Governance
Commander Says Africa is too Important for Americans to Ignore by Jim Garamone, DOD News
AFRICA IS A FASCINATING CONTINENT of tremendous possibilities but also tremendous dangers, and the U.S. ignores the nations of Africa at its own peril, the commander of the U.S. Africa Command said during an interview. "China and Russia don't ignore Africa, and that alone should say something," Army Gen. Stephen J. Townsend said. Africa has 13 of the 25 fastest growing economies in the world, Townsend said. In a time of climate change, Africa has 60% of the arable land on the globe. "This fact alone should show how important Africa is for the world," he added. The continent also has a plethora of strategic materials, such as cobalt, chromium, tantalum and more. African resources are critical to 21st century progress. Africa has a growing population, and demographers estimate that by 2050 one in four people on Earth will be African. The African continent is also a crossroads of the world. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait between Djibouti and Yemen is a choke point at the southern end of the Red Sea. There is another choke point between Sicily and Libya. The Strait of Gibraltar is between Europe and Africa. The recent blockage of the Suez Canal threw light onto two more choke points: the Mozambique Channel and the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, Townsend said. These sea lines of communication are vital around the globe and are ever in Townsend's mind as he engages the nations of the continent. A number of Africa countries are among the "most fragile" in the world, Townsend said. These countries have ungoverned or little governed areas that attract violent extremist organizations, which capitalize on economic and political dysfunction to extend their reach.
56
May-June 2021
He said governments in these areas need help. "An African leader once said to me 'A drowning man will reach for any hand,'" Townsend said. "They are drowning in poverty and will take help from whomever it comes from." This offers a perfect opening for Russia and particularly China, Townsend said. "The Chinese sometimes refer to Africa as their 'second continent,' and some Chinese military leaders refer to the east coast of Africa as China's 'fifth island chain,'" the general said. China has its first overseas military base in Djibouti and has invested heavily in ports around the continent, he said. The Chinese are playing a long game on the continent. The Chinese Communist Party wants to change the Army Maj. international rules-based architecture to favor China. Economic pressure on African nations could gather votes in the United Nations and in other world bodies to do just that. Maybe not tomorrow, but some day. The United States, actually, is the preferred partner on the continent, Townsend said. "We were never a colonizing power in Africa, and we are regarded as an honest broker by many nations," he said. "In addition, our values are their values." Townsend said the U.S. could use this to gain access and influence with the nations of Africa without "debt-trap diplomacy" — a term that refers to China's lending practices. A number of violent extremist organizations operate in Africa, including al-Qaida affiliate alShabab in Somalia and ISIS allies. Al-Shabab has stated it wants to attack the U.S. homeland, and it is a major contributor to global al-Qaida.
DAWN
www.africabusinessassociation.org
