Musings From Abroad

Africa asks for more than ‘mere promises’ as Italy seeks new partnership

Published

11 months ago

January 29, 2024

Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister of Italy, on Monday announced a long-awaited plan to strengthen economic relations, develop an energy hub for Europe, and reduce immigration, while also calling for a new engagement with Africa.

More than two dozen African presidents and representatives of the European Union attended the one-day meeting, where Meloni gave a speech and announced a number of initiatives, including state guarantees and an initial commitment of 5.5 billion euros ($5.95 billion).

“We believe it is possible to envision and write a new chapter in the history of our relationship—a cooperation among equals far from any predatory imposition or charitable stance towards Africa,” Meloni said in an opening speech.

Meanwhile, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the head of the African Union Commission, expressed his wish that Africa had been consulted first, while other attendees were chilly about the idea.

“I want to insist here on the need to move from words to actions. You can well understand that we can no longer be satisfied with mere promises that are often not kept,” he said, standing alongside Meloni in Italy’s ornate Senate.

The presidents of Senegal, the Republic of Congo, Tunisia, Somalia and Kenya’s William Ruto, who has been a known critic of various “African summits” summoning the continent’s leaders, were among the African dignitaries in attendance. Forty-five African states were represented at different levels overall.

Observers have noted that Italy, with its massive debt, has little chance of competing with countries like China, Russia, and the Gulf states, all of whom are attempting to increase their influence in Africa, the continent that has the majority of the world’s natural resources.

Despite Rome’s claim of ownership of the plan, which it named after the late Enrico Mattei, who established the state oil company Eni.

Meloni stated that her government would seek assistance from the private sector and foreign organizations like the European Union.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission; Charles Michel, president of the European Council; and the head of the EU Parliament were present at the meeting, highlighting Italy’s support from the bloc.

“The Mattei Plan… fits perfectly into our European Global Gateway worth 150 billion euros. This is our plan for Africa,” von der Leyen told Monday’s gathering, referring to an infrastructure project unveiled in 2021.

Africa has remained a toast of several international interests with sessional summits like Russia-Africa, US-Africa, China-Africa, France-Africa, Saudi-Africa, Turkey-Africa, and India-Africa. It is left to be seen how much African interest these summits and relations truly address.

Related Topics:Africa Featured Italy Meloni

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Musings From Abroad

Seeking to expand ties in Africa, Indonesia’s Prabowo attends D-8 economic meeting in Egypt

Published

23 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to the government, Indonesian President, Prabowo Subianto, travelled to Egypt on Tuesday to attend meetings of the D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation, a group of eight significant Muslim developing nations.

To enhance collaboration between the nations spanning from Southeast Asia to Africa, the D-8 was formed in 1997 and consists of Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey. Beginning in January 2026, Indonesia will serve as the group’s chair.

Prabowo said that he would meet with Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the president of Egypt.

“Egypt is our close friend, our strategic partner and an important country in the Middle East,” he said before his departure, adding he would also meet the Egyptian business community.

He would go to Malaysia from Egypt and then return to Indonesia.

Since taking office in October, Prabowo has stated that his administration will uphold Indonesia’s long-standing non-alignment foreign policy.

Since winning the presidency earlier this year, he has been to more than 20 nations, including China, the US, Japan, and Russia.

Musings From Abroad

UN warns Sudan rebels may be getting weapons in Chad from UAE cargo planes

Published

5 days ago

December 14, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Flight data and satellite photographs reveal that dozens of UAE cargo planes have landed at a small Chad airstrip since Sudan’s civil war began last year, which some U.N. experts and diplomats fear is being used to transport guns into the fight.

At least 86 UAE planes have landed at Amdjarass airfield in eastern Chad since the war started in April 2023.

According to flight data and business records examined by Reuters, three-quarters of them were operated by airlines accused by the U.N. of transporting Emirati weaponry to a Libyan warlord.

The UAE, a key Western partner in the Middle East, insists it sends Sudan aid through Chad, not armaments.

The UAE denied “credible” allegations that it was supplying Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group fighting the Sudanese army in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions, via the Chad airstrip in January.

Reuters uncovered footage from Amdjarass this year, revealing two pallets loaded with khaki containers, some labelled with the UAE flag, on the tarmac.

Reuters is obscuring the footage’s date and provenance for fear of reprisals.

Three weapons specialists, two of whom were U.N. inspectors, said the containers were unlikely to convey humanitarian material, generally bundled in cardboard boxes coated in plastic and stacked high on pallets due to its lightweight. The footage shows metal containers packed low on pallets.

One U.N. weapons inspector said the contents were “highly probably ammunition or weapons, based on the design and colour of boxes,” but requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information.

He stated that right-hand pallet cases are long and slender, suggesting weaponry.

Reuters could not independently verify the containers’ contents. The filming date is being withheld to protect the source.

The UAE government told Reuters it has deployed 159 relief planes with more than 10,000 tonnes of food and medical assistance to feed its Amdjarass field hospital.

“We firmly reject the baseless and unfounded claims regarding the provision of arms and military equipment to any warring party since the beginning of the conflict,” the statement said.

To counter Islamist militants, the oil-rich Gulf kingdom has interfered in crises from Yemen to Libya since the Arab Spring protests of 2011. The UAE views Muslim Brotherhood and other groups as threats to internal stability.

In Sudan’s army, Islamists affiliated with deposed President Omar al-Bashir have long held power.

Senior RSF official Brigadier General Omar Hamdan rejected foreign help. He told Nairobi media on Nov. 18 that Sudanese firms made its guns and ammunition. The RSF declined to comment on this topic.