 1925 by the government of Belgium itself. The independence of Zaire (formerly Congo) in 1960 ended the old economic union, but after Burundi and Rwanda achieved independence in 1962, the three countries recreated the union under its present name. The East and Southern African Sub-region The story of cooperation is rather different in the 19 countries of the East and Southern African sub-region (one of which is the Republic of South Africa).[xxxii] Of these countries, there were 10 British colonies, three French colonies, and one Portuguese colony. As in West and Central Africa, cooperation among the countries of this sub-region began as early as 1917, mainly for demonstrative convenience. The former British colonies, not the French ones, took the lead in this sub-region, but unlike the former French colonies in the other sub-regions, they failed to maintain their pre-independence relations. Almost all cooperation schemes collapsed immediately before or after each country achieved independence in the early 1960s. Even after independence, they tried in vain to reestablish sub-regional cooperation. It was only in the early 1980s that they managed, in coordination with the other coun-

Q U A R T E R L Y

tries in the sub-region, to establish sub-regional arrangements. Following the original occupation of East African territories by Britain, a de facto common market — the East African Common Market (EACM) — was developed among Kenya, Tanganyika (now part of Tanzania), and Uganda. The three territories share common boundaries and a homogeneous population, but they were each separately ruled by a governor. Common services, particularly for transport and communications, were soon developed, and there were no tariffs or any other restrictions on inter-territorial trade. In 1917, a free trade area was created between Uganda and Kenya, which soon developed into a common market. Tanganyika joined the common market in stages between 1922 and 1927, although the customs administrations were not amalgamated until 1949. The bulk of the benefit of integration was captured by Kenya, a fact that led the other partners to express dissatisfaction with the distribution of the costs and benefits of integration among the three partner countries. The situation was compounded by political considerations that threatened the very existence of the common market in the aftermath of independence. At that time, Tanzania had a socialist orientation and therefore adopted a radically different economic approach. In 1965, it announced that it was going to have its own central bank with a separate currency and thereafter it imposed quotas and other restrictions on its imports from Kenya. Uganda followed Tanzania’s lead. In an attempt to maintain the common market, the three countries agreed to appoint a committee to assess the situation and submit definite recommendations. Based on these recommendations, a treaty of East African Cooperation was signed in Kampala, Uganda, on June 6, 1967, and came into force on Dec 1, 1967. The treaty established what is referred to as an East African Community (EAC), including a common market. Nevertheless, the subsequent pace of events demonstrated that the differences among the three countries were so great and growing that nothing could have prevented the eventual collapse of the infant community; it broke up in 1977.[xxxiii] British colonial authorities created three common monetary areas in the sub-region: the East African Currency Board (EACB), the Southern Rhodesian Currency Board, and the South African Reserve Bank. The three boards, however, collapsed immediately after the countries of the sub-region gained their independence. Subsequently, the member countries established their own independent Central Banks. The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Agreement was established between the then Union of South Africa and the then High Commission Territories of Bechuanaland, Basutoland and Swaziland in 1910. With the advent of independence for the Territories, the 1910 Agreement was updated and re-launched on Dec 11, 1969, and this in the wake of the signing of an agreement between the Republic of South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. The updated 1969 Agreement officially came into force on March 1, 1970. This history of failure notwithstanding, the countries of the sub-region did not give up altogether their collective cooper-

August-October 2007

B U I L D I N G

B L O C K S

ation efforts. It was only three years after the collapse of the East African Economic Community in 1977 that they initiated, almost simultaneously, two ambitious all-embracing cooperation arrangements: the Southern African Development and Co-ordination Conference (SADCC)-1980 and the Preferential Trade Area for East-ern and Southern African States (PTA)-1982. The member countries seem to have benefited largely from the lessons drawn from the sub-region’s previous experience with multilateral cooperation. Unlike traditional cooperation arrangements, which are based on formal treaties spelling out their objectives, activities, and institutions, SADCC was based on a collective declaration made by the nine founding states in Lusaka, Zambia, in 1980 that set forth its objectives and strategies but not its institutional structure. The ultimate goal of this non-traditional grouping was to reduce dependence of the member countries, especially (but not solely) on the Republic of South Africa, which is political in nature. At almost the same time, preparatory work for the establishment of the PTA was under way. Again in Lusaka, an extraordinary meeting of the sub-region’s ministers of trade, finance, and planning was held to consider, among other things, the creation of a Preferential Trade Area for the East and Southern African states. Twelve countries signed a corresponding treaty on Dec 21, 1981. It came into force on Sept 30, 1982. The North African Sub-Region The North African sub-region — comprising the seven countries Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Sudan, and Tunisia — is by far the least active of all African subregions in terms of cooperation initiatives. Only two attempts have been made at the sub-regional level to establish multilateral arrangements. The first was made by the Maghreb countries (Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia) when they set up the Maghreb Permanent Consultative Committee (CPCM) in 1964 to advise the Conference of Ministers of Economic Affairs on issues falling within the conference’s jurisdiction. The committee proceeded to set up the specialised subcommittees required for planning, statistics, transport and communications, tourism, employment, industry and agriculture. In 1970, Libya withdrew from the CPCM. Meanwhile, Mauritania attended the meetings as an observer. The CPCM undertook a number of studies relating to common project in the above fields; some of them were considered and approved, but very few have been implemented. Since 1976 though, the CPCM has come to a virtual standstill as a result of the conflict on the Sahara issue between Algeria and Morocco. The second cooperation attempt was made in 1989 by the same group of countries: a new arrangement called the Maghreb Arab Union (MAU).[xxxiv] Some writers have tried to explain the North African subregion’s reluctance to establish multilateral cooperation arrangements. They argue that the countries of the sub-region

are divided into two groups: the Maghreb countries (including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia) and the others (Egypt and Sudan). Egypt associates mainly with the Arab Maghreb countries, and Libya desires to associate itself with Egypt. Sudan is inclined to deal with the countries of East and Central Africa, whereas Mauritania belongs more to West Africa than North Africa. The socio-political structures of the three Maghreb countries proper — Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia — underline their failure in boosting their cooperation. The reluctance of these countries to have their own multilateral cooperation arrangements can largely be attributed to the “dual identity” of the sub-region. The North African countries belong simultaneously to the Arab world and to Africa. This double affiliation has substantially influenced intra-sub-regional cooperation, for instance by retarding the establishment of proper sub-regional arrangements. As signatories to the older Arab arrangements — such as the Arab League (1945), the Defence and Economic Co-operation Treaty (1950), and Arab Economic Unity (1957), to mention only a few — the North African countries probably have not found it necessary to create similar sub-regional ones. In addition, complicated political dynamics, a common phenomenon in the Third World (particularly in East Africa before 1981), have had a strong adverse effect on cooperation initiatives among these countries. Nevertheless, this does not mean that intra-sub-regional cooperation is absent outside the Arab arrangements. It has, in fact, been present all along, but at the bilateral rather than sub-regional level. This approach was encouraged and recommended by the North African Sub-Regional Committee of the Association of African Central Banks (AACB) at a meeting held in Toronto on September 8, 1987 to review the question of monetary cooperation in the sub-region, particularly with regard to the creation of a payments union. As a first step, the committee decided to move in the direction of creating flexible payments arrangements on a bilateral basis before moving on to sub-regional payments arrangements. SAFARI RESURRECTED Second Wave of Regional Integration in Africa: The origin of the second wave or the renewed worldwide drive towards regional integration can be traced in Africa to a number of developments outside the continent during the second half of the 1980s.[xxxv] Contemporary regionalism in the developing world is very different from regionalist attempts in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was overwhelmingly political in both its aspirations and its form. In contrast to the earlier period, ‘new regionalism’ is principally a defensive response to the economic marginalisation of much of the South in 1980s, its political reconfiguration during the political and economic turmoil at the end of the Cold War, and a fear of, or reaction to, the trend towards a globalised economy. States are the main actors in new regionalist blocs responding to the demands within the society.[xxxvi] There is no clear definition of the ‘new regionalism’, but

August-October 2007

A F R I C A some of its most typical characteristics are: outward-oriented trade strategy with low external tariffs, rather than regional import substitution behind high protective tariff walls; harmonisation of macro-economic policies (monetary and fiscal); standardisation of technical norms and procedures and environmental regulations; liberalisation of trade in financial and other services; facilitation of cross-border investment flows; attention given to the credibility of government policies (the involvement of regional partners diminishes the weight of national pressure groups and may help to avoid policy reversals). In 1991, African Heads of State signed the Abuja Treaty on the establishment of a Pan-African Economic Community (AEC). Even though the formidable practical issues and constraints are not addressed in detail, the treaty can be interpreted as a strong expression of general political desire for more integration in Africa, in view of the increased regionalism in the rest of the world. In 1992, SADCC was transformed into the Southern African Development Community (SADC.) The new SADC explicitly added market integration to SADCC. The ultimate objective of the Community is to build a region in which there will be a high degree of harmonisation and rationalisation to enable the pooling of resources to achieve collective self-reliance in order to improve the living standards of the people of the region.[xxxvii] The PTA Treaty envisaged its transformation into a Common Market. Hence, in 1993, the Member States of the PTA signed a new treaty to establish the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA). The objective of COMESA is to go beyond the creation of a customs union and include free movement of capital and people and formation of a monetary union. Comesa includes the possibility of supranational elements in decision-making.[xxviii] The FTA was achieved on Oct 31, 2000. By 2004, 11 FTA members had not only eliminated customs tariffs but were working on the eventual elimination of quantitative restrictions and other non-tariff barriers. It is expected that the Customs Union will be launched by the year 2008. The ECOWAS Treaty was revised in 1993. The revised treaty reflects West Africa’s regional cooperation experiences over the preceding 15 years and takes into account the exigencies of continental integration as envisaged in the AEC Treaty. The West African Monetary Institute (WAMI), a forerunner to the West African Central Bank, became operational in January 2001. This body has been coordinating the implementation of the ECOWAS monetary programme.[xxxix] In 1999 the EAC Treaty was revived.[xl] It is the revision of the economic cooperation agreement, which broke up in 1977. The treaty provides for a progressive regional integration process beginning with the formation of an FTA and a Customs Union. This will be followed by a common market, a monetary union and ultimately a political federation. The EAC strategy emphasises economic cooperation and development with a small focus on the social dimension. The role of the private sector and civil society is considered as central and crucial to the regional integration and development in a veritable partnership with the public sector.[xli] SACU became a five-member body with Namibia joining

Q U A R T E R L Y

in 1990 after its independence. In 1994, the 1969 Agreement was re-negotiated leading to the current SACU 2002 Agreement that came into force on July 15, 2004. The main objective of SACU was that of regional integration, the facilitation of trade between the members of the agreement, and trade negotiations between SACU and third parties, in order to improve the economic development of Member States. Other striking developments took place at the beginning of 1994, following the devaluation of the CFA franc. The West African Monetary Union has been transformed into the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), taking on board the responsibilities of the West African Economic Community (Communaute Economique Ouest Africaine, CEAO). In a parallel move, the Central African countries that are part of the Franc Zone also embarked on an Economic and Monetary Union (Communaute Economique et Monetaire d’Afrique Centrale, CEMAC). Thus, in a number of cases, the revival of regionalism meant reforming the so-called ‘first-generation’ regional organisations, which were established in the 1960s to promote integration through import substitution strategies and ‘delinking’ from the global market. Far from implying the formation of mutually exclusive regional integration groupings, this process was strongly outward-oriented. Regional cooperation and integration also meant the opening of discussions towards the enlargement of existing institutions and the conclusion of inter-regional agreements. This kaleidoscopic interplay between institutions, identities and socio-political factors accounts for the polymorphous nature of the so-called new regionalisation process. Appraisal of the Safari and Future Expedition Assessment and Prospects of regional cooperation and integration in Africa: In the event, despite considerable (but superficial) effort aimed at achieving it, effective market enlargement through economic integration has not yet occurred in Africa. It has not yielded results by way of enhanced efficiency, or in terms of successful industrialisation, market enlargement modernisation, sustained development and growth, or competitiveness. Yet African governments remain committed to integration, although they have become slightly more realistic and practical about achieving it. First-generation integration arrangements in Africa were either legacies from the past or new arrangements built on the predominant development theories of the day.[xlii] These advocated industrialisation through high levels of protection and the development of closed markets in state-run economies financed heavily by Official Development Assistance (ODA) or sovereign commercial borrowing. The model failed because it was: (a) anti-market — the market being seen by governments and the public as synonymous with inequity, capitalism and colonialism; (b) anti-private sector and anti-property rights; and (c) anti-foreign investment, except perhaps in the minerals and hydrocarbon resource sectors. The emphasis on pervasive state intervention

August-October 2007

B U I L D I N G

B L O C K S

and the implicit (but misplaced) belief in the omnipotence and benignity of the state proved to be a formula for large-scale economic failure. Percy Mistry (2000) has identified reasons for the failure of attempts at economic integration in Africa between 1965 and 1995. According to him, a combination of macro and micro reasons have gone a long way towards explaining why economic integration did not occur in Africa till early 1990s. An underlying shift from states to markets, induced to an extent by externally imposed structural adjustment programmes (SAPs), has aimed at radically revamping the African development model since 1985. That shift has resulted in second-generation integration attempts gathering steam since 1992. In principle, the new approach has abandoned the ossified, static, protected-fortress approach to integration among closed, state-run economies. It lays more emphasis on development of thematic integration (that is, co-operating to save on large-scale infrastructure costs and achieving economies of scale) and open, rather than protected, market enlargement as a means of consolidating national economic policy shifts towards greater liberalisation, market orientation, competitiveness and efficiency. The future of regionalism in Africa is inextricably tied to competing interest among the regional groupings and the consequences of the new political realities emerging in the countries of the region. The evolving global environment, especially the move towards regional trading blocks, also has some bearing on the direction of the development of regional cooperation within the sub-regional groupings. The economic rationale behind the development of a regional African trade zone is based on the expectation that a free trade area will help ensure regional market access for local producers, thereby enabling the region to develop with a greater degree of economic predictability. It is also a step away from dependency on northern markets, which continue to present African exporters with numerous impediments despite the recent Cotonou Agreement[xliii] and its predecessor, the Lomé Convention (both preferential access accords with Europe). Conflicts between Member States of sub-regional groupings, duplication in membership with other regional organi-

sations and internal conflicts in Member States are the main obstacles to continental integration. Member States of various integration schemes should cooperate with other regional economic communities and sub-regional organisations to promote peace and security and good governance. Good governance has become an important issue in Africa and to this end the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) has introduced the Peer Review Mechanism[xliv]to uphold the good governance practices. Second-generation integration relies on achieving these ambitious objectives at the sub-regional level before attempting to achieve them at the global level. To accelerate the process of integration for the continent to play its rightful role in the global economy while addressing multifaceted social, economic and political problems compounded by the general aspects of globalisation, the establishment of the African Union in 2002 can be described as an event of great magnitude in the institutional evolution of the continent. In this changed environment of greater African cooperation and integration, the sub-regional groupings are expected to play the role of harmonising inter-regional conflicts and trade disputes so as to further the ultimate goal of a larger and deeper integration process. Narrow bickering and mutual rivalries should give way to enhanced cooperation and continental integration. Good and sustainable trade and integration agreements demand: good negotiations (including channels of communication with civil society and its representatives in the legislative branch); effective implementation; and socially efficient adjustments.[xlv] In order to give the dream of an “integrated Union of African states” and common currency goal a touch of reality, it is necessary to transform the entire approach and policies of Member States towards these organisations. The biggest challenge is to make the mainstream process a dynamic exercise with multiple stakeholders and institutions and democratise the procedure. Our search for pragmatism, maturity and wisdom will have to involve both government and civil society in a world where Africa has yet to overcome a large number of historical and inherited disadvantages. ■

Notes [i] Trivedi, Sonu, Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration: COMESA, EU SAARC, New Delhi: New Century Publications. 2005 p-1. [ii] Various Pan-African Conferences were organised which played a crucial role in the growth of Pan-Africanism in the early 20th century. Starting from 1919 (Paris), 1921(London), 1923 (Lisbon), 1927 (New York), 1945 (Manchester), 1974 (Dar-es-Salaam), and finally in 1994 (Kampala). [iii] Trivedi, Sonu, “Politics of Regionalism in World Economy”, India Quarterly, Vol. LXI (2); April-June, 2005. pp. 82-115. [iv] On 9.9.1999, the Heads of State and Government of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) issued Sirte Declaration

calling for the establishment of an African Union, with a view to accelerating the process of integration in the continent to play its rightful role in the global economy while addressing multifaceted social, economic and political problems compounded by the general aspects of globalisation. [v] For details on African Union see Asante S.K.B., “What really is African Union”, West Africa, 7-13 July, 2003. [vi] Schraeder, Peter J., African Politics and Society: A Mosaic in Transformation, Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press 2000. [vii] Engel, Ulf and Gorm Rye Olsen ed., Africa and the North: Between Globalisation and Marginalisation, London: Routledge, 2005. [viii] Francis, David J., Uniting Africa: Building Regional

August-October 2007

A F R I C A Peace and Security Systems, UK: Ashgate, 2006. [ix] Ibid: 3 [x] Murithy, Timothy, The African Union: Pan Africanism, Peace Building and Development, UK: Ashgate, 2005. [xi] Ibid. pp. 8-9. [xii] Bergholm, L., “Who can keep the peace in Africa”, Review Article, African Affairs, Vol. 106 (422), 2006. pp. 147154. [xiii] Francis (2006) mainly talks about how Africa’s subregional organizations have contributed to peace and security in their regions, as illustrated in three useful case studiesECOWAS, SADC and IGAD. [xiv] Murithy 2005. p-45. [xv] Francis (2006) engages critically with the issues of African unity and regional peace and security systems, and he terms them ‘Afro responsibility’. p-30. [xvi] Ibid. p-8. [xvii] Hout, Will, “Theories of International Relations and the New Regionalism”, in Jean Grugel and Wil Hout (eds), Regionalism Across North-South Divide, London, New York, Routledge, 1999. pp.14-28. [xviii] Ibid, 17. [xix] Trivedi, Sonu, “AU and EU: A Comparative Study in Continental Integration”, India Quarterly, Vol. 43, (3&4), July-Dec, 2003. pp. 30-56. [xx] Aly, Ahmad, A.H.M., Economic Cooperation in Africa — In Search of Direction, London/Colorado: Lynne Reinner, 1994, pp. 1-8. [xxi] Hoskyns, C., “Pan Africanism and Integration” in A. Hazlewood (ed), African Integration and Disintegration, London: Oxford University Press, 1967. [xxii] The Casablanca Group included Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea, Libya, Mali and Morocco and favoured a strong political union of independent African States, in contrast to the more conservative Monrovia Group (formed in 1961). Monrovia group, of which Nigeria and Liberia were the key players, was composed of moderates. The Casablanca group was represented by radical attitudes. [xxiii] Ndongko W.A., (ed), Economic Cooperation and Integration in Africa, Codesria, 1985. [xxiv] Mathews K., “Birth of AU”, Africa Quarterly, ICCR, New Delhi, Vol. 41(1 & 2), 2001. [xxv] Trivedi, Sonu, “AU and EU: A Comparative Study in Continental Integration”, India Quarterly, Vol. 43, (3&4), July-Dec, 2003. pp. 30-56. [xxvi] Mathews, 2001. [xxvii] Kennes Walter, “African Regional Economic Integration and the European Union”, in Danial Bach (ed), Regionlisation in Africa — Integration and Disintegration, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1999, pp. 27-28 [xxviii] The countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cote d’lvoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea — Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. [xxix] Asante S.K.B, “Regional Economic Cooperation & Integration : The Experience of Ecowas” in A. Nyongo (ed), Regional Integration in Africa, Nairobi: Academy Science Publishers 1990.

Q U A R T E R L Y

[xxx] The Central African countries are Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, Sao Tome & Principe, and Zaire. [xxxi] Jalhoh A. A., “Foreign Private Investments and Regional Political Integration in UDEAC” in W. A. Ndongko (ed), Economic Cooperation and Integration in Africa, 1985. [xxxii] The other eighteen countries are Botswana, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Somalia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Eretria. [xxxiii] Hazlewood A., “Eco Integration in East Africa”, in Arthur Hazlewood (eds), African Integration & Disintegration — Case Studies in Economic & Political Union, 1962. [xxxiv] Baurename, N., “Integration in the Maghred : Assessments and Prospects” in Nyong’o (ed), Regional Integration in Africa, Nairobi: Academy Science Publishers 1990. [xxxv] Trivedi, Sonu, Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration: COMESA, EU SAARC, New Delhi: New Century Publications. 2005 p-40. [xxxvi] Grugel Jean and Wil Hout, “Regions, Regionalism and the South” in Jean Grugel and Wil Hout (eds), Regionalism Across North-South Divide, London, New York, Routledge, 1999. p-4. [xxxvii] Trivedi, Sonu, A Handbook of International Organisations, New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors, 2005. p-265. [xxxviii] Ibid, p-253. For more on COMESA, see Trivedi, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, Africa Quarterly, Vol. 44 (2), 2004. Trivedi, SAARC-COMESA: Exploring South-South Co-operation, Journal of Developing Societies, Vol. 22 (1), March 2006. pp. 57-73. [xxxix] Ibid, p-262. [xl] Prior to re-launching the East African Community in 1999, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda had enjoyed a long history of co-operation under successive regional integration arrangements. These included the Customs Union between Kenya and Uganda in 1917, which the then Tanganyika later joined in 1927; the East African High Commission (1948-1961); the East African Common Services Organisation (1961-1967); the East African Community (1967-1977), and the East African Co-operation (19931999). For more details, see the EAC website — www.eac.int/about_eac.htm [xli] Ibid, p-260. [xlii] Mistry Percy, “Africa’s Record of Regional Cooperation and Integration,” African Affairs, 2000, Vol. 99. p-557 [xliii] Contonou Agreement was signed between European Union and the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group replaces Lome Convention. It aims at gradual integration of ACP into the world economy by entering into Economic Partnership Agreements with the EU. [xliv] Peer Review Mechanism is a voluntary system designed to monitor each other’s (African States) performance. [xlv] Inter-American Development Bank, Sector Strategies. Retrieved from www.iadb.org/sds/consulta/en/p_int.htm

August-October 2007

P A R A D I G M

Framework of an African Union GOVERNMENT An African Union study lays down a blueprint for a confederacy and how it could be given institutional expression through the shared values, interests and ancestry that infuse the idea that Africa is.

(Full text available at www.africa-union.org)

he Union Government will be a re-invigorated pan African institution. These shared values politically transitory arrangement and common interests are contained in such basic documents towards the United States of Africa. as the Kampala document of the CSSDCA, the OAU declaAs such, it should consist of a more ration on unconstitutional change of government, the constifocused Assembly, and an executive tutive Act of the African Union and the NEPAD action plan. council backed by an effective permanent representative committee, Shared values and result oriented specialised technical committees as may be required. ■ Shared values are drawn from both African cultures and In addition, the Union Government would have a commis- societies, and from articulated commitments of African counsion with executive authority on mattries to meet the challenge of coping Although Africa has, for ters totally or partially delegated by with historical legacies and current Union members. Finally, more realities. In that connection, it would well-known historical reasons, effective parliamentary and judicial lost some of its self-sustaining be important for African countries to systems, as well as efficient contibe guided by the following values as characteristics, it is of nental financial institutions and an contained in the CSSDCA declaraadequately participatory framework tion: paramount importance to use would support it for non-state actors. the shared values to help forge (a) Adherence to the rule of law ■ The framework of the Union (b) Popular participation in govercloser unity among, and joint Government would therefore be nance based on the shared values and com(c) Respect for human rights and purpose of action by African mon interests of African nations, and fundamental freedoms countries and people. They on strategic focus areas. (d) Transparency in public policy should particularly be used at ■ All African countries can claim making Shared values are also based membership of the Union on cultural commonalties among the national, regional and Government based on the principle continental levels to devise and African countries and people of strict adherence to its rules. In ■ While African societies are diverse, addition, countries with a certain implement development policies solidarity, humaneness, and protecpopulation make-up could be given tion of the weak are their main charand programmes that are the status of associate members of the people centred and well rooted acteristics at all level (within the famUnion Government. In that context, ily, among neighbours, and in the in African traditions. relationships with the African diascommunity), as well as pride in a pora will be given special attention. common African ancestry. These valShared values and common interests of African coun- ues are translated into strong kindred ties and communal cohetries and people: siveness. ■ Shared values and common interests have both structural ■ Although Africa has, for well known historical reasons, lost and psychological elements which ensure collective self-devel- some of its self-sustaining characteristics, it is of paramount opment of the African people under conditions of good gov- importance to use the shared values as leverage towards closernance at the continental level and constructive engagement er unity among, and joint purpose of action by African counat the international level. They serve as the basis of mutuality tries and people. They should particularly be used at the and reciprocity in Africa’s self-discovery and the strength of a national, regional and continental levels to devise and imple-

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

The official opening of the 13th Ordinary Session of the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) to the African Union on January 22, 2007.

ment development policies and programmes that are people centred and well rooted in African traditions. Thus, through a skilful combination of indigenous and modern knowledge systems, African countries could devise well thought-out and creative strategies for the transformation of their social structures, political systems, and economic organisations to the present world environment so that the continent as a whole would successfully “claim the 21st century”. Common interests and constraints ■ Common interests are derived from the challenges facing the continent as a whole, namely its over-dependence on the external world and the under-exploitation of its enormous development potential at national, regional and continental levels. They are clearly elaborated in such seminal documents as the Lagos Plan of Action, the Cairo Agenda for the Economic and Social Development of Africa, and the NEPAD action plan. The challenge of over-dependence is critical in areas, such as agriculture, human development, science technology, industry, trade and finance. ■ Over several years, food security has become a matter of great concern for many African countries. Frequent climaterelated disasters (drought, deforestation and desertification) as well as food losses have led to chronic food shortages in several countries, thus making them dependent on external food supply. Actually, with Africa’s several sovereign entities, most of them mini-states, national self-sufficiency in food is not a feasible option for many of them. ■ There is also a strong dependence on expatriate technicians and technology; and an attachment to export-led growth strategy, emphasising the production and export of raw materials and primary agricultural commodities in exchange for manufactured goods, imported from developed countries, mostly former colonial powers, thus jeopardising the industrial devel-

opment prospects of these countries. ■ Trade is another example of Africa’s over dependence. The terms of trade are increasingly moving against Africa, which has no alternative but to accept declining earnings from a rising volume of exports while simultaneously having to pay more for its imports. Financing Africa’s development is also largely dependent on inflows of financial resources from Official Development Assistance (ODA) and mounting external indebtedness, in spite of recent debt relief measures. ■ Over dependence also occurs in the education and health sectors. The education sector is largely dependent on external assistance for such basic requirements as trained teachers, classrooms, textbooks, scientific equipment, and appropriate curricula. The same applies to the health sector when addressing transborders chronic diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV-AIDS, but also regarding attempts to provide safe drinking water and elementary sanitation facilities. ■ The challenge of under-exploitation of Africa’s development potential is also compelling. In this respect, some studies have shown that because of its geographical position, a United Africa would have the unique potential of producing most types of food and agricultural produce throughout the year, thus putting an end of the chronic cycle of drought-related food shortage in some parts of the continent. Africa being well endowed with natural resources, the concerted exploitation of the energy potential of its ecological zones would not only make countries less energy dependent, but also enable the industrial processing of the huge mineral resources of the continent. Infrastructure development is also a major challenge. Africa being the second largest continent in terms of size and population, the building of the required transport and communications infrastructures would make it one of the most competitive markets and, potentially, the most attractive in terms of returns on investment.

August-October 2007

P A R A D I G M

■ Finally, given the increasing wave of globalisation, and the emergence of strong regional, political, economic and trading blocs in other continents, the challenges of over dependence and under-exploitation of its potential have increased the marginalisation of the continent in world affairs. Thus, the goal in pursuing development through a common interest perspective is to bring about human progress in Africa; restore human dignity to the African people and give Africa a voice in the global order; promote progressive African social and political values and defend the African personality. ■ In doing this, there are needs to develop the human potential of Africa and include the people in the development process. It should be realised that what unites Africans far surpasses what divides them as a people. It pays to speak and act with one voice than with many voices. In unity, Africa can realise and achieve a lot. The global system is such that a dismembered and balkanised continent will have weak bargaining strength on all scores. ■ An all embracing common interest of the African continent is, therefore, to build its collective capability and capacity to act as a stakeholder and not an outsider in world affairs, and to fully participate in shaping international norms and agenda. This is indeed an important and overarching objective of the Union Government.

! Prepare the meetings of the assembly. ! Assist Union members, as may be required, in building national constituencies for the Union Government and the United States of Africa.

Strategic areas of focus of African Union Government

! Undertake, with the support of RECs, a consolidated inventory of hydropower resources of Union members, taking into account their integrated utilisation (i.e. electricity, irrigation, navigation, fisheries, etc.) ! Expand, with the support of RECs, ongoing interconnection of electrical grids among Union members. ! Promote standardisation of power supply equipment in Union members. ! Harmonise energy policies and plans among Union members. ! Rehabilitate regional or continental solar energy centres, and promote continental research centres on other renewable energy resources.

■ The strategic areas of focus and their rationale, which are consistent with the objectives of the Strategic Framework of the African Union Commission, are essentially derived from shared values and common interests. They are aimed, in the short, medium and the long run, at making the process of establishing the Union Government irreversible. A number of areas are contained in proposals made at the independence of various African countries in the late 50s and early 60s and, subsequently, in the Lagos Plan of Action, the Abuja treaty, the constitutive act of the African Union, the Kampala document of CSSDCA, and the NEPAD action plan. ■ Proposals on areas of focus were also made in the course of the meetings of the two committees of Heads of State and Government. Overall, consensus seems to have emerged on some areas around which a Union Government could, progressively, be operating at the continental level. It is understood that in each area, a subject matter to be covered could either be at the continental level or concurrently be with Union members. The focus areas indicated below are not in any order of priority. Similarly, the suggested subject matters under each area are merely indicative and illustrative. With the above understanding, the suggested 16 strategic areas of focus are as follows: A. Continental integration ! Promote cooperation and exchange of experiences among RECs. ! Liaise with ministries in charge of integration among Union members.

B. Education, Training, Skill Development, Science and Technology ! Undertake, with the support of RECs, identification and promotion of potential continental centres of higher learning, primarily with an African focus as well as higher technical training and research centres, and encourage their specialisation. ! Promote the exchange of students and academic staff among universities and research centres of Union members. ! Harmonise curricula at primary and secondary school levels among Union members. ! Organise exchange of experiences among science and technology research centres of Union members, with a view of identifying and promoting specialised continental centres. ! Promote research on matters of particular relevance to Africa, such as desertification, coastal erosion, infectious diseases and biotechnology. C. Energy

D. Environment ! Organise the exchange of experiences, among union members, on environmental issues of particular relevance to Africa, (coastal erosion, desertification, deforestation, etc.) ! Prepare and lead continental campaigns against such natural disasters like flooding, land-slide, volcanic eruptions, locust invasions etc.), and mobilise international assistance. ! Promote Africa’s position at world gathering, on matters already agreed upon by the assembly, with respect to world environment issues (e.g. ozone layer, biodiversity, Kyoto Protocol, etc.) ! Build consensus on emerging issues with respect to environment. E. External Relations ! Promote Africa’s views at world gatherings on matters already agreed upon by the assembly.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A ! Build consensus among Union members on emerging subjects, as may be required by the evolving world situation. ! Establish formal relationships between the Union Government and the African diaspora. ! Establish and/or strengthen Union Government permanent representations to other selected countries besides international and regional organisations. F. Food, Agriculture and Water resources ! Formulate a continental food policy and self-sufficiency programme and encourage food trade among Union members, with the support of RECs. ! Implement the existing strategy for water resources development and management. ! Organise exchange of experiences and information on agricultural production techniques, including water resources development and irrigation schemes, agricultural equipment and inputs. ! Make an inventory of agricultural equipment production centres and facilities the trade of such equipment among Union members. ! Harmonise agriculture policies among Union members.

Q U A R T E R L Y

basic and intermediary industrial products. ! Harmonise industrial policies of Union members. K. Money and Finance ! Manage the finance of the Union. ! With the support of RECs, harmonise custom duties and taxes among Union members. ! Organise consultations with central banks, the African Development Bank (ADB), and the private sector on modalities for setting up an African Investment Bank. ! Organise consultations, in collaboration with the African Association of Central Banks (AACB), national and multinational central banks, on modalities for achieving a monetary Union, creating an African monetary fund and establishing an African Central Bank. ! External borrowing. ! Domestic borrowing. ! Mobilise support for the return to Africa of flight capital. L. Peace and Security

! Promote gender mainstreaming. ! Promote youth employment. ! Encourage the participation of youth in activities of direct relevance to the Union Government. ! Organise continent-wide campaigns against child labour, particularly in military activities.

! Coordinate the work of the existing Peace and Security Council. ! Constitute an African Stand-by Force (ASF), the establishment of which is presently underway. ! Oversee the use of the ASF on the basis of the existing nonaggression pact and common defence policy of the Union, as may be decided by the chief executive of the commission and/or the Assembly; including for the purpose of United Nations peace keeping operations.

H. Governance and Human Rights

M. Social affairs and solidarity

! Strengthen the existing legal and regulatory systems in all member states. ! Promote economic and corporate governance. ! Promote political governance. ! Promote the independence of the African Court for Human Rights.

! Promote the establishment of social security systems in member states. ! Put in place support systems for the most vulnerable segments of the society. Encourage wide research on African traditional solidarity.

G. Gender and Youth

N. Sport and culture

I. Health ! Coordinate the continent-wide fight against major trans-border diseases (Malaria, HIV-Aids, Tuberculosis, Cholera, etc.) ! With the support of RECs, identify and promote specialised medical centres. ! Harmonise health policy among Union members. ! Promote research on tropical diseases. J. Industry and Mineral Resources ! Implement, with the support of RECs, identified continental projects in the first industrial decade of the Union with respect to basic industries. (i.e. metallurgical, mechanical and chemical industries). ! Facilitate, with the support of RECs, intra-African trade in

! Encourage research on culture and development in the African context. ! Strengthen African participation in world sport bodies and events, and promote the Union flag. ! Implement the African Language Action Plan of 1987. ! Organise cultural exchanges among Union members. ! Encourage cultural exchanges with the African diaspora. ! Promote African culture outside the continent. O. Trade and Custom Union: Free movement of persons, rights of residence and establishment ! Identify existing bottlenecks in RECs on the unification of external (i.e. non African) custom tariffs, with a view to removing them in order to pave the way for greater intra-African trade.

August-October 2007

P A R A D I G M

! Promote Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s position at world gatherings, including World Trade Organisation (WTO), on matters already agreed upon by the assembly, with respect to international trade. ! External Trade. ! Build consensus among Union members on emerging issues, as may be required by the evolving international economic situation, by liaising with trade ministers of Union members. ! Immigration into the Union. ! Immigration within the Union. ! Rights of residence and establishment. P. Infrastructure, ICT and Biotechnology ! Implement, with the support of RECs, transcontinental and communications projects already identified in the programmes of the two United Nations Transport and Communications Decades for Africa (1978-1988, and 1989-1999 respectively)UNTACDA, and in the NEPAD action plan; including the mobilisation of resources from within or outside the Union. ! Organise experiences sharing platforms for Union members on the dissemination of the use of NICTs as an essential development tool. ! Harmonise transport and communications policy of Union members. ! Promote, with the support of the RECs, the creation of continental air and maritime transport companies. Tentative Roadmap of the Union Government !The proposed roadmap is divided into three phases of equal timeframe. The initial phase commences immediately after the decision of the assembly at the next session of the African Union Summit and will be devoted to establishing the Union Government (i.e. steps and processes that are necessary for the immediate operationalisation of the Union Government). The second phase will be devoted to making the Union

Government fully operational in all its components and to laying the constitutional ground for the United States of Africa. The third and final phase will aim at the facilitation of all required structures of the United States of Africa at the levels of the states, the regions and the continent. ! The proposed roadmap also takes into account the principles of gradual incrementalism and a multi-layered approach. In this respect, all proposed strategic areas of focus or all items of a given area need not be covered at the same time. Also, during the three phases, action is required simultaneously at the national, regional and continental levels. The actions indicated in each phase represent those that are essential in the process leading to the achievement of the final objective of the United States of Africa. They do not include regular activities carried out at various levels within and outside the Union. ! Finally, the timeframe of the roadmap would depend on several factors, including first and foremost, the political will and commitment of Union members. It will also depend on particular circumstances of potential individual members of the Union. In this regard, all segments of the population among Union members should first be made to understand the importance of the Union Government project, and then encouraged to participate effectively in its realisation. Also, the Union Government should be fully operational in all its components before it is transformed into the United States of Africa. ! Taking into account these factors, a three-year period is recommended for each phase, so that the United States of Africa would be formed by the year 2015. Thus, African countries, acting collectively and with solidarity, would endeavour to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set in the Millennium Declaration of the General Assembly of the United Nations. The three phases of the roadmap are outlined below. Initial Phase: Establishment of the Union Government 2006-2009

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Continental Level ! Selection of strategic areas of focus of the Union Government. ! Decision on the mode of finance. ! Adoption of the revised functions of the Assembly, the Executive Council, the Specialised Technical Committees, the Commission and the Permanent Representative Committee. ! Decisions on the establishment of the Courts of Justice and Human Rights. ! Decision on the revised Constitutive Act. !Decision on the launch of the studies on financial institutions. ! Decision on the establishment of the AIB. ! Decision on the final status of NEPAD in the Commission. ! Decision on the representation of the Union Government in other parts of the world, including, in particular, the African diaspora. ! Consultations and decisions on the free movement of persons, rights of establishment and residence. Regional Level ! Rationalisation and harmonisation of the RECs. ! Harmonisation of RECs’ instruments, institutions, programmes and operations with the Union Government objectives and roadmap. ! Popularisation of the Union Government project. ! Development of a monitoring mechanism for the implementation of the Union roadmap at regional level. National Level ! Harmonisation of Union members’ instruments, institutions, programmes and operations with the Union Government objectives and roadmap. ! Building national constituencies. ! Popularisation of the Union Government Project. ! Development of national monitoring mechanisms for the implementation of the Union roadmap. Second Phase: Consolidation of the Union Government 2009-2012 Continental Level ! Creation of the ACB and AMF. ! Restructuring of remaining continental organs. ! Initiation of the process of consultation for and preparation of a draft Constitution of the United States of Africa. Regional Level ! Adoption of measures towards effective free movement of persons, rights of residence and establishment. ! Consultation on the draft constitution of the United States of Africa.

Q U A R T E R L Y

National Level ! National conventions on the draft constitution of the United States of Africa. Third Phase: Establishment of the United States of Africa 2012 -2015 ! The period would be devoted to the adoption by Union members of the draft constitution of the United States of Africa. During the period, all continental institutions would be fully operational, including, in particular, the financial institutions. ! Finally, elections at all required levels (continental, regional and national) would take place during this period. The United States of Africa would be officially constituted and recognised as such in the world community of nations. CONCLUSION ! This study has shown that, in spite of the difficulties encountered in the process of the search for unity and purpose of action by African countries over the years, the continent is uniquely poised to achieve this objective through the Union Government project. This is so because of the shared values and common interests of African countries, as well as the holistic approach to its development challenges since the LPA and the FAL to the Union Government project, through the Abuja Treaty, the African Union and NEPAD. ! The proposed architecture of the Union Government is such that it would enable Africa, through its own organs and institutions to look for solutions to its development and first from within the continent. It would also strengthen the partnerships Africa has fostered with various world regions for the past several years. ! The framework is also flexible, as it would enable all potential Union members to participate in the Union Government soon after its adoption. Indeed, both the principle of incrementalism and the multi-layered approach are such that all potential Union members could participate in the Union Government at all levels (national, regional and continental). Thus, the need for consensus would not be required since potential members could become active members at any level as and when they are ready. On September 9, 2009, an evaluation of the progress achieved in Africa’s integration process should be conducted. ! The ultimate objective is to achieve, through political, economic, social and cultural integration, a strong multi-racial and multi-ethnic United Africa, based on the principles of justice, peace, solidarity, and the judicious exploitation of its human and natural resources. This united Africa would thus be in a position to promote its values and interests, and take advantage of the opportunities of a rapidly globalising world. It will represent the concretisation of the vision of the African Union. ■

August-October 2007

E C O N O M I C

U N I T Y

COMESA for Peace, Security and Economic Development The trade body needs to persuade the member states to respect international and mutual peace agreements, and help initiate a positive environment in the region, says Suresh Kumar.

he Common Market for Eastern and grammes is expedited. The summit endorsed the recommenSouthern Africa (COMESA), a pref- dations of the Fourth COMESA Business Forum and agreed erential trading area with 20 member on the need to strengthen public and private sector partnerstates, is working to develop their nat- ship. ural and human resources for the It was noted that the Economic Partnership Agreement mutual benefit of all their people and (EPA) negotiations launched in 2004 between Eastern and to promote regional integration Southern African (ESA) countries and the European Union through trade development. The (EU) had made significant progress since the last summit and member states are Angola, Burundi, were expected to be concluded in December 2007. The sumComoros, Congo Kinshasa, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, mit reaffirmed the importance of ensuring that the EPA should Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, be a development tool to support ESA countries to address the Seychelles, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia and supply-side constraints of the region as well as improve ESA Zimbabwe. They agreed to promote a free trade flow among market access to the EU. The meet urged all member states them to achieve economic revival and the establishment of a to implement the COMESA trade and transit transport facilfree trade zone and custom union. itation instruments so as to enhance the movement of transit Eritrea’s President Isaias Afwerki took the initiative for this and cross-border traffic. during COMESA’s 11th Summit held in Djibouti on Nov 13As for strengthening COMESA’s development activities, 14, 2006. Enumerating the challenges at the meet, Rwanda’s the summit reviewed the progress made so far in addressing President Paul Kagame cited the internal conflicts in the Sudan peace and security issues in the COMESA region. It comand Somalia and the border tension between Ethiopia and mended the member states for their ongoing efforts in addressEritrea, observing that they hindered integration. “Obviously ing issues of peace and security in the common market as well these conflicts constitute a threat to our regional integration,” as the continent as a whole and urged them to intensify their he said. efforts in the search for modalities to address issues of peace The initiative for peace and security in the region and cor- and security as well as post-conflict transformation issues. relating it with the issue of economic development was Kenyan Vice-President Moody Awori, who initiated the endorsed at the 12th COMESA Summit held in Nairobi, agenda of the 12th Summit, said in his opening address that Kenya, during May 21-23, 2007. The meet focused on the the decision by COMESA to establish a programme on peace theme of Deepening Regional Integration for Diversification and security in the late 1990s necessitated a more targeted and Value Addition. A involvement for COMESA. reminder was put in place He further stressed on the for the COMESA nonneed for proper and timely Free Trade Agreement information for the manage(FTA) member states to ment of conflicts and reaffirm their commitdescribed peace and securiment to joining the FTA at ty as pre-requisites to ecothe earliest opportunity. nomic development President Ismail Omar (MOFA: 1). The COMESA Guelleh of Djibouti proefforts to work together with posed that the summit the African Union (AU) and reaffirm the member other regional organisations states’ commitment to the need peace and security as a convergence process of the prerequisite. The new chairregional economic comperson, Djibouti’s Minister munities at a political level of Foreign Affairs Joseph Kabila was sworn in as the first democratically elected President to ensure that the harMahmoud Ali Youssouf, since Congolese independence. monisation of prosaid his nation placed the

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

issues of peace and security at the top of the foreign policy Operation in Burundi (ONUB) and appeal to the internaagenda and noted the importance of the role of peace and tional community to provide development resources on the security in regional integration (MOFA: 3-4). As a result, the one hand and strengthen the COMESA Bureau of the Eighth Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in Authority to implement the poverty eradication programme Nairobi during the COMESA Summit recommended the and development on the other. Along with it, it was time to following: appoint a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Burundi a) COMESA should continue taking a pro-active approach to check whosoever committed gross human rights violations. in the harmonisation of its programme with other Regional COMESA should pursue this issue with the UN and get it Economic Communities (RECs) with shared membership to implemented with no delay, which will only help in visualisensure the complementarity of efforts. ing the practice of economic development in the region. b) COMESA should consider a new expanded strategic There was a need to build infrastructure, such as roads, vision of implementing its mandate of conflict prevention by communication and railway, and strengthen the health, edufocusing its comparative advantages in trade and investment cation and agriculture sectors in Burundi. Burundi is a landissues, especially in looking at economic dimensions of con- locked country, which needs to improve its transportation flicts such as trade flows in natural resources/extractive indus- facility through Lake Tanganyika. This effort will enhance try and the development of good corporate governance and regional stability and create more linkages within the Great corporate social responsibility. Lakes region. COMESA needs to persuade the regional envic) COMESA should mainstream its mandate on conflict ronment to stabilise the political environment of Burundi. prevention in all trade and investCOMESA encouraged the ment programmes to ensure that 2. The Case of Democratic economic integration becomes a catRepublic of Congo Boundary Commission to alyst for peace and security as well as the development of a culture of tol- continue consulting on practical The United Nations Operation in steps required in order for erance. Congo (MONUC) conducted free d) Enhance coordination with AU and fair elections in July 2006. Joseph demarcation to proceed and the other RECs and ensure clearKabila was sworn in as the first (including security, logistics, ly defined lines of responsibility democratically elected President transportation, funding), with a since Congolese independence. The among them. COMESA reviewed the progress establishment of the newly elected view to ensuring that these in the implementation of peace issues parliament and implementation of concerning member states, decided elements were put in practice. It the Constitution adopted by referenat the 7th MOFA meeting in encouraged the AU, the EU and dum on December 18, 2005, brought Djibouti during the 11th Summit. an end to the transition born out of the UN, witness to the original One of the major decisions in generthe 2002 Comprehensive Peace accords, to continue working al was that (Under Decision 18 b) Agreement signed in Pretoria. together to forge a process of ‘COMESA should prioritise the The DRC government today faces practical implementation of postissues, such as peace and security, de-escalation, border conflict reconstruction, including national reconciliation, reconstrucdemarcation and dialogue. disarmament, demobilisation and tion, political governance and susrehabilitation programmes for countainable social and economic develtries emerging from conflicts’ (MOFA: 7). This decision was opment. MONUC worries about the fighting in the western to be further taken care of in the Post-Conflict Reconstruction and eastern provinces besides the province of Bas-Congo. and Development (PCRD) meeting in Lusaka in July 2007. COMESA should persuade the rebel armed forces either to COMESA discussed this issue country-wise and chalked out join the DRC single national army or motivate the Kabila govfurther planning during the 12th Summit. ernment to offer the rebel armed forces the freedom to lead a civilian life with basic amenities in future. 1. Peace Process in Burundi COMESA took the decision under the 7th meeting of MOFA that “Decision 26.b in concert with partners and relThe major issue in Burundi is to adopt and implement first evant stakeholders to mobilise and deploy resources to follow the Poverty Alleviation Programme that will help initiate the up on the programme (DDR) for thousands of ex-combatants issue of peace, regional integration and economic develop- from the national army and the rebel militias” (MOFA: 9). But ment. The government of Burundi released its Poverty there is no progress after the COMESA decision. The 12th Reduction Strategy paper in September 2006 and highlighted Summit further decided to carry forward the agenda under the the “government policy to ensure Burundi’s integration in the PCRD meeting in July 2007 in Lusaka and no concrete work sub-regional market”. Keeping the sub-regional economy in plan came out to deal with DRC. mind, it was observed that COMESA should mobilise AU, the Political stabilisation is the main agenda and priority of the Regional Peace Initiative for Burundi, and the United Nations government in Congo. It requires infrastructure to activate the

August-October 2007

E C O N O M I C

U N I T Y

people to work in developmental activities. Once peace prevails in DRC, the regional economic partners need to persuade investing in the country. The Great Lakes region will support the developmental activities provided peace and security prevails in DRC. The summit decided in 15 points to strengthen the peace, security and development agenda. One of the major decisions under COMESA (Decision 29.d) says: “Express its willingness to support and advise key state institutions on the implementation of the new constitution and the completion of legal reforms agreed upon at the InterCongolese dialogue (such as devolution of central government responsibilities to the newly created provinces, judicial reform and anti-corruption legislation)” (MOFA: 13-14). COMESA needs to initiate the reconstruction programmes with the help of AU, MONUC and other regional organisations, which will strengthen the peace agenda. 3. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Situation The MOFA Seventh Meeting decided to take immediate concrete steps to implement the Algiers Agreement, known as the Ethiopia Eritrea Boundary Commission (EEBC) judgment. The 12th Summit noted that there had not been any progress in implementing the decisions taken in the 7th MOFA Meeting and urged a holistic approach to the situation to allow dialogue and demarcation to proceed. COMESA encouraged the Boundary Commission to continue consulting on practical steps required in order for demarcation to proceed (including security, logistics, transportation, funding), with a view to ensuring that these elements were put in practice. It encouraged the AU, the EU and the UN, witness to the original accords, to continue working together to forge a process of de-escalation, border demarcation and bilateral dialogue (MOFA: 10). Along with it, MOFA under Decision 27 (A) stated that “Eritrea reverses, without further delay or pre-conditions its decision to ban UNMEE helicopter flights as well as additional restrictions as imposed on the Operations of UNMEE and provide UNMEE with the access, assistance, support and protection required to the performance of its duties” (MOFA: 10). But there was no progress noted after the 11th summit in the case of Ethiopia-Eritrea decision on 27 a, b and c and MOFA assessed the situation again during the 12th Summit. MOFA reviewed the situation on the Eritrea-Ethiopia boundary dispute and noted the following: a) There has been no progress on the issues around the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary dispute during the review period; b) Ethiopia’s full and unequivocal acceptance of the ruling of the Boundary Commission as final and binding; c) Eritrea’s readiness to start dialogue with Ethiopia aimed at the normalisation of relations after the demarcation of the boundary in accordance with accepted principles of international law and practice (MOFA: 15). The Ministers invited the Authority to consider the recommendations that COMESA should: a) Urge a holistic approach to the situation to allow dialogue and demarcation to proceed;

b) Urge de-escalation by both parties of political and military tensions in order to create a conducive environment to both demarcation and dialogue; c) Encourage the Boundary Commission to continue consulting on practical steps required in order for demarcation to proceed (including security, logistics, transportation, funding), with a view to ensuring that these elements are put in practice; and d) Encourage the AU, the EU and the UN who witnessed the original accords to continue working together to forge a process of de-escalation, border demarcation and bilateral dialogue (MOFA: 15) Along with it, “the ministers took note of Eritrea’s request to Ethiopia to write to the United Nations Security Council expressing its full and unequivocal acceptance of the decision of the Boundary Commission” (MOFA: 16). As a land-locked country, Ethiopia needs viable sea connectivity for economic development. The EEBC is an agreement carried out under international law and it should be respected. The demarcation work should not delayed by political compulsions. Once demarcated, Eritrea needs to persuade to facilitate its sea port for Ethiopia under international rules. COMESA needs to foster a positive synergy between these two countries, which will help to promote the people’s welfare and regional connectivity to persuade peace and economic development. 4. The Case of Darfur in Sudan There is a need to understand why we are talking about a peace process and its implementation in Darfur. Why there is no peace in the region ultimately is the result of the lopsided development policies of the central government. Today the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) of May 5, 2006 is the instrument which can help rectify the past mistakes of regional underdevelopment that is accepted by the Government of Sudan (GoS). COMESA noted that there were still significant humanitarian challenges in Darfur, which require urgent and decisive remedial action so as to alleviate the plight of the civilian population, particularly women and children (MOFA: 16). It also took note of UN Security Council resolution 1706, the Tripoli Consensus of April 28-29, 2007, and the Zambia request to visit Darfur and its acceptance by Sudan and further recommended that Sudan continue creating in Darfur an environment conducive to the success of the UN-AU mission to maintain peace and to bring a lasting peace in Darfur (MOFA: 18). It further “stress the importance of establishing a new framework of transparency and cooperation between the Sudanese government and the AU and the UN to implement their agreements, especially those concerning the UN support for the AU peacekeeping force in Darfur” (MOFA: 18). Recently, five Darfur opposition groups formed a United Front for Liberation and Development (UFLD) and shared their opinion at a meeting in Libya July 16-18, 2007. To go forward in the existing environment for peace and development, the following points need to taken care of:

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

1. Peaceful negotiations and gun battle never go together. This rule applies to the GoS and all Darfur groups (signatory and others). Here the Thumb Rule is to adopt either peaceful negotiations, or the gun. 2. The GoS priority should be to resolve disputes peacefully and listening to all indigenous groups/people. 3. All Darfur groups need to understand the process and come forward keeping the idea of secession aside. The option of secession is always open for anyone with people’s will and support. No group can fight a secessionist movement through the barrel of a gun with alien assistance, and without the support of the indigenous people. Any such movement cannot lead to victory with external assistance, which will ultimately lose people’s support and die its own death. 4. The GoS should leave behind the policy of crushing the people’s voice, which ultimately leads to a humanitarian crisis and a refugee problem. These points are the pre-requisite for GoS and all Darfur groups prior to implementing the peace process. COMESA needs to give its important contribution to bridge the gap between the Darfur groups and GoS.

ment of Mogadishu and came forward with a Joint Communiqué on April 18, 2007. The Communiqué is the initiative towards peaceful reconciliation with the condition that all foreign troops (those from Ethiopia, the U.S. and Uganda) should withdraw from Somalia immediately without any pre-condition. An Eritrean delegation of the IGAD Ministerial Meeting in Nairobi on April 3, 2007 elaborated that “if individual and group initiatives aimed at ensuring lasting peace and stability in Somalia was at all to succeed, external military interference should be avoided, an end should be put to acts of defamation linking some parties with international terrorism and a political process leading to national reconciliation should be promoted.(Eritrea Profile, No. 13). The summit recommended that COMESA member states and the international community should support an internal political process involving all political forces aimed at national reconciliation and unity (MOFA: 21). Mutual dialogue is the only way to initiate the peace process in Somalia. A peaceful Somalia will boost the COMESA objective of economic integration with stability.

5. The Case of Uganda

Conclusion

President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda agreed to hold peace talks with the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) fighting for the past 20 years in Juba, capital of southern Sudan. This step will initiate a dialogue to save millions of northern Ugandan people who suffered from horrendous acts as a result of the war between the LRA and the government. When former Mozambican president Joachim Chissano was appointed UN Special Envoy for the LRA affected areas, he invited the LRA and the Ugandan government to carry forward the peace talks and an agreement on comprehensive solution was signed on May 2, 2007, in Juba. COMESA appreciated the ongoing peace approach and urged both the parties to come forward to expedite the modalities that will help to establish real peace in the affected area. This 12th Summit theme of deepening regional integration should persuade the LRA and the Ugandan government to opt for traditional mechanisms such as “mato oput” to establish peace, justice and accountability (MOFA: 20).

COMESA connects the eastern and southern parts of the African continent and is working to establish regional unity. Peace and stability are the real concerns and the way towards economic integration. This summit should persuade the Member States to respect international agreements and mutual peace agreements, which help to initiate a positive environment in the region. COMESA needs to adopt the African line of solution that means indigenous problems should be solved by indigenous people alone and the role of the external world should be limited to humanitarian needs and assistance, monitoring and boosting the peace process. Military mechanisms of the external world to support one party in the name of war against terrorism during conflict situations do not lead to peace. The resource mobilisation mentions, “to enhance the capability of COMESA in counter terrorism (to be supported by the AU Centre for the Study and Research in Counter Terrorism (CAERT) [MOFA: 34] is welcome. It will lead to indigenous solution as well. Today, it is indisputable that the maintenance of peace is a major precondition for socio-economic development in any country or region. It would be useful if the sovereign Member States of COMESA were to allow the organisation to play an effective role in the promotion of peace and security whether it is the case of Somalian integration, the Sudanese peace processes or the Ethiopia-Eritrea Boundary Commission implementation. The COMESA Mode of Operation says: “It shall employ preventive diplomacy through dialogue and compromise and completely avoid any form of coercion with Member States (MOFA: 30).” ■

6. The Case of Somalia The 7th Meeting of MOFA had “urged the people of Somalia to give peace a chance so that they can rejoin COMESA in order to contribute to the attainment of sustainable economic development of their country and the region as a whole through the COMESA Economic Integration Agenda” (MOFA: 21). Prior to it, Somalia needs a de jure government to initiate the environment of dialogue. The Islamic Court Union leadership sent a peace proposal to the de facto govern-

References 1.8th Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), COMESA, Nairobi, Kenya, CS/MFA/VIII/7, 21st May 2007 2.Eritrea Profile, vol.14, No.13, 21 April 2007 3.Eritrea Profile, vol.13, No.75, November 25, 2006

August-October 2007

B I L A T E R A L

T I E S

SAY INDIA in Sudan Manish Chand writes about tell-tale signs of change in the Sudanese capital Khartoum as Africa’s largest country and oil mecca embarks on a modernisation drive and turns eastwards to India, a rising Asian power.

n Sudan, Africa’s largest country and oil mecca, the moment you say you are from India, the Sudanese break into a smile and start humming one of the old Hindi film songs that are a rage here. This instant emotional connect that the Sudanese feel for India underlines the affection and esteem India and Indians enjoy in a country that has emerged as the continent’s oil hub. The cultural affinity is more than visible: Hindi films are screened regularly at local theatres, especially in the old city of Omdurman — home to a large Indian diaspora. As Ashraf, a Sudanese businessman, watches the TV showing MTV-style Arab song-and-music show in a luxury hotel in Khartoum, he starts talking excitedly about Indian superstar Amitabh Bachchan and Raj Kapoor films. He is enjoying his Pepsi but that has not watered down his dislike for America that has imposed sanctions on his country for nearly a decade and stifled its economy. The romance with Indian films and children named after Indian icons Mahatma Gandhi and Nehru is no freak trend, but reflective of Sudan’s larger eastward journey as

it expands political and business ties with India, China, Malaysia, Japan and South Korea to shore up its economy and to beat the onerous American sanctions. The stakes are high and the stirrings of change are too obvious to be missed in this city where the Blue Nile and the White Nile meet. Khartoum’s skyline is changing, with this once sleepy city rumbling with the noise of tower cranes busily erecting high-rise buildings, its department stores flaunting designer labels and its roads brimming with Toyotas, Hyundais and Indian Tata buses and Bajaj scooters and auto-rickshaws. Indian Maruti cars are also set to hit the roads in a big way soon. In the teeth of American sanctions, Sudan is industrialising on its own terms. The GIAD industrial park is a classic example of Sudanese ingenuity and entrepreneurship. The Korean Hyundai is locally assembled in the industrial park and sold for a few thousand dollars less than the imported Hyundai. “We want to go eastward, not westward. We look at India as an independent country which has its own mind and is not a camp follower of any superpower,” Dr. Kamal Obaid, Sudan’s ruling party National Congress’ chief

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

The stakes are high and the stirrings of change are too obvious to be missed Sudan’s capital city Khartoum where the Blue Nile and the White Nile meet.

pointsperson on foreign policy, tells Africa Quarterly in and Khartoum needs Beijing to shield it in the UN against broader sanctions, it is increasingly looking at India afresh Khartoum. “Historically, we have had very good relations with India. with its proven prowess in knowledge industries as a develThe Indian community is very famous and successful here. opment partner. China may have invested over $10 billion in Sudanese oil Around 10,000 Indians live here. We would like to strengthand is the country’s largest supplier of arms and its largest en relations with India,” says Obaid. “India and China can play a great role in the destiny of trading partner with bilateral trade touching $4 billion. But with its profit-driven mankind in the 21st century. India is a India’s bilateral trade approach, it has yet to wake up to the knowledge power. We seek Indian help with Sudan touched long-term advantages of making a in the education sector,” says Abdalla Zakaria Idris, general director of the $620 million in 2006 more enduring investment: earning and affection of ordinary International Centre of African Studies, and is likely to exceed goodwill Sudanese. a local think-tank. $1 billion soon. India, in contrast, believes in “India’s business and energy ties with empowering Sudan by providing Sudan are on an upswing. There is a lot of warmth and affection for India and Indians in Sudan,” training to the Sudanese youth. Some 4,000-odd Sudanese youth are already studying in India. says India’s ambassador to Sudan Deepak Vohra. Besides, in a country that is still grappling with a fragile India’s bilateral trade with Sudan touched $620 million truce between the Arab-dominated North and Black-domin 2006 and is likely to exceed $1 billion soon. ONGC, the Indian oil major through its overseas arm inated South after a four-decade-old civil war, the presence OVL, has 25 percent stake in Greater Nile Petroleum of over 2,500 Indian peacekeeping troops, part of the multiOperating Company (GNPOC) and has invested over $1.5 national United Nations Mission in Sudan (UMMIS), is billion in oil exploration in Sudan — one of its largest for- reassuring for the Sudanese. The UNMIS is headed by Lt. General Jasbir Singh Lidder, an Indian Army officer. eign investments by India. Sudan is also rolling out the red carpet for Indian investONGC is also exploring the possibility of acquiring two ment in agriculture, transport and infrastructure sectors more oil blocks in Sudan. GNPOC is a joint oil exploration and distribution com- with tax concessions. India’s heavy industry major BHEL is pany in which CNPC of China has 40 per cent stake, in the process of setting $500 million 500 MW power plant Petronas of Malaysia has 30 per cent stake, ONGC 20 per — the largest power project in Sudan. India’s desire to engage with Sudan at all levels is reflectcent and Sudapet, the national oil company of Sudan has 5 per cent. GNPOC production exceeds 300,000 barrels of oil ed in the opening of a consulate in Juba, the capital of Southern Sudan. India is also thinking of offering the govper day in 2006. Although China is way ahead of India in oil investments ernment of Southern Sudan a credit line of around $400

August-October 2007

B I L A T E R A L

T I E S

The romance with Indian films and children named after Gandhi and Nehru is no freak trend, but reflective of Sudan’s larger eastward journey as it expands political and business ties with India, China, Malaysia, Japan and South Korea to shore up its economy. Khartoum’s skyline is changing, with this once sleepy city resonant with the noise of tower cranes erecting high-rise buildings, its department stores flaunting designer labels and its roads brimming with Toyotas, Hyundais and Indian Tata buses and Bajaj scooters and auto-rickshaws. million, guaranteed against the region’s post-2011 oil production. More business with emerging Asian powers like India and China, coupled with an indigenous industrialisation drive, Sudanese officials say, could offset the impact of the American sanctions and negative images about ethnic violence in western Darfur province in the western media. Top Sudanese officials admit that they have a festering problem in the mineral-rich Darfur, a province larger than the size of France, but see it more as an issue about the fight over resources — water and grazing land — rather than an Arab versus non-Arab conflict and vehemently deny the charges of genocide by the government-backed militia hurled at it by the U.S. and its Western allies. But what imbue India-Sudan ties with a special resonance are historical and civilisational linkages that provides a sense of special affinity Sudanese feel for India. The Sudanese elite like to recall fondly Gandhi’s short stay at Port Sudan in 1932 on his way to Egypt and Britain. India’s friendship is empowering and energising, say Sudanese politicians. India, represented by then Chief of the Election Commission, Sukumar Sen, helped conduct the country’s first elections in 1954. Sudan also sought the help of India’s judicial personnel and the experience of its legal system, which continue to inspire the legal fraternity in Sudan. India also contributed to the ‘Sudanization’ processes in the aftermath of independence, and helped in the establishment of vital sectors like the railway system, and the Sudan Forest Service in 1901 which was based on the report of Murell, an Indian forester. The ‘Sudan Block’ of the prestigious Pune-based National Defence Academy established in May 30, 1959 is

an enduring symbol of Indo-Sudanese solidarity. Sudan gifted the block to India as a mark of recognition for the gallantry and sacrifices of Indian troops in defence of Sudan in the Second World War. Former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s visit to Sudan in October 2003 turned to be a milestone in the long history of India-Sudan relations. During this visit, India extended a $50-million line of credit for the economic development of Sudan. But more than diplomacy and economy, what made Kalam’s trip special was a poem he composed and recited to celebrate the land where the Blue Nile and the White Nile intersects. “…My mother called me ‘Blue Nile’ I am also named by mother, ‘White Nile’ When we grew and grew, we asked “Oh Mother, Oh Mother, Tell us, why did you name us ‘Nile’?” Our mother said lovingly, “Oh my children You travel and travel Cross mountains, forests and valleys Thousands of miles, enriching nine countries You reach Khartoum You Blue and White Niles confluence with a Mission. God has commanded you to give a message You give a beautiful message When we rivers confluence. Oh Humanity, why not your hearts confluence And you blossom with happiness.”

August-October 2007

■

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

No signs of peace in DARFUR, but hope lives Manish Chand writes about the festering conflict in Darfur between the settled farmers and the nomads over the region’s limited natural resources. Negotiations between the Sudanese government and certain militia groups over the 2006 Darfur Peace Agreement holds out hope.

y air, it takes a little over three hours to reach the mineral-rich western province of Darfur from the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. As you cover the distance, the landscape and the quality of life, too, undergo a sea change. Fall for the mirage of the semidesert region at your own risk. All the hustle and bustle of a burgeoning metropolis dissipates once you arrive in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. An eerie silence envelopes your senses, throwing up questions that no one has straight answers to. Fed on the horror stories of endemic violence that has put Darfur on the conscience map of the world, one looks for tell-tale signs of unrest. When are the janjaweeds — the infamous horse and camel-mounted militiamen slaughtering innocents that populate contemporary folklore about Darfur — going to come? You wait and wait, but all you see are some refugee camps and the soporific hum of a small North African town. A region larger than France and rich in oil and minerals like uranium, iron, tin and bauxite, Darfur is in the centre of a running feud between nomads and settled farmers. As you drive through the rain-splashed sand roads in El-Fasher, typical small-town sightings roll by: hawkers selling cheap food, bright-eyed school children playing in fields, and locals indulging in gossip over a cup of tea. The spectre of a conflict zone becomes appar-

ent only when pick-up vans carrying heavily armed military men sporadically shatter the silence. But some myths fall by the wayside. You can’t distinguish easily between Arabs and Africans (Darfur’s six million people are affiliated to 30 odd tribes most of whom are Sunni Muslims) and you don’t notice bloodlust in their eyes either. The conflict that is has grabbed world attention is, however, for real and it feeds partly on ethnic rivalries and partly on a fiercely competitive battle for land and water that the region is woefully short of. The conflict erupted between settled farmers and cattle grazers in early 2002. But the characterisation of Darfur’s violence as Arab tribes slaughtering nonArab tribes needs to be qualified since there are reports of Arab tribes battling with each other as well. Darfur is named after the Furs, the dominant tribe with its home in the fertile Jebel Marra region; Zagahwa and Massalit are some of the more important tribes in the region.

August-October 2007

Darfur has been divided into three zones: North Darfur, with its capital at El-Fasher, South Darfur, with its capital at Niyala, and West Darfur, with its administrative seat in El Genenina. Darfur was neglected for decades, first during the Anglo-Egyptian rule between 1917 and 1956, and then by the powers-that-be in Sudan who concentrated on developing the K triangle, comprising Khartoum, Kosti and Kassala, at the cost of Darfur, after it became independent in 1956. Khartoum, too, was embroiled in a civil war that raged in the black-dominated South Sudan for nearly two decades till a peace agreement two years ago. In 2002, the rebels in Darfur started a fight seeking a better deal for the indigenous people. Some rebel factions even demanded a separate state. Land ownership is a key issue in Darfur. Most Arab groups in Darfur are not part of the prevailing hakura landholding system, developed by the British to allot dars (homelands) to var-

W A G I N G

P E A C E

ious settled tribes. The nomads, however, enjoyed access to land and water. Severe droughts in the 1970s and 1980s ruined thousands of pastoralists. As a result, the nomadic tribes of the North (Arab and Zaghawa) moved South in search of land and water. This led to a conflict between the Fur and Massalit farmers in Darfur’s fertile central zone. Libya’s 1981 invasion of Chad only complicated the situation, with the displacement of about two million people. The conflict soon acquired the dimension of the landless versus the landowners. A visit to the Abu Shoack camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in El-Fasher shakes one out of torpor, induced by the desert heat, and brings you face to face with the scars of Darfurians, who have a reputation of ferocious fighters. Nearly 54,000 people are living in this camp, being managed by a coalition of NGOs, UN agencies like the World Food Programme and the UNICEF, with assistance from the Sudan government. Women and children, inured to displacement, peer from their little enclosures every time there’s a visitor, mistaking him for a worker from an

aid agency.Ibrahim al-Khalil, the camp manager, says the refugees are being looked after well, and some of them are even living a better life than the one they were used to before the mayhem struck. This picture of deprivation changes when one reaches the stately white mansion of Mohammed Usman Yusuf Kibir, the governor of North Darfur, located close to the garrison of the Sudanese armed forces. As innocent-eyed gazelles gambol in the lush lawns of the governor’s house, the powerful wali (governor) of North Darfur turns on his PR charm. He brushes aside “all the BBC-CNN talk” of genocide and launches into a tirade against the Western press, which, according to him, is distorting key issues underlying tensions in Darfur. “It’s basically a battle for land and water. When the nomads’ animals stray into the farmers’ lands, fighting starts,” the wali says, dismissing reports of violence as local crime cases of robbery and kidnapping. “The security has improved and people are returning. That doesn’t mean we don’t have problems,” said the tall, dark and imposing governor as

August-October 2007

he jabbed his fingers in the air, contesting the figures of the dead and the displaced in the Darfur conflict that is being bandied about in the West. There is no accurate estimate of the victims of the violence since the crisis started nearly five years ago. According to the UN and different advocacy groups in the US and the West, 400,000 people have perished in the violence and more than 2.5 million people displaced internally since violence began. Most Western NSOs, Sudanese officials say, do not take into account a large number of people who have died of famine and diseases in Darfur. Sudanese officials also differ on the casualties. Most say that the figure of the dead is not more than 50,000 and that of the internally displaced persons a little over 100,000. The actual figure probably lies somewhere between these two extremes, but there is no escaping the fact that it’s the real grievances of the people that trigger incidents of violence. Sudanese officials vehemently rebut the charge of genocide and claim that it is primarily a war for natural resources. They also deny charges of the government backing the janjaweeds,

A F R I C A

whom they deride as “freelance bandits and mercenaries”. “It can’t be more than 50,000 dead, including those who died from disease, and the internally displaced persons are at a little over 100,000,” says Kibir. “It’s all about oil,” he says, echoing a popular conspiracy theory in Khartoum that the U.S. is showcasing a humanitarian disaster in Darfur with a larger agenda of dismembering Sudan and capturing its flourishing oil industry. Sudan has so far managed to survive the decade-old U.S. sanctions with help from China, the largest investor in Sudan’s booming oil industry with total bilateral trade exceeding $10 billion. The Sudanese government has also woken up to the perils of underdevelopment in Darfur, with President Omer al-Bashir announcing in July the decision to build the Western Salvation Highway to link Niyala with Omdurman, the old city of Khartoum. The governor of North Darfur is quite upbeat about the rekindling of interest among foreign investors despite the ongoing violence in some parts of the region. He also shared his

dream of a Darfur that would resemble any normal, well-developed place, awash with hotels and supermarkets and other state-of-the-art infrastructure. The Sudanese government and certain rebel groups have now kickstarted negotiations for the Darfur Peace Agreement. Inked between the DARFUR PEACE ACCORD (HIGHLIGHTS) ■ Disarmament of Janjaweeds by October 2006 ■ Incorporation of 5,000 rebel fighters into the Sudan Army and police ■ Compensation for the IDPs through a one-off payment of $300 million ■ Annual transfers of $200 million ■ A Transitional Darfur Regional Authority (TDRA) to govern the region till a referendum in 2011 determines whether Darfur should be a unitary region or remain divided into three provinces ■ A new post of senior assistant to the president and chairperson of TDRA for the rebels’ nominee

August-October 2007

Q U A R T E R L Y

government and the largest rebel group, the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Mini Menawai, on May 6, 2006, the accord failed to draw most rebel groups, including the one led by Paris-based Abdel Wahed Mohamed Ahmed al-Nur. Factionalism spawned more splinter groups, stalling a settlement of the Darfur crisis. In many fundamental ways, Darfur is going to be a test case for the UN. Darfurians are hopeful that the hybrid United Nations-African Union (AU) force, comprising 26,000-odd troops, would produce some positive results once it is deployed in the region next year. The UN-AU force, known as UNAMID, will replace the 7,000strong AU force that failed to contain the violence in Darfur. For any lasting solution to the Darfur crisis, key issues such as powersharing and wealth-sharing, the humanitarian situation and the security conditions need to be looked into immediately. But given the region’s grim history of lost chances, Darfurians are determined to ensure that their hope for peace does not sink into desert sands yet again. ■

I N

C O N V E R S A T I O N

‘Indian troops reap goodwill in SUDAN’

n the southern town of Malakal, dormant animosity between North and South Sudan can erupt into bloody violence any time. And when it does, it’s the job of the Indian peacekeeping troops to ensure peace so that the oilrich region does not plunge into chaos. In an interview with Manish Chand, Lt. General Jasbir Singh Lidder, force commander of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS), talks about the good work the Indian troops have been doing in the Arab-dominated north and black-dominated south over the last four decades. Q. The UN Mission in Sudan has been grappling with the difficult task of maintaining peace between North and South Sudan for some time. What has been the main challenge so far? A. The main challenge is the North-South redeployment across Line 1/1/56. A major area of concern has been that the July 9, 2007 deadline for 100 percent redeployment of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) to the North could not be met, as SAF continues to retain nearly 4,000 troops in the oil fields of South Sudan. Meanwhile, the redeployment of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) to the South has begun, but a lot of movement has taken place without the UN verification and we are trying to set that right. The complete integration of Other Armed Groups (OAGs), nearly 60,000 in number, who were not signatory to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), is yet to take place. As per the CPA, the OAGs were to affiliate with either side, as on January 9, 2006. We revised this deadline to March 2006, so technically, postMarch 2006, there are no OAGs. The bulk of these OAGs are southerners who were fighting for the SAF. On paper, everybody is aligned with either group. But that does not reflect the ground realities. The DDR process, i.e. demobilisation, disarmament and reintegration, is well behind schedule. The Joint Integrated Units (JIUs), which were to comprise 50 percent each of SAF and SPLA for the security of the Ceasefire Zone, have not been deployed. All these factors are a cause of serious concern. Q. What has been the root causes of North-South Sudan conflict? A. Sudan has a history of over 40 years of civil war, based on ethno-religious grounds. Sudan has the largest number of

Lt. General Jasbir Singh Lidder, UNMIS Force Commander, pays his last respects to late Corporal Mohan Singh Gurung, an Indian soldier shot dead by armed rebels during an attack on January 26, 2007 in South Sudan. Corporal Gurung was stationed in Juba. He was asked to guard a de-mining team working in the town of Magwe, when his convoy came under attack. This is the first combat casualty UNMIS has encountered since its operations started in the southern part of the country in March 2005.

small arms in the world. As seven of its nine borders are disturbed, weapons can be smuggled in from practically anywhere. Various countries have supported the SPLA in its war with the SAF, over the years. Therefore, besides sustaining the guerrilla war, the PLA has had the potential to launch conventional attacks, supported by aircraft, artillery and tanks. Q. India, with its 2,597 troops, is the largest contributing nation to the UNMIS. Could you give us an idea of the role played by the Indian contingent in UMMIS? A. The Indian contingent is occupying a critical and rugged sector in Sudan. Located in upper Nile, this is the region which borders Line 1/1/56 in the North and has maximum oilfields and OAGs. We have been experiencing maximum violence and clashes in this sector. In November 2006, a full-

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

fledged conflict broke out in Malakal town, with artillery, tanks and heavy weapons being used. In this flare-up, Indian commanders and troops played a pro-active role in defusing the crisis, which was commended by the UN and the international community. Besides the upper Nile sector, the IAF helicopter contingent, the Force Reserve Battalion, the Transport Company and the Force Signal Company have been performing admirably. Q. Some say Africa holds the key to the U.N. reforms, especially the expansion of the U.N. Security Council. Do you think attempts to reform the U.N. will succeed? A. From the viewpoint of the U.N. reforms, they are looking at Africa as a bloc. And they are visualising two seats for Africa in an expanded Security Council. But the problem is that Africa has 53 countries and it is so fragmented. Africa has to work towards reducing this fragmentation because that’s been part of its weakness. Maybe, for some, it was easier to deal with a fragmented Africa. Now, the AU is aware of it. It has been holding discussions for a more united Africa. And that’s a positive sign. A united Africa would have a much stronger voice in the U.N. than a fragmented Africa. Q. Indian peacekeeping troops, wherever they go, especially in African countries, inspire a lot of goodwill among local people. What makes the Indian troops effective in conflict situations? A. The bulk of our troops hails from a similar rural culture and, therefore, can sustain the rigours of peacekeeping, with pride and smile. Besides, traditionally, India has a history of close ties with Africa. The NRIs are performing extremely well in the majority of east and central African countries, and have projected a very positive face of India. Indian troops are well experienced in low intensity conflict and are appreciated for their sheer professionalism, humane and ‘down-to-earth’ approach. Q. Under what circumstances can the U.N. peacekeeping troops use force? A. Under Chapter 6 of the U.N. Rules of Engagement, we are not to use force, except in self-defence. Chapter 7 specifies two more conditions that can justify the peacekeepers’ use of force, namely protection of civilians, if the violence profile goes beyond the local dynamics, and protection of the U.N. personnel, assets and installations. Q. Indian troops are also known for their involvement in community-related projects… A. Indian troops, like the other contingents, are engaged in Civil-Military Coordination (CIMIC) programmes and the implementation of Quick Impact Projects (QUIPS), to support the local population. The Indian peacekeepers have been especially active in providing medical and veterinary support, besides engaging in other community development schemes. When the violent clashes took place in Malakal in November 2006, the Indian troops came out in a big way to assist in humanitarian related activities, especially treating the wounded. Q. What do you think lies at the bottom of the conflict in Darfur?

Will the hybrid UN-AU make a difference to the ground situation in Darfur? A. Darfur is a typical problem of the fight for resources: water and grazing land. After the CPA was signed in January 2005, some of the tribes in Darfur felt marginalised and the present militant face of Darfur is more of a post-CPA phenomenon. Armed groups from Chad have aggravated the problem. This has manifested in a very large-scale humanitarian problem. The African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) has not been able to deal with the situation effectively due to a host of reasons. It is hoped that the hybrid UN-AU force of nearly 26,000 troops, which is likely to have a predominantly African character, should be able to make a difference and bring about the much-needed stability in Sudan. ■

August-October 2007

B O O K S

I D E A S

A selection of new books on Africa and by African writers from www.africabookcentre.com Child Domestic Workers in Zimbabwe By Michael Bourdillon; Zimbabwe Weaver Press; 128pp; Paperback; £19.95 IN THE context of AIDS and a declining economy, one strategy for children to ensure their own livelihood is to engage in domestic employment. This study presents the findings of research based on interviews and discussions with child domestic workers in Zimbabwe. It examines the circumstances that pushed them into employment, the hardships and humiliations they face, as well as the benefits they derive, including, in some cases, education. Argues that while child domestic work is problematic and often lays children open to various types of abuse, it can also offer critical support and patronage to disadvantaged children. Green-Eyed Thieves By Imraan Coovadia; South Africa Umuzi; 208pp; Paperback; £15.99 THIS IS a story of twin boys identical in appearance but in nothing else. Ashraf is all rage and action, a lover of the real. Firoze is a dreamer and reader — a lover of the ideal. The Dawood family is from Muslim Fordsburg. The father (formally at least) is a merchant and the mother a part-time philosophy lecturer at Wits. Their uncle, who is known universally as Ten-Per-Cent, lives in the house and shares the ginger-beer factory business with his brother. The story begins in Johannesburg but ends in America. Ashraf is jailed in Fort Dix Prison in Texas, and Firoze is just settling in New York with his new young wife. Among the cast of characters are Mohammed Atta (of 9/11 notoriety), George Bush himself, a Pakistani Brigadier in Peshawar, a host of lawyers and assorted crooks of one kind or another, plus various Korean massage parlour girls.

■ Editor’s Pick

In 1998, China’s aid to Africa was $107 million. By 2004, it had reached $2.7 billion, 26 per cent of its international assistance that year. In 2005, AfricaChina trade reached $40 billion, 35 per cent up from the previous year. The continent supplies 30 per cent of China’s import of oil and gas. The appetite for raw materials goes beyond oil and gas and China’s foreign political strategy is a global one. Will Africa be a pawn or a player in this emerging geopolitical game? Will China’s deepening relations with the continent represent a new opportunity for African countries to negotiate a new partnership and skilfully use it to the best advantage of their citizens? These are some of the questions contributors to the volume examine.

Mandela’s Ego: A Novel By Lewis Nkosi; South Africa, Umuzi; 182pp; Paperback; £15.99

History of Rasselas, Prince Of Abissinia By Samuel Johnson; Penguin Books, U.K.; 137pp; Paperback; £8.99 RASSELAS, PRINCE of Abyssinia, leaves the easy life of the Happy Valley, accompanied by his sister Nekayah, her attendant Pekuah, and the much-travelled philosopher Imlac. Their journey takes them to Egypt, where they study the various conditions of men’s lives, before returning home in a “conclusion in which nothing is concluded”. Johnson’s tale is not only a satire on optimism, but a philosophical exploration of the human mind’s infinite capacity for hope.

Africa In China’s Global Strategy By Marcel Kitissou (Ed.); Adonis & Abbey, U.K.; 208pp; Paperback; £25.99

August-October 2007

A YOUNG Zulu boy named Dumisani grows up in awe of the legendary figure of Nelson Mandela. He thinks of Mandela not only as a great leader of the oppressed, but also as a great seducer of women, and it is in this aspect that he decides to emulate Mandela. A woman he has been pursuing for a long time yields to his advances the day the Black Pimpernel is captured. But Mandela’s imprisonment renders Dumisani impotent for 27 years.

A F R I C A

COLLECTOR’S ITEM Claim To The Country: The Archive of Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd By Pippa Skotnes; Ohio UP, U.S.A.; 388pp; £42.99 IN THE 1870s, facing near-cultural extinction and the death of their language, several San men and women told their stories to two pioneering colonial scholars in Cape Town, Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd. The narratives of these San (or Bushmen) were of the land, the rain, the history of the first people, and the origin of the moon and stars. These narratives were faithfully recorded and translated by Bleek and Lloyd, creating an archive of more than 13,000 pages including drawings, notebooks, maps, and photographs. Now residing in three main institutions — the University of Cape Town, the South African Museum, and the National Library of South Africa, this archive has recently been entered into Unesco’s Memory of the World Register. Lavishly illustrated, this book, created, compiled, and introduced by Pippa Skotnes, presents in book form and on an accompanying DVD all the notebook pages and drawings that constitute this remarkable archive. Contextualising essays by well-known scholars, such as Nigel Penn, Eustacia Riley and Anthony Traill, and a searchable index for all the narratives and contributors are included. Eritrea: Bradt Travel Guide by Edward Denison and Edward Paice; Bradt Publication, U.K.; 248pp; Paperback; £15.99 A FOURTH EDITION of the essential guide for independent travellers to this unusual and remarkable African country. In addition to the charms of Asmara with its broad avenues, markets and the Roman Catholic cathedral, the interiors, rich in historical remains, is well worth visiting and is covered comprehensively. The main port, Massawa, is a natural gateway to the 350 islands in the Red Sea that offer superb diving spots, and this guide provides all the necessary information.

■ Feminism, Revolution and Liberation African Women In Revolution By O. Wunyabari Maloba; Africa World Press, USA; 296pp; Paperback; £18.99 ANALYSIS OF the roles played by women in seven revolutionary movements: Algeria, Kenya, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe and South Africa. How did these revolu-

tionary movements define women’s liberation? What is the linkage between feminist theories of liberation and national liberation? Did the national liberation movements betray women? And what has been the fate of the original commitments (and impulses) toward women’s liberation and gender equality?

August-October 2007

Q U A R T E R L Y The Art Of Southern Africa By Sandra Klopper; Five Continents Editions; Italy; 208pp; £40.00 THE ART of Southern Africa, unlike the better-known traditions of central and western Africa, has been long overlooked. This book calls close attention to the art of this region through 140 objects, beautifully reproduced in full-colour plates from the Terence Pethica Collection. The pieces come from southern African countries including South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Angola and Zambia. Featuring exemplary objects ranging from ornamental adornments, kitchen implements, prestige staffs, dance wands, figures for initiation ceremonies, figures for secret stages of personal growth, objects for battle, and objects for dance and spirits, this book brings together a magnificent compilation of works, many of which have never been seen before, made of wood, metal, bone and rhinoceros horn. African Odyssey: 365 Days By Anup Shah & Manoj Shah; USA. ABRAMS; 744pp, £19.95 FOLLOWS THE movements of the great wildebeest herd as they migrate across the Serengeti during the course of a year. Spurred on by the dry season, which usually begins in April/May, the herd of more than 1.5 million wildebeests leaves its breeding and birthing grounds in search of greener plains and then, as the dry season turns back to wet later in the year, it travels back to the plains it left. The cycle repeats itself year after year. This book follows the calendar year, with each spread representing a day in the life of the wildebeests from January to December.

B O O K S

I D E A S

■ Unifying historiography Modernising a continent through a larger narrative Myth, History And Society: The Collected Works of Adele Afigbo By Toyin Falola ; Africa World Press, USA; 634pp; Paperback; £24.99 AN ANTHOLOGY of Afigbo’s writing on the historiography of Nigeria and, by extension, his vision of a unified historiography of the African continent. Afigbo’s central idea is that Nigerian historians and historians of Africa as a whole have from the birth of the new African historiography seen and published historical studies and writings as part of a larger effort to create, consolidate, and run modern and modernising states in the continent. It is this larger process that Professor Afigbo refers to as statecraft — and it is from a study of this larger process that he draws the conclusion that its role is neither new nor surprising, but rather a part of an ongoing African historic tradition dating back to the older versions of history where the stories of a nation’s past are embedded in myth and song. Fit To Govern: The Native Intelligence of Thabo Mbeki By Ronald Suresh Roberts; STE Publishers, South Africa; 296pp; Paperback; £14.99 EXPLORES THE intellectual traditions and elaborates the central ideas of Mbeki’s style of governance. Having had unprecedented access to the President himself, Roberts was ideally and uniquely placed to write with sympathy about the South African President.

A SERIES of essays by leading Sudanese and international specialists on Darfur, combining original research and analysis. The book provides in-depth analysis of the origins and dimensions of the conflict, including detailed accounts of the evolution of ethnic and religious identities, the breakdown of local administration, the emergence of an Arab militia and resistance movements, and regional dimensions to the conflict. The study also focuses on the search for peace, with contributions by those most closely engaged in local and international efforts to resolve the conflict.

■ Trailing AIDS

■ Fiction The Asylum Seeker By Amina Soueliman, & Mandy Sutter (Eds.); Mama East African Women’s Group, U.K.; 120pp; Paperback; £12.00 THE STORY of Bahsan’s life begins in a tiny desert village in Northern Somalia in 1945 and ends in present-day Europe. She is one of the first Bedouin women to receive formal education at a British colonial school and later, to move in her own right to Somalia’s capital, Mogadiscio, for a prestigious job at a bank. When her country is taken over by a ruthless yet incompetent dictator, she tackles military training camp with gusto and when she and her friend Bilan are seconded to work for the dictator, does everything she can to undermine his authority. Her story gives an eyewitness account of recent Somali history.

War In Darfur: And The Search For Peace By Alex De Waal, Harvard University Press, U.S.A.; 74pp; Paperback; £18.99

August-October 2007

The Africa Multi-Country AIDS Program 2000-2006: Results of the World Bank’s Response to a Development Crisis By Marelize Gorgens-Albino; World Bank Publications; U.S.A.; 172pp; Paperback; £8.99 DESCRIBES THE internationally acclaimed World Bank’s MultiCountry AIDS Program (MAP) that has dramatically increased access to HIV prevention, care, and treatment across Africa. The book uses extensive data from national surveys and HIV/AIDS programmes that show how MAP funding has helped support children and adults affected by AIDS, prevent mother-to-child transmission, helped countries build capacity for national programmes, and been a catalyst for greatly increased support.

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Bestsellers in India Rhonda Byrne’s phenomenally successful inspirational book, ‘The Secret’, is being lapped up by readers here as well, as is Mohsin Hamid’s ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’ that continues as the fiction favourite. TOP 10: NON-FICTION 1.The Secret Author: Rhonda Byrne Publisher: Atria Books Price: Rs.550 2. The Kaoboys of R&AW: Down Memory Lane Author: B. Raman Publisher: Lancer Price: Rs.795 3. India’s External Intelligence: Secrets of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Author: Maj Gen V. K. Singh Publisher: Manas Publications Price: Rs.495

7. The Dragon and the Elephant: China, India and the New World Order Author: David Smith Publisher: Viva Books Price: Rs.250

3. On Chesil Beach Author: Ian McEwan Publisher: Jonathan Cape Price: Rs.481

8. The Diana Chronicles Author: Tina Brown Publisher: Century, London Price: Rs.501

5. Girls of Riyadh Author: Rajaa Alsanea Publisher: Penguin Fig Tree Price: Rs.361

6. Romancing with Life: An Autobiography Author: Dev Anand Publisher: Penguin Viking Price: Rs.695

6. A Thousand Splendid Suns Author: Khaled Hosseini Publisher: Bloomsbury Price: Rs.481

9.The Music Room Author: Namita Devidayal Publisher: Random House Price: Rs.395 10. Giving: How Each of US Can Change The World Author: Bill Clinton Publisher: Hutchinson, London

4. IA Writer’s People: Ways of Looking and Feeling Author: V.S. Naipaul Publisher : Picador India Price: Rs.395 5. Mother Teresa: Come be My Light Author: Brain Kolodiejchuk Publisher: Doubleday Price: Rs.695

4. The Solitude of Emperors Author: David Davidar Publisher: Penguin Viking Price: Rs.495

Price: Rs.822 TOP 10: FICTION 1. The Reluctant Fundamentalist Author: Mohsin Hamid Publisher: Penguin Viking Price: Rs.295 2. Animal’s People Author: Indra Sinha Publisher: Simon & Schuster Price: Rs.595

7. My Revolutions Author: Hari Kunzru Publisher: Hamish Hamilton Price: Rs.361 8. Jinx Author: Meg Cabot Publisher: Macmillan Price: Rs.399 9. Almost Single Author: Advaita Kala Publisher: Harper Collins Price: Rs.195 10. The Last Testament Author: Sam Bourne Publisher: Harper Price: Rs.295

(Source: Bahri Sons, New Delhi, www.booksatbahri.com. All the books listed above are available online)

August-October 2007

D O C U M E N T S Speech by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh at the Joint Session of the Nigerian National Assembly:

ceuticals and auto components. We would like to see Indian investment expand in Nigeria. Our partnership is for development. We need to share 15/10/2007 experiences on effective strategies for sustainable development, poverty alleviation, healthcare facilities and universal “India, Nigeria and our Partnership with Africa in the 21st Century” education. In this context, being largely agrarian societies, there is great potential for cooperation in agricultural am deeply honoured by this opportunity to address research, soil and water management, and food processing. you here today in this new temple of your democIt is a partnership for energy security. Nigeria’s rich natracy. I am also delighted to be in this beautiful city ural resources provide the base for our mutually beneficial of Abuja, which symbolises a dynamic Nigeria and cooperation for energy security. a new dawn in the life of an ancient people. India and Nigeria should also promote research and I stand before you to convey to the people of Nigeria development in efficiency of energy production, clean the greetings and good wishes of over a billion Indians. technologies and renewable sources of energy. We have been your brothers and friends of long standing. Ours is a partnership for peace, stability and security. We In the past, we have shared the pain of subjugation and are united in our condemnation of terrorism as a grave the joy of freedom and liberation. We have worked shoul- threat to humankind. We seek to upgrade our cooperation der to shoulder in the fight against apartheid and racial dis- on security matters to meet these emerging threats to our crimination. We have worked together in the Non-Aligned social fabric. Movement to promote SouthFinally, it is a partnership to South cooperation for developsteer the global political and ecoment. Today, we need to stand ever nomic agenda towards addressmore united to meet the challenges ing the legitimate concerns of of the new millennium. developing countries. India is the largest democracy in We need to jointly seek the world. Nigeria is the largest changes in the international democracy in Africa. We are multifinancial and trading system to religious, multi-ethnic and multimake it development-friendly. lingual societies. Our societies The crushing burden of debt on embrace modernity while preservthe poorest of the poor, and baring their traditions. There is a natriers to trade in the form of ural logic in ties between our two restricted market access and discountries. tortions in subsidies need to be The principal challenge before removed. us remains the socio-economic We have a vital interest in predevelopment of our people. The serving and promoting the effecinformation revolution and higher tive role of the United Nations. levels of literacy have raised popuFor this, the structure and funclar expectations. Economic tioning of the organisation “In the past, we have shared the has to reflect contemporary growth has to be accompanied by better distribution of its pain of subjugation and the joy of global realities. It has to benefits. become a truly representative freedom. We have worked We are approaching the 50th world body. shoulder to shoulder in the fight year of the establishment of India is grateful for our diplomatic relations. Nigeria’s support for its peragainst apartheid and racial There can be no better occamanent membership of an discrimination. Today, we need to expanded Security Council. sion than this to launch a Strategic Partnership between stand ever more united to meet the We also believe that no India and Nigeria. It will be challenges of the new millennium.” reform of the Security anchored in the past and look Council would be complete to the future. without adequate representation from Africa. This is a partnership for economic growth. There are We support Nigeria’s view that the General Assembly many complementarities in our rapidly growing economies. should resume its role as the pre-eminent organ of the Nigeria is already India’s largest trading partner in Africa, United Nations, as originally envisaged in the United but we need to vastly expand and diversify our trade. Nations Charter. India also has a vision for a partnership There has been a surge in Indian investment abroad in with Africa for the 21st century. areas such as Information Technology, energy, pharmaI believe it is very appropriate that I discuss it with you

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

in Nigeria, because your support and commitment are crit- nations of the African Union through a satellite and fibreical to realising this vision. optic network that will provide effective communication Our first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, while and connectivity among themselves. addressing this Assembly in 1962, said — and I quote: The project also envisages connecting regional centres “Of one thing there can be no doubt, and that is the vital- in Africa to institutions in India to provide tele-education ity of the people of Africa. Therefore, with the vitality of her and tele-medicine facilities. people and the great resources available in this great contiThe India-Africa technical cooperation programme nent, there can be no doubt that the future holds a great today involves an outlay of over $1 billion. Annually over promise for the people of Africa.” 15,000 African students study in India. Many Indian engiWe envision an Africa that is self-reliant, economically neers, doctors and accountants live and work in Africa. vibrant and at peace with itself and the world. It is this We will work steadfastly for the preservation of our ecolpromise that our partnership with Africa seeks to fulfill. ogy and collaborate on local solutions to problems such as India will offer its fullest cooperation to harness the great climate change and conservation of scarce resources. We potential of the African people. We seek to become a close wish to learn from the work of African environmentalists partner in Africa’s resurgence. who have pushed the frontiers of discourse on sustainable Our partnership will be based on the fundamental prin- development to embrace democracy, human rights and ciples of equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit. Our women’s rights. rich cultural and historical legacies are a common heritage of all humankind. Abuja Declaration on Strategic Partnership between India We will incorporate in our partnership with the African and Nigeria continent the importance of protecting civilisational identities and preserving cultural diversities. 15/10/2007 We will promote the multi-faceted expansion of our is Excellency Manmohan Singh, Prime economic relationship. The objective would not merely be Minister of the Republic of India, paid an a quantitative increase in our trade and investment. We will official visit to Nigeria from October 14 to aim at a qualitative enhancement of your economic com16, 2007, at the invitation of His Excellency petitiveness and technological capabilities. Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Indian companies are fast President of the Federal becoming major investors in Africa. India is also a large “India is the largest democracy in Republic of Nigeria. During visit, Singh held intensive and growing market. We the world. Nigeria is the largest his and fruitful discussions with wish to see many more democracy in Africa. We are President Yar’Adua and African companies doing addressed a joint session of the business in India. We will multi-religious, multi-ethnic and Nigerian National Assembly. facilitate this process. multi-lingual societies. Our India and Nigeria are linked India has extended consocieties embrace modernity by common historical expericessional lines of credit to promote economic activity while preserving their traditions. ences and in the contemporary context are united to work and for developmental proThere is a natural logic in ties towards democratic pluralism, jects in a number of African between our two countries.” tolerance, economic developcountries. We have conment and social justice. Both tributed to the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and are multi-religious, multi-lingual and multi-ethnic sociECOWAS. India launched the TEAM-9 initiative — a pro- eties with a vibrant media and civic society. Both are memject-based technical assistance programme for the West and bers of the United Nations, the Commonwealth, the GCentral Africa. We propose to have a focused dialogue with 77 and NAM and have a history and tradition of working African leaders to evaluate the effectiveness of these efforts closely together in regional and international organisations. During the discussions, the leaders reiterated the imporand to enhance their relevance to national economic targets. We will use our strengths to assist Africa in the devel- tance of ensuring socially inclusive economic growth in their countries. They agreed that exchange of experiences opment of its physical and digital connectivity. India is well placed to offer cost-effective transportation and programmes with respect to poverty alleviation, would systems particularly in the railways sector. Our automobile benefit the two countries the rest of Africa. Nigeria is India’s largest trading partner in Africa and the sector is also witnessing unprecedented expansion both at home and abroad. The Pan African e-network project, that potential and opportunities for substantially enhancing seeks to bridge the 'digital divide' between Africa and the trade and investment between the two countries largely rest of the world is one of the most far-reaching initiatives remain untapped. Both countries agreed to enhance mutuundertaken by India. The project envisages connecting 53 ally beneficial trade and investment exchanges in sectors

August-October 2007

D O C U M E N T S such as infrastructure (including railways), agriculture, 20 and G-33 and stressed the importance of continuing close food processing, small and medium enterprises, power coordination to effectively realise the development dimension generation, fertilisers, ICT, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, in every aspect of the outcome of the negotiations on the auto components and other sectors. In this context, both Doha Developmental Agenda. They reiterated the urgent sides desired that the fifth meeting of the Joint need to successfully complete the Doha Round to promote Commission be held within the next few months and the interests of the developing countries. should draw a detailed roadmap for this purpose. Nigeria is a leading member of the African Union and Singh thanked the Nigerian leader for the rapidly grow- ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States). ing partnership in the energy sector and confirmed the Singh said that India attaches particular importance to understanding that both governments would continue to exchanging views with Nigeria on all critical matters of the encourage further cooperation in the oil and gas sector. global agenda. India and Nigeria also have a longstanding cooperation in India and Nigeria cooperate closely at the United defence. India has agreed to establish two IT laboratories in Nations. Both sides stressed the need to promote the defence academies of Nigeria. They also agreed to democratisation by increasing the participation of develenhance cooperation in regard to UN peacekeeping opera- oping countries in their decision-making bodies. They tions in which they have always played an important role. recalled that both had co-sponsored the recent draft resoThe two countries also stressed the need to enhance air lution pertaining to the UN Security Council reform proand maritime connectivity. They instructed that a new cess which they had tabled along with other African, Asian, Civil Aviation Agreement should be entered into within six Caribbean and Pacific Island States at the recently conmonths and further efforts should be made to improve the cluded 61st Session of the UN General Assembly. maritime connectivity. India and Nigeria reaffirmed that no reform of the UN Condemning terrorism in all its forms, both countries would be complete without reform of the UNSC Nigeria agreed to sign appropriate pacts to jointly fight against reaffirmed its support for India’s permanent membership international terrorism and drug trafficking. on UNSC. The Indian side conveyed its intention to further Following agreements were signed during the visit: strengthen its cooperation, ! MoU between Foreign which dates back to Africa’s Service Institute and the Nigeria is India’s largest trading struggle against colonialism Nigerian Foreign Service partner in Africa. Both countries and apartheid. It is India’s ! MoU between Indian intention to renew its partCouncil for World Affairs agreed to enhance trade and nership and upgrade its con- investment exchanges in sectors, (ICWA) and Nigerian Institute tent to meet contemporary of International Affairs African requirements. The such as infrastructure, agriculture, ! Protocol for Foreign Office Nigerian side expressed its food processing, small and medium Consultations appreciation for India’s con! MoU on Defence enterprises, power generation, sistent and longstanding supCooperation fertilisers, ICT, pharmaceuticals, It was agreed that to port to Africa and conveyed its happiness at India’s inten- automobiles and auto components enhance a broadbased tion to host an India-Africa cooperation, the followamong others. Forum Summit in April 2008. ing agreements would be The Summit intends to focus finalised and signed on finding ways by which India can further enhance its within the next six months: support to the African countries to meet their socio-eco! Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement nomic developmental objectives. ! Bilateral Investment Promotion & Protection Agreement Both sides reiterated the importance of matters pertain! Bilateral Inter-Governmental Science & ing to climate change and agreed that the solution to the Technology Agreement problem, which is essentially the outcome of the unsus! Bilateral Air Services Agreement (renewal of 1976 agreement) tainable production and consumption patterns in the ! Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty developed world, cannot lie in the perpetuation of pover! Extradition Treaty ty in developing countries. Developing nations cannot ! Trade Agreement accept approaches that impede growth and retard poverty ! Agreement on Cooperation against trafficking of drugs. alleviation obligations. They agreed to cooperate closely, ! Cultural Exchange Programme 2008-2010 along with other developing countries, at the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate The Nigerian side described Singh’s visit as a landmark Change) and also within the framework of the Kyoto in bilateral relations. Taking into account the commonalProtocol. ities and complementarities between the two countries it Singh and Yar’Adua recalled they are members of the G- was agreed to establish a strategic partnership that would

August-October 2007

A F R I C A cover bilateral political, economic, trade, security, cultural, education, S&T and international dimensions. Singh expressed his gratitude to the government and the people of Nigeria for the hospitality. He invited President Yar’Adua to pay a visit to India which was accepted with pleasure. Singh also expressed his happiness that President Yar’Adua had designated a high-level delegation, led by the Vice-President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, at the Fourth International Conference on Federalism in New Delhi to be held in November 2007. That occasion would provide another opportunity for the leadership to exchange views on issues of topical interest. Sonia Gandhi’s Inaugural Lecture of Gandhi Lecture series ‘Relevance of Gandhian Philosophy in the 21st Century’ Cape Town University, August 23, 2007

feel privileged to inaugurate the Gandhi Lecture Series being organised by the Government of India in major universities of the world. It is indeed an honour to be here at this esteemed centre of learning. I stand before you in humility to speak about one of the greatest figures of history, whose experiments with truth began in your country. For me, as an Indian, a visit to South Africa is a pilgrimage. The world knows greatness in many forms. There are the great who won celebrated military victories. There are the great who have deepened our knowledge of the physical universe. There are the great who have helped us understand the workings of the human mind. There are the great who by their inventions have transformed the way we live. Mahatma Gandhi stands in a category of his own. He too was an inventor but of a different kind — an inventor of a unique way of protest, of struggle, of emancipation and of empowerment. His generalship lay not in making war but in waging peace. His weaponry was not arms and ammunition but “truth force”, satyagraha as he called it. The moral universe was his field of action. He explored a whole new dimension of the human psyche — its capacity to willingly accept suffering, even unto death, not to attain the kingdom of heaven, but a better world here and now, by bringing about social and political change. 2. On June 7, 1893, a young Indian barrister, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was evicted from a train at Pietermaritzburg station for being a non-white. “I have never understood,” he later remarked, “how any man can derive pleasure from the humiliation of another.” A spark was lit which was to change the course of world history. On September 11, 1906, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi launched the first satyagraha campaign from the Empire Theatre in Johannesburg. He issued a clarion call for non-violent resistance against racial discrimination, oppression and injustice. He described satyagraha as “a force born of truth and the love of non-violence”, a moral equivalent of war. After 21 years in South Africa where his views took shape

Q U A R T E R L Y

and were tested and refined, he carried the torch of satyagraha to India. The world saw with amazement how this unique technique energised millions of men and women to bring a mighty empire to its knees. 3. Mahatma Gandhi, the person was a many-sided personality to an unusual degree. He was a man of peace who did not hesitate to fight for what he believed to be right. He was a political strategist who shunned conventional politics and held no office. He was a thinker and a philosopher who was, first and foremost, a man of action. He was extraordinarily pragmatic and adapted himself to changing situations without compromising or abandoning his basic values. Mahatma Gandhi respected tradition. Yet, he was also an iconoclast. He was deeply religious. But his was a religion that drew from every faith, a religion that was all-inclusive. He embodied spirituality. But his was a spirituality rooted in an abiding concern for the poor and the deprived, of service to and empowerment of the disadvantaged and underprivileged. He was impatient for cataclysmic change. Yet, he shunned violence in any form as an instrument to force the pace of change. In his own words “non-violence is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction, devised by the ingenuity of man”. The popular picture of Gandhi is that of a highly solemn and earnest person. His mission was indeed a lofty one but his personality was full of lightness and humour. Once, reacting to criticism that he was wearing merely his usual loincloth, sandals and shawl when invited to tea by King George and Queen Mary, he said, “The King had enough on for both of us.” Although Mahatma Gandhi was a true revolutionary, he was that rare exception — a revolutionary who could laugh. 4. A common response to Mahatma Gandhi — to Gandhian thought, word and deed — is that it was extraordinarily effective given the times in which he lived. Today’s world, it is often argued, is dramatically different, and while Mahatma Gandhi is certainly worthy of continued admiration and awe, it would be naïve and unrealistic to expect his methods to be effective today. I beg to disagree. I am glad to say that an increasing number of young people in India and elsewhere are today turning to him to seek solutions to contemporary concerns through individual and collective action. Here in South Africa, Nelson Mandela is a shining embodiment of that vision. The whole world celebrates his achievement and that of his fellow freedom fighters. It is true that the world of today is vastly different from the world of Mahatma Gandhi. The fundamental issues he was confronted with, namely colonial subjugation, has disappeared from our world. Racial discrimination too has been blunted significantly. At the same time, new threats to peace, harmony and stability have emerged. And it is one of the paradoxes of the 21st century that while the establishment of peace has

August-October 2007

D O C U M E N T S

become the world’s single vance, Mahatma Gandhi has greatest imperative, the tradi- “I am glad to say that an increasing actually become all the more tional instruments of preservnumber of young people in India pertinent in the 21st century. ing peace have been found to the challenge we and elsewhere are today turning to Whichever be increasingly ineffective. confront, you can be sure that the Mahatma to seek solutions to the Gandhian way is a real, Whether it is ethnic nationalism or religious chauvinism, contemporary concerns through live option, an option that economic inequality or miliand illuminates. individual and collective action.” informs tary might — all of them But we would be doing powerful drivers of conflict in him great injustice if we didtoday’s world — there is no doubt that we are in great need n’t interpret, in contemporary terms, what he spelt out in of a new paradigm for solving conflicts. the context of his times. He would have wanted us to Today, we face the challenge posed by continuing con- experiment and find our own way without compromising frontation in the name of religion and ethnicity. At its our fundamental beliefs. worst, this is terrorism, which inflicts untold suffering on Mahatma Gandhi bequeathed to us three guiding prininnocent women, men and children. ciples: Ahimsa (or non-violence), Satyagraha (or the force We confront also the challenge of growing inequality born of truth and non-violence) and Sarvodaya (or uplift both within and amongst nations. Economic disparities are of all). It is the value of these principles that we have to accentuated by lack of access to education, health and food rediscover if we want to deal effectively with today’s chalsecurity. To these are now added the threat of environ- lenges. mental degradation and climate change, as well as diseases 5. Let me take the challenge of inequality first. like AIDS. The essence of Mahatma Gandhi’s political philosophy The question to ask is not whether Mahatma Gandhi is was the empowerment of every individual, irrespective of relevant or not. The real issue is whether we have the class, caste, colour, creed or community. To him, extreme courage and strength of mind to follow in his footsteps, poverty was itself a form of violence. Democracy has whether we are prepared to live our lives by what he become the preferred form of government in the 21st cenpreached and most importantly, practised. tury, yet sadly his “notion of democracy” is far from being The simple truth is that instead of diminishing in rele- universally accepted.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A We now recognise that political liberty must go hand in hand with economic progress. But to be truly meaningful, this growth has to be equitable. As with political power, a few cannot enjoy the gains of economic progress, while the many do not get their due share. Economic growth also has to be consistent with environmental conservation and stewardship. But sustainability does not mean that vast numbers of people are denied better material well-being and living standards. What is the Gandhian perspective on economic growth? It is that wealth created and generated must contribute, first and foremost, to a larger social purpose and cause. By stating this in today’s world, we do not negate the principles of profit and commerce. But we do underline the need to use a part of the wealth created, to better the quality of life of those whose voices remain unheard. Observing the rush to consumerism that is so evident today, Mahatma Gandhi would also most likely have reminded us that a modicum of austerity would not be out of place. For many, Mahatma Gandhi was and continues to be the ultimate touchstone of moral authority. This means judging all our actions — in word and deed — on the touchstone of public purpose. Public purpose itself has to be judged against the yardstick of the welfare and well-being of the poorest and most deprived in the land. 6. Let me now turn to conflict. Here I would straightaway say that Mahatma Gandhi would give primacy to the search for the underlying causes of conflict. Violence can be wanton and senseless. But often, conflicts can be symptoms of a deeper malaise that needs to be understood. This is not to romanticise violence — Mahatma Gandhi never did. But it is to analyse why it occurs and address it at its very source and root. The political discourse, these days, is centred on a global war on terror. And indeed, terrorists who target innocent men, women and children deserve no quarter. But today’s enemies are not just individuals, they are also ways of thinking and perceiving the world itself. Countering violence with even more violence does not provide a durable solution. Whatever else Mahatma Gandhi may have done in our circumstances, surely strengthening the wellsprings of discourse and dialogue must play a central part in it. And he would have gone even further. He would have looked within himself. For him, external engagement went hand in hand with internal interrogation. In reaching out, he would first and foremost have asked himself the question — “to what extent am I myself responsible”? If democracies are going to wage a war against terrorism, the measures that are adopted, should be consistent with and not contrary to the values of democracy. This is in keeping with the Gandhian consonance of ends and means. “There are many causes that I am prepared to die for,” he said, “but no causes that I am prepared to kill for”. What would the Gandhian perspective be on the socalled “clash of civilisations” about which we hear so much

Q U A R T E R L Y

these days? I am reminded here of his response to the query of a foreign journalist who asked what he thought of Western civilisation. “It would be a good idea,” he answered. Actually, Mahatma Gandhi would straightway and summarily reject the very idea of such a clash. He never accepted the exclusivist approach to religion, culture or civilisation. Mahatma Gandhi fervently believed in the pivotal role of religion in everyday life. He saw it as an ethical and moral mooring to all our actions — private and public. But his was a faith that drew from every religion, a faith that was all-inclusive. When asked about his religious belief, he said, “yes I am a Hindu. I am also a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist and a Jew.” 7. And what of the future? Conflict and inequality seem an inevitable part of the human condition. Mahatma Gandhi’s greatest lesson to the world was that this need not be destructively so. Conflicts can be resolved and inequalities can be contained. But without worthy means, worthy ends can never be attained. Will the 21st century see the fulfilment of Mahatma Gandhi’s vision? Or will non-violence be viewed as outdated and utopian? All around us, we witness that violent means do not bring about lasting change, that violence cannot bring about peace. Violence only begets violence and spirals on. It is my fervent hope that the world will embrace Gandhian truth and action and that you, my young friends here, will be among its torchbearers. Inaugural Dr. Dharam Pal Memorial Lecture by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on ‘India and Africa: Strong Bonds and Future Prospects’, August 11, 2007, Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi

t is a privilege for me to deliver the inaugural Dr. Dharampal Memorial Lecture. I thank the Observer Research Foundation and the Indian Society for Afro-Asian studies for the invitation. The lecture is dedicated to the memory of late Dr. Dharam Pal, a noted scholar in the field of African studies. It is only apt that the first lecture should be on a topic closest to his heart. It gives me particular pleasure to speak on Africa, having recently visited Addis Ababa, the diplomatic capital of Africa and that of Ethiopia, a country with which India has enjoyed old civilisational links. The first prime minister and foreign minister of independent India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, in his address to the Asian Relations Conference in Delhi in March-April 1947 before our independence said: “We of Asia have a special responsibility to the people of Africa.” At the International Conference on Peace and Empire, held in London, in 1948, Panditji added, “The people of Africa deserve our special attention.” This sums up the Africa policy of India. The pain which India always felt in seeing the agony in Africa eventually translated into a movement after the fateful day on June 7, 1893 when Mohandas Karamchand

August-October 2007

D O C U M E N T S

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru

Gandhi was evicted from a train in Pietermaritzburg station in Durban, South Africa, for being a non-white. He decided to fight unjust discrimination. On September 11, 1906 he led a mass meeting to vow not to submit to unjust laws. This vow came to be known later as Satyagraha, an abiding Gandhian philosophy which changed the course of freedom movements in India and the world over. 2. There can be no greater tribute to the role of India in

the African liberation struggle than Nelson Mandela’s words: “The prospect of a united front between Africans and Indians, greatly worried them (the rulers).” Several commemorative events are being held in this Satyagraha centenary year to underline the continued relevance of Gandhian philosophy and as a reminder of the unique ties that have always bound India and Africa. Having suffered under the colonial yoke, independent India extended unqualified moral and material support to liberation struggles across the continent. The beginning of liberation in Africa, signalled by the independence of Ghana and Nigeria in 1950s, was welcomed by India. India also welcomed the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). In the 60s we began the saga of our relationship with post-colonial Africa. India has been deeply involved with the Africa of today, the Africa emerging from history. India held Africa’s torch high at the meetings of the Commonwealth, in the United Nations, and in the mobilisation of the Non-Aligned Movement for Africa’s cause and against invasion, colonialism and apartheid in Africa. As a measure of the practical demonstration of India’s commitment towards Africa, then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, in 1986, helped launch the AFRICA Fund. That acronym did not stand for the name for the continent. It stood for “Action For Resisting Invasion, Colonialism and Apartheid”. The Fund was wound up when South Africa was liberated in 1993. 3. We now have an Africa which is politically liberated. We have an India that is a thriving and vibrant pluralist democracy growing at a rapid yet sustainable pace. We have the achievable ambition to continue to grow rapidly while preserving social equity. Africa itself is witnessing far-reaching changes. The real GDP has grown by 6 percent in sub-Sahara Africa in 2006 while as many as 20 countries have averaged a growth rate of 5 percent in the past decade. As Africa moves confidently to take charge of its destiny, its initiatives for establishing democracy and good governance, expanding education and healthcare, improving connectivity, eliminating poverty, building peace and security have our enthusiastic cooperation. India has a natural ally in Africa, our neighbour across the Indian Ocean, and home to a 2-million strong Indian diaspora. We have enormous synergies and complementarities and our intention continues to be to forge cooperative relations with the countries of the continent in a manner that serve the developmental needs of these countries. India’s trade with Africa has been increasing in recent years. India has signed trade agreements with 29 countries in Africa. The two-way trade rose from $5,493 million in 2001-02 to $11,822 million in 2005-06 (an increase of 115.3 per cent). It further rose sharply to $18,538 million during the period April 2006 to January 2007, after accounting for Indian oil imports in the trade figures. Though trade has grown impressively, it still has to achieve its true potential. Indian investment in Africa in all

August-October 2007

A F R I C A sectors has steadily increased in sectors as diverse as agriculture, floriculture, horticulture, small-scale industry, automotive plants, chemical industry, mining, and power generation and transmission among others. India has offered the benefits of its own experience to African countries. Cost-effective and intermediate Indian technologies and our large human capital base give us a unique advantage, for instance, in areas of HRD and capacity building. This has, therefore, been a key focus area of our approach and Africa is today the largest recipient of India’s ITEC programme with an outlay of over a billion dollars. Projects such as the pan-African e-network programme are examples of our efforts to share our progress in the knowledge sector to help the continent bridge the digital divide. I had the privilege of inaugurating in Ethiopia in July pilot projects of the Pan-African e-Network programme for tele-education and tele-medicine, a vision laid out by former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam at the Pan African Parliament in 2004. This programme costing Rs. 500 crore will be fully funded by India. 4. India supports the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) which has today become a symbol of post-colonial African renaissance. As part of our support to Africa, we have announced lines of credit of $200 million to assist the NEPAD objectives. We also provide grant assistance in response to humanitarian requirements and for smaller development projects under our ‘Aid to Africa’ programme. To help Africa in its developmental efforts, India has been extending concessional lines of credit. Past debts have been written off through the HIPC initiative and fresh credit lines amounting to about $1.5 billion have been allocated for power generation, rural electrification, agriculture, irrigation and small-scale industries. The Indian private and public sector has taken advantage of partnering with Africa for mutually beneficial joint ventures and projects. There are a number of other sectors where the India-Africa partnership has already begun to mature through bilateral efforts and through the Regional Economic Communities. The obvious sectors are agriculture and small industries; the others being the knowledge and communications sector, cyber space and energy. Institutional arrangements have been put in place to explore possibilities of comprehensive economic cooperation agreements with the Common market of Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Eastern African Community (EAC). The Cabinet has already approved the Draft Framework Agreement with the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) for a PTA. Projects are being developed in agriculture, health and medicine, SMME and telecommunications sectors with the Southern African Development Community (SADC). In the WTO context, India has not only given voice to African aspirations, we have shared our experiences as a developing country through training and capacity building programmes for African negotiators. This also reminds us that we must fulfil our promise we made at the WTO to

Q U A R T E R L Y

provide duty-free access to products from African LDCs. 5. The aims and aspirations of developing countries like India and those of Africa will not be realised until institutions such as the United Nations particularly the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) are democratised. Both India and Africa are agreed that these institutions, in order to be effective must reflect the reality of today. A majority of countries of Africa support India’s claim to the permanent membership of UNSC. We were touched by the words of a visiting African minister who said: “When you are there, we are there.” India has made it clear that any expansion of the UN Security Council will not be complete without representation from Africa including in the permanent category. We will also sustain our unity and cooperation with Africa at the UN, NAM, G-77, on climate change and WTO. As development is not possible without peace and security, India has been contributing for decades towards UN peacekeeping efforts. We have Indian peacekeepers in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Eritrea. Our participation in UN peacekeeping operations in Africa stems from our belief that ensuring peace and security is a prerequisite for the socio-economic development of our friends in the continent. President Festus Gontebanye Mogae of Botswana during his visit to India last December stated that India’s international peacekeeping record alone qualified it to be a permanent member of the Security Council. 6. Leaders of Africa set up the Organisation of African Unity which has now become African Union (AU). It is now taking conscious steps towards African integration. India is the dialogue partner of the African Union and will support all efforts that will help bring sustainable peace, progress and stability in Africa. We expect to hold the India-Africa Forum Summit in India in April of 2008. The scourge of international terrorism has not been eliminated. We have been a long suffering victim of terrorism, sponsored, aided and abetted from outside our borders. We would wish to strengthen our cooperation with countries of Africa in our endeavour to jointly defeat international terrorism. We have not confined ourselves to bilateral relationships with the African continent. We have moved across continents to develop a trilateral relationship known as IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa). IBSA is all about shared democratic values, harnessing complementarities, improving connectivity, developing a common market, and undertaking joint projects in the three continents. IBSA reflects our policy of forging solidarity between Asia and Africa, and among Asia, Africa and Latin America. The bonds that tie India and Africa are civilisational and time tested. We are in the process of adjusting these bonds to help meet the changing needs of our societies in the face of the pace of globalisation. Together it will be our effort to harness the positive forces generated by the technological, information and communication revolutions and minimise their negative consequences. Our partnership is based on trust, mutual respect and the fulfilment of common objectives.

August-October 2007

I N C R E D I B L E

I N D I A

ANDAMAN & NICOBAR A trip down the Emerald Isles

nown as ‘Emerald Isles’, the Andaman and Nicobar islands are a traveller’s delight. Once a forbidden land, this conglomeration of 572 islands is famous for its marine life, pristine white beaches and palm-frilled coasts. Home to India’s only active volcano, the islands are the treasure houses of several primitive tribes, many of which are facing extinction. The tribes are primarily of two stocks: Mongoloid and Negroid. The Great Andamanese, Onges, Jarawas and Sentinelese are dominant among the Negroid tribes and are concentrated in the Andaman District. According to some studies, these tribes may be the direct descendants of the first human beings who originated in Africa almost 1,50,000 years ago. Easily accessible from Chennai, Kolkata and Visakhapatnam, these islands that have been described by second-century Roman geographer Ptoleny as “the island of good fortunes” are a must for water-sport enthusiasts. There is ample space for snorkelling, scuba diving and trekking. Major Attractions Andaman’s African link For Jarawais — who live in the jungles of South and Middle Andaman Islands — the link to the ‘civilised world’ is turning out to be one long nightmare. At home in the rainforest, where they have lived at peace with nature for centuries, the tribe is slowly losing out in the survival game. Threatened by ‘modern civilisation’, whether the Jarawa live to see the next millennium remains a big question. The tribe — it numbered around 1,000 about 15 years ago — is down to 300. Anthropologists fear the remaining could soon become extinct, thanks to poor immunity to imported diseases like measles, influenza and pneumonia. While the government is treating the Jarawas infected with measles as they emerge from their cover, the main

issue, that of closing the Andaman Trunk Road (ATR), to save them from extinction, is being ignored. The road, say locals, has cost the tribe dearly. The Jarawas, who resisted felling of trees to make way for the road, were allegedly

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

TOURIST INFORMATION HOW TO GET THERE BY AIR: Port Blair, the capital of Andaman and Nicobar is well connected to Kolkata and Chennai by regular flights. Indian Airlines, Jet Airways and Air Deccan provide daily services. BY SEA: It is a 50-60 hour journey to Port Blair by ship. Regular passenger ship services are available to Port Blair from Chennai, Kolkata and Vishakhapatnam. There are three to four sailings every month from Kolkata and Chennai to Port Blair and viceversa. BEST TIME TO VISIT: Between November and March. WHERE TO STAY: There are a number of hotels and resorts on the islands.

silenced. Hundreds of Jarawas, who came in batches to drive away the trespassers, were allegedly electrocuted. The government is now trying to limit contact between Jarawas and outsiders to preserve the tribe. Port Blair: The capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, located on a harbour on the east coast of the South Andaman Island, has some interesting and historical significant places to show off. Cellular Jail National Memorial: Built by the British over a period of 18 years to incarcerate and punish Indian freedom fighters, the Cellular Jail still houses the original gallows. Viper Island: The spectacular view from the brick jails breathes horror into the strongest of hearts. Being named after a wrecked ship only adds to its charms imbued with forebodings. Mt. Harriet: A trek on a naturally engraved trail to the top of Mt. Harriet, north of Port Blair, offers exhilarating views of the capital, Mt. Harriet National Park and the picturesque Madhuban beach. â&#x2013;

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

■ Contributors ■ DR. TIM MURITHI is Senior Researcher, Direct Conflict Prevention Programme, at the Institute for Security Studies

in Addis Ababa. He is the author of several books, including The African Union: Pan Africanism, Peacebuilding and Development. ■ K. MATHEWS, a noted expert on African affairs and international relations, is Professor of International Relations at

the Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia. Earlier, he was Professor of African Studies and Head of the Department at the University of Delhi (1991-2003). He has lived in Africa for about 17 years and has travelled extensively across the continent. Mathews has over 80 publications to his credit, including two books (ed.), chapters in books and articles in encylopaedias and well-known journals mostly covering African issues and problems. His book, Africa, India and South-South Cooperation (edited with N.N. Vohra, published by Har Anand, New Delhi, 1997) is an internationally acknowledged source book. A former editor of Africa Quarterly, he has attended numerous conferences, including the Second African Union Summit in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2003 as an observer. ■ MANISH CHAND is Editor of Africa Quarterly. He writes on foreign policy, politics, culture and books for IANS. His

articles have been published in leading national and international publications. He travelled recently to Sudan and Darfur and was part of the media delegation accompanying Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Nigeria and South Africa in October. ■ DR. SURESH KUMAR is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science, College of Social Sciences, Eritrea

Institute of Technology, Mai Nefhi, Asmara, Eritrea, North East Africa. He is actively involved in the Darfur Peace Process and the Somalia reunification negotiations. ■ SONU TRIVEDI is Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Zakir Husain College, University of Delhi. She spe-

cialises in regional cooperation and integration in Africa and South East Asia. She has to her credit around forty articles and research papers published in reputed journals and magazines. Her recent works include A Handbook of International Organisations and Regional Co-operation and Integration: COMESA-EU-SAARC.

August-October 2007

A F R I C A

Q U A R T E R L Y

Note to Contributors Africa Quarterly, published since 1961, is devoted to the study and objective analyses of African affairs and issues related to India-Africa relations. Contributions are invited from outstanding writers, experts and specialists in India, Africa and other countries on various political, economic, social-cultural, literary, philosophical and other themes pertaining to African affairs and India-Africa relations. Preference will be given to those articles which deal succinctly with issues that are both important and clearly defined. Articles which are purely narrative and descriptive and lacking in analytical content are not likely to be accepted. Contributions should be in a clear, concise, readable style and written in English. Articles submitted to Africa Quarterly should be original contributions and should not be under consideration by any other publication at the same time. The Editor is responsible for the selection and acceptance of articles, but responsibility for errors of facts and opinions expressed in them rests with authors. Manuscripts submitted should be accompanied with a statement that the same has not been submitted/accepted for publication elsewhere. Copyright of articles published in the Africa Quarterly will be retained by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). Manuscripts submitted to Africa Quarterly should be typed double space on one side of the paper and two copies should be sent. A diskette (3 ½” ) MS-Dos compatible, and e-mail as an attachment should be sent along with the two hard copies. Authors should clearly indicate their full name, address, e-mail, academic status and current institutional affiliation. A brief biographical note (one paragraph) about the writer may also be sent. The length of the article should not normally exceed 7,000 to 8,000 words, or 20 to 25 ( A-4 size) typed pages in manuscript. Titles should be kept as brief as possible. Footnote numbering should be clearly marked and consecutively numbered in the text and notes placed at the end of the article and not at the bottom of the relevant page. Tables (including graphs, maps, figures) must be submitted in a form suitable for reproduction on a separate sheet of paper and not within the text. Each table should have a clear descriptive title and mention where it is to be placed in the article. Place all footnotes in a table at the end of the article. Reference numbers within the text should be placed after the punctuation mark. Footnote style: In the case of books, the author, title of the book, place of publication, publisher, date of publication and page numbers should be given in that order, e.g. Basil Davidson, ‘The Blackman’s Burden: Africa and the Curse of the Nation State’, London, James Curry, 1992, pp. 15-22. In the case of articles, the author, title of article, name of the journal, volume and issue number in brackets, the year and the page numbers should be given in that order. In addition to major articles and research papers, Africa Quarterly also publishes short articles in the section titled News & Events. They may not exceed 2,000 words in length. Contributions of short stories and poems are also welcome. Contributors to Africa Quarterly are entitled to two copies of the issue in which their article appears in addition to a modest honorarium. Contributors of major articles accepted for publication will receive up to a maximum of Rs. 4,000. Contributions may be sent by post to: The Editor Africa Quarterly Indian Council for Cultural Relations Azad Bhavan Indraprastha Estate New Delhi-110 002 Contributions may be e-mailed to: africa.quarterly@gmail.com

August-October 2007

africa Q

Volume 47, No. 3 Aug-Oct 2007

Idea Of A United Africa

A F R I C A

Transition to an African Government Paradigm for a United States of Africa " ALSO in the issue: ! Say India in Sudan ! Roots of the Darfur crisis ! In Conversation: Lt. General J.S. Lidder ! !

Q U A R T E R L Y

Indian Council for Cultural Relations Azad Bhavan Indraprastha Estate New Delhi-110 002 E-mail: africa.quarterly@gmail.com Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers of India Regd No. 14380/61

N D I A N

O U N C I L

F O R

U LT U R A L

E L A T I O N S