Opinion analysis by Johnny Achkar, Staff Writer

July 1st, 2021

Leaders from fourteen European nations and the United States met in 1884 to debate ownership of Africa's resources. This meeting was later dubbed the ‘Berlin Conference’. They aimed to explore the division of Africa, setting criteria for the peaceful distribution of resources (how nice of them!) among Western countries. France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Portugal were the primary actors in the Berlin Conference. The only awkward issue relating to this meeting was that no representatives from Africa were invited. The Western Powers would later partition the continent in such a way that an immeasurable number of border clashes and wars were bound to happen. This ‘scramble for Africa’ was later revived during the cold war, when the Soviet Union funded Marxist guerrillas in hopes of toppling capitalistic countries, while the United States sought to protect its interests and expand its own influence. The world's most powerful nations are once again battling for control of Africa's enormous natural riches. Superpowers such as the United States, China, and Russia, as well as a number of significant European countries, are now involved in Africa.

Turkey is frequently mentioned in contemporary arguments about foreign influence in the area, as are speculations about its motivations. While Ankara portrays itself as a beneficent power with an “enterprising and humanitarian” foreign policy, opponents believe Erdogan's activities in the African continent reflect a perilous ambition for a “neo-Ottoman” resurgence. Ankara went from 12 embassies and $100 million in foreign direct investment in 2003 to 42 embassies and $6.5 billion in 2021. In addition, from 2003 to 2019, commerce increased fivefold, and Turkish Airlines now serves 51 African destinations. Elif Ülgen, Turkey's ambassador to South Africa, said embassies will open in Guinea-Bissau and Togo this year, with Eswatini and Lesotho on the way.

Turkey, like other Middle Eastern and Western nations, sees untapped economic opportunities in Africa. However, its expansion across the continent appears to be part of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's larger and almost limitless goal to restore Turkey's greatness. Erdogan has visited Africa 27 times since 2003, when he became Prime Minister, and now as President. In 2005, Ankara was granted observer status at the African Union (AU), and in 2008, it was designated as an AU "strategic partner," co-hosting the inaugural Turkey-Africa summit in Istanbul.

Turkey's increased official development assistance was $3.9 billion in 2019. It has also demonstrated a Chinese-like tendency for constructing enormous state structures, including as an Olympic swimming pool in Senegal, an upgraded port and its largest overseas military post in Mogadishu, and a massive mosque in Djibouti.

The establishment of a Turkish military facility in Somalia and the training of Somali military personnel are examples of Turkish geopolitical efforts to position Turkey as a significant political and military force in the Horn of Africa. A mix of economics (offshore gas contracts) and geopolitical goals drove Turkey’s forceful participation into the Libyan civil war in 2019, on the side of the UN-backed Tripoli government. Turkey's engagement in the conflict resulted in a cease-fire in October 2020 and a political agreement among all major factions, which is expected to culminate in elections in December.

Russia is returning to Africa after a decades-long hiatus. The Kremlin's return to Africa has sparked widespread media, government, and civil society interest. Worrying trends of increased Russian activities are raising fears of a new era of great-power confrontation in Africa. Russia is increasingly looking to Africa as a potential source of strength and influence. Previously regarded as a bankrupt superpower on the decline, Russia is now seen as a significant player in far-flung corners of the globe, where its presence has not been felt since the Cold War's peak.

Russia's attempts to return to Africa, an arena it abandoned three decades ago when the load of global aspirations became too great to bear for the dissolving Soviet economy, have illustrated this position. Russian presence in Africa was almost non-existent over the next two decades. 

Russia gradually re-established a modest presence in Africa as the economy and internal politics stabilized and the Kremlin's foreign policy horizons broadened.  Its outreach in the mid-2000s was mostly focused on South Africa and the African Union. Since then, signs of greater Russian influence and presence in Africa have multiplied. Russia's engagement in African peacekeeping missions or training exercises has facilitated contacts with African troops as well as arms sales, with security ties potentially opening the way to broader political contacts and commercial access to natural resources. 

Russia has attempted to rebuild its footprint in Africa using the limited economic means at its disposal. For numerous Russian commercial and state-owned enterprises, the continent's expanding population, need for dependable long-term energy supply, and richness of natural resources have a certain appeal. Russia's economic push to Africa is dominated by large state-owned enterprises. Alrosa, the world's largest diamond mining firm, has concentrated its efforts in Angola and Zimbabwe. Trading favors with regimes punished by international sanctions for corruption or human rights violations has resulted in some of Russia's greatest achievements. 

Today, major corruption, a violent war economy, detrimental disinformation, and a judicial system that favors the powerful at the expense of the general population plague the Central African Republic. By providing presidential protection, military support, and the formation of a network of political supporters to back CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, the Kremlin has rapidly extended its power. CAR has given up a large portion of its sovereignty to pro-Kremlin security emissaries in exchange for this support.

In Africa, China is becoming a more significant economic force. China's investments in Africa cover a wide range of industries and are not limited to the Chinese government or huge state-owned enterprises. A number of Chinese private enterprises have also made significant investments in Africa. Huawei, for example, a renowned global telecom services company based in China, has spent USD1.5 billion in Africa and employs 4000 people. China's commerce with Africa has likewise gradually increased over the last decade, rising from USD9 billion in 2000 to USD160 billion in 2011. China's proportion of global commerce in Africa has increased dramatically, from 3% a decade ago to 13% now.

When the Communist Party of China originally came to power in 1949, it was essentially unknown in the rest of the world, with the majority of countries siding with the Republic of China, the former government that the Red Army chased to Taiwan. However, China began campaigning heavily throughout Africa, gaining recognition for the People's Republic one country at a time. China began building railways, hospitals, universities, and stadiums across the continent before long, repaying its political obligations in concrete and steel.

“Inadequate infrastructure is believed to be the most significant impediment to African development,” Chinese President Xi Jinping previously stated. Africa's most pressing need is infrastructure, which China is uniquely qualified to deliver. China has been the most important actor in Africa's infrastructure development since 2011, with a 40% stake that is still growing. The reasons for the pervasive presence of Chinese enterprises are simple: many African contractors simply lack the competence to carry out large-scale development projects.

Many African countries are chasing visions of a better economic future while burying themselves in tremendous infrastructure debt that they may never be able to repay. The Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway consumed a quarter of Ethiopia's 2016 budget, due to nonpayment Nigeria was forced to renegotiate a contract with a Chinese contractor, while Kenya's railway from Mombasa to Nairobi, which is 80 percent sponsored by China, is already four times over budget. For long-term economic and political stability, China need what Africa has. More over one-third of China's oil comes from Africa, as does 20% of the country's cotton. Africa holds nearly half of the world's manganese reserves, which are required for steel manufacturing, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo alone holds half of the world's cobalt reserves.

African countries have so far failed to take any serious measures in order to protect their sovereignty. Government corruption and inadequacy is to blame for such matters. As several African leaders, fill their pockets while surrendering their country’s sovereignty to foreign nations once again.