Obama: Africa needs unity first
Former US president Barack Obama says African governments should first unify their citizenry before considering an amalgamation of states akin to the US model.
Former US president Barack Obama said on Wednesday African governments should first unify their citizenry before considering an amalgamation of states akin to the US model.
“Realistically, I’d settle right now for a unified Kenya or a unified Uganda or Cameroon,” Obama said in response to a question about the merits of a “United States of Africa”.
“I’d start with: can we all get along just within the existing borders that we’ve got, and if we’re able to do that, then we can start having a conversation about pan-African unity.”
Obama was talking at a mostly unscripted event hosted by his foundation in Johannesburg on Wednesday, a day after he delivered the Nelson Mandela annual lecture.
“The aspiration of unity is one we all should be striving for,” he said, adding that “it’s hard to figure out why we’re so stupid” about racial and ethnic divisions despite common aspirations.
Many of the continent’s ills were the result of national borders that did not align with traditional tribal boundaries, as well as the legacy of colonialism.
“But there does come a point at which I think Africa is going to have to say: no more excuses.”
He cited the fact that when Kenya gained independence in 1963, its GDP per capita was comparable to South Korea’s. The Asian nation’s GDP per person is now 19 times Kenya’s.
“It’s not as if Korea doesn’t have corruption or all kinds of problems, but it does mean that at a certain point, Korea fortified themselves and focused and said let’s do business.”
The former US president said African states should work together on issues such as trade links and renewable energy programmes, which required economies of scale and often cross-border footprints.
“That kind of co-operation we should be able to do right now. That doesn’t require a United States of Africa to get done [but] it does require governments with some sense and purpose and attention.”
Obama also warned about the risks of having charismatic leaders whose rise to power was due to ethnic or tribal support. “One disadvantage that African politics has” was that leaders often did not have viable options for when they left office. Many presidents in the US later joined company boards or became teachers.
“Here, oftentimes, those options don’t exist. And sometimes leaders may be ready to go, but all their cousins and friends and the people who’ve been making money off them having that position say: no, you can’t go because this is our whole economic engine.”