Musings From Abroad

French’s new ‘roadmap’ on Africa to be finalised in 6 months. Should the Sahel be worried?

Published

2 years ago

November 9, 2022

French President Emmanuel Macron has hinted that the country’s new ‘roadmap’ on the African continent will be “finalized within six months.”

President Macron also announced an official end of the ‘Barkhane’ operation in Mali and detailed it as part of a reorganization of its operations following tensions with the military junta in Bamako.

While presenting the new French defense strategy on Wednesday, “We will launch in the coming days a phase of exchanges with our African partners, our allies, and regional organizations to evolve together the status, format, and missions of the current French military bases in the Sahel and West Africa.”

“This strategy will be finalized within six months … It is essential and it is one of the consequences that we draw from what we have experienced in recent years in the entire Sahel region,” he explained.

The announcement comes in the wake of recent anti-French protests in some African countries. The government in Gabon was forced to stop planned protests in May. There were also pockets of “anti-French” protests in South Africa during the month.

“Our interventions must be better limited in time (…) We do not have the vocation to remain engaged without a time limit in external operations,” justified the head of state.

“Our military support to African countries in the region will continue, but according to the new principles that we have defined with them,” he said. “It will be declined at the level of each country according to the needs that will be expressed by our partners.

One of France’s African allies, Mali under the current military junta of Colonel Goita has severed diplomatic relations with France which has been helpful with military support in the fight against terrorism.

French military presence in the Sahel however persists, which includes about 3,000 troops in Niger, Chad, and Burkina Faso, after having numbered up to 5,500 men at the height of its deployment.

It is clear that not many African countries are viable at the moment and thus cannot afford to cut Paris off entirely as it remains one of the biggest sources of aid on the continent.

Related Topics:Featured France President Emmanuel Macron

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Musings From Abroad

Brazilian meatpacker JBS invests $2.5 billion in Nigeria, builds six facilities

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Brazilian meatpacker JBS says it has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Nigerian government for a $2.5 billion investment plan that will include the construction of six new plants in the African nation.

Three of the plants would deal in poultry, two in beef, and one in pork, according to a statement from JBS.

In accordance with the memorandum of understanding, JBS stated that it would develop a five-year investment plan in Nigeria, which would include budget estimates, feasibility studies, and an action plan for the development of the local supply chain.

The Nigerian government would then guarantee the sanitary, regulatory, and economic conditions required for the project’s viability, JBS continued.

Musings From Abroad

China’s Xi meets with Morocco’s Crown Prince

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Morocco’s official media reports that Chinese President, Xi Jinping, visited Morocco briefly on Thursday.

According to Morocco’s MAP, Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan welcomed Xi in Casablanca. The visit demonstrated the close ties of camaraderie, collaboration, and solidarity between the Moroccan and Chinese peoples, it said.

China’s official broadcaster, CCTV, said that Xi and Hassan had a “cordial conversation” at the airport after being received by the Crown Prince and Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch.

After attending the G20 Summit in Brazil, Xi paid the visit.

In recent years, China has increased its investments in Morocco’s rail and infrastructure. Morocco is desirable for Chinese electric car battery manufacturers because of its proximity to Europe, free trade agreements with important EU and US markets, and an established automotive sector.

Morocco was chosen by Chinese EV battery company Gotion High Tech in June to establish Africa’s first gigafactory, which will cost $1.3 billion in total.