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AFRICA AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
The election of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden as the 46 th president of the United States of America has been welcomed around the world after four tumultuous years of Donald Trump’s presidency. But what does this mean for Africa?
There is a widely held perception that Democratic presidents are more inclined to pursue policies favourable to Africa. Is that really so?
Republican President George W Bush (2001 to 2009) is still demonised in many quarters for America’s disastrous invasion of Iraq. But there is widespread agreement that the Bush administration did more for the African continent than any other American president.
Among the Bush Administration’s most notable programmes is the multi-billion U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) launched in 2003. Africa was the largest beneficiary of this global health initiative which has saved millions of lives. Namibia received close to US$300 million for projects in education, tourism and agriculture between 2004 and 2004 from the Millennium Challenge Account. Bush also signed legislative amendments in July 2004 to extend the African Growth and Opportunity Act to the year 2015.
Fast forward to the two terms (2009 to 2017) held by Democratic President Barack Obama. Obama largely continued the policies of the Bush administration, but expectations (in hindsight unrealistic expectations) that there would be major change in United States development, trade and investment policies towards Africa did not fully materialise as his administration faced numerous other challenges.
Enter Republican President Donald Trump in January 2017. Just five months after taking office, Trump left in the middle of a G20 session where African health and migration was being discussed. Two months later he infamously invented a new state in Africa – Nambia – during a lunch with African leaders at the United Nations in September. Worse was yet to come when he referred to Haiti, El Salvador and African countries as ‘shitholes’ during a meeting with a group of senators.
The reality is, however, that the Trump Administration continued with many of the policies of its predecessors, including PEPFAR. Funding to Namibia under PEPFAR increased from US$73 million in 2017 to US$81 million in 2020 and will increase to US$89 million in 2021.
Fortunately, relations between the United States and Africa should not be judged by statements made by mavericks like Donald Trump. Administrations’ foreign and developmental policies are devised by advisers and experts, taking into consideration the national and global interests of the United States.
So what can Africa and Namibia expect from the Biden administration? Having served as a Senator for 36 years and as Vice President under Barack Obama, President-elect Joe Biden has the experience required to run an effective administration. Unlike Trump he is no stranger to Africa and has a much broader geopolitical view of the world map than President Trump. He was a vociferous opponent of the Reagan administration’spolicies towards South Africa’s apartheid government. Speaking during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing way back in 1986, Biden said, “We must not become part of South Africa’s problem, we must remain part of their solution…”. As Vice President he visited three African countries (Egypt, Kenya and South Africa) in 2010.
Not surprisingly, Africa hardly featured during the presidential campaign. When President Biden assumes office on 20 January 2021, his focus at home will be on combating the COVID-19 pandemic which reached a record high of nearly 120,000 infections in a single day in early November. His administration will also focus on getting the American economy, ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic, back on track. The emphasis will furthermore be on healing a nation that has been deeply divided along party lines and addressing racism and racial inequality in the United States.
On the international front, the Biden administration is certain to restore membership of the World Health Organisation and to rejoin the Paris Agreement on climate change. With the final outcome of the composition of the Senate still in the balance at the time of writing, the Biden administration is, however, most likely to be frustrated by a Republican-controlled Senate.
Without doubt the Biden administration will not only continue with the policies of its predecessors, but it will also enter into constructive engagement with African countries to strengthen relations damaged by Donald Trump. Analysts are also hopeful that Africa could see more direct foreign investment and that the Biden administration will devise more favourable trade deals for Africa under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) which has been extended to 2025.
However, only time will tell whether this will translate into more development aid for Africa in general and Namibia in particular.
Namibian freelance journalist and travel writer: Willie Olivier
