After an already dramatic week, West Africa’s governance crisis reached a fever pitch earlier today amid conflicting reports from Burkina Faso that raised fears of yet another military coup attempt in the region. It is now difficult to see a scenario that would bring an improvement in West Africa’s security and political landscape.
In their speeches to the U.N. General Assembly this week, African leaders reflected on the common theme of the continent’s place in the world, while emphasizing a message of equity and inclusivity in global governance. This was underlined by their now-familiar demands for reform of the Security Council.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is in Washington for a working visit to the U.S. at the invitation of President Joe Biden, a little over a month after the release of Washington’s “Africa Strategy” document. But Ramaphosa’s visit alone is unlikely to resolve the significant differences between Pretoria and Washington.
Zambia has agreed to a $1.3 billion loan with the International Monetary Fund that is intended to bolster the debt-laden country’s macroeconomic stability. But the agreement’s conditions are evoking fears in Zambia and elsewhere across Africa of the debt crises of the 1980s and 1990s, and are likely to be unpopular with Zambians.
The Tokyo International Conference on African Development was held last weekend in Tunis, amid major transformations in international politics since the last conference in 2019. Japan’s efforts to expand its influence in Africa are regarded by many Africans and other observers as a model of international cooperation to be emulated.