Comments On the NSA Pacific Coast of the Policy Plan of Action

Comments on the NSA Pacific Coast of the Policy Plan of Action, June 4-5, 1999, San Francisco

August 29, 1999

TO:	THE PACIFIC WEST COAST REGIONAL SUMMIT ATTENDANTS AND DELEGATES
FROM:	A. M. Y. YANSANÉ, PROFESSOR, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY, SF, CA
SUBJECT:	COMMENTS ON THE NSA PACIFIC COAST OF THE POLICY PLAN OF ACTION, JUNE 4-5, 1999, SAN FRANCISCO

I INTRODUCTION

The Policy Plan of Action, adopted by the National Summit on Africa (NSA) Pacific Coast Regional Summit, on June 4-5, 1999, is a compilation of very good, sound and academic recommendations. The big problem is that it does not make clear the benefits that the US public and especially the Congress are to get out of the concessions that they are requested to make, especially in the area of debt forgiveness. The overall analysis is very academic. Yet, there are problems of structures and tone.

For instance, debt cancellation should be subordinated to a process of bargaining, whereby US public and Congress would see the benefits, they could get, in exchange for debt cancellation. US is not to be involved in an unilateral debt cancellation, unless it is done under exceptional circumstances. US contributed to Africa ' s debt overhang, which has generated jobs and employment in US. It need to be told to assist in funding the debt. It need to be told to make some form of cancellation of debt, even it were done à la japanese, in exchange for some contracts that would allocate some disposable income to Africa.

The US association with Africa would benefit from stable governments. A stable government cannot be sustained without solid bureaucracy, democratic institutions and a strong civil society. Hence US assistance in education would benefit the democratization process and the building of stable governments in Africa.

US assistance in reinforcing the legal system of Africa would contribute to protecting the foreign investment.

US assistance in cleaning the environment would contribute to protecting the health of workers, women and the promotion of sustainable development.

US reasoned assistance in military defense would contribute to peace and cooperation and might prevent intervention such as the one in Somalia.

II COMMENTS ON ORGANIZATION

First, the general organization of the paper should be done in a sequence that would make it more palatable for a US political audience (not necessarily academic), which Congress responds to.

Second, I think it is necessary to have a first chapter on the need for US to trade with Africa to make US public and Congress see the potential benefits.

The central idea proposed by the six thematic papers and the Policy Plan of Action, is that Africa should matter in US foreign policy.

However, Africa is usually presented as a recipient of aid, regardless of the low amounts of this aid, and how it vanishes in the vacuum, or at best swallowed by the costs of famine or solution of conflicts with horrible and cruel stories.

This is very much the general idea and reason why most Americans not only develop little or no interest in Africa, but also oppose foreign aid to Africa. Congress usually follows their reading. The papers and especially the Policy Plan of Action need to convince the US public opinion and the Congress that this image of Africa is not necessarily true.

It is hoped that Africa could easily become a significantly sizable market of 650 millions people, who would complement the less malleable Chinese market. The 650 millions Africans are equally eager to purchase lap tops, cellular phones and unfortunately the Malboro cigarettes, running away from the US shrinking tobacco market. Therefore, there is a need to emphasize the potential gains for US business. A few parts in the Policy Plan of Action deal with those issues.

Africa is rich in petroleum and strategic minerals and has some skilled labor. Right now, there is a US trade deficit with Africa. Some merchandises are in surproduction in US. (Any time you can buy a big screen TV with a VCR for $200.00, or build obsolescence in machines such as computer products, in a year, in a country, there is surproduction). Therefore, US could utilize Africa as a potentially significant market, through a Marshall Plan type action, which could lead to a more economically and politically integrated Africa, that would bring to the US, the same benefits that after war Europe did to US from 1945 to the 1960s.

Furthermore, a richer Africa would mean a more stable Africa, whereby one would lessen the chance of intervention in conflicts that could end like in Somalia, Liberia, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Isn't better for US to create markets in Sudan than let Bin Laden finance Sudan and later fight terrorism there?

Third, another approach pushed in certain thematic papers, is that it is more "humane" to help Africa than not. How to do that?

Offer a careful analysis of the situation in order to point out the key issues.
Historical background, which links US and Africa.
Consequences resulting from that historical background.
1. lack of infrastructure;
2. weak civil society;
3. problems of human rights;
4. environmental degradation;
5. the outflow of African resources;
6. the deteriorating educational and health facilities
7. the debt overhang;
8. poverty.

Fourth, the NSA Pacific Coast Regional Summit Policy Plan of Action need to acknowledge that the most crucial interrelated theme of the six (6) thematic papers, is the issue of the debt overhang and the lack of foreign direct investment (FDI). The solution to the fundamental problem of weak civil society, human rights, the environmental degradation, the outflow of African resources, the deteriorating educational, health and infrastructural facilities, as well as poverty as a source of conflict, can all be explained by the debt overhang. There is a need to precede the recommendation on "Economic Development.." with a paragraph of explanation on the debt overhang. Therefore two (2) points need to be tackled first. To those two (2) points, could be linked all the other problems.

Alleviation of the debt burden or forgiving some of the bilateral and multilateral public debt and negotiate better terms for private debt. The forgiving of the debt cannot be conceived to be an unilateral action. It need to be linked to at least good governance and reinforcement of the legal system in African countries. This action could be seen as benefits to the US public and private sector as well as Congress.
US would provide FDI plus financial investment at the micro-level, with credit extended to The informal sector, and especially women. This is also to be linked to a strong legal system , which would protect investments against nationalization and contributes to empowering women through micro-lending.

Fifth, once these great issues are dealt with, the question then, is what are the sectors needing specific attention, and specific recommendations and why? The recommendations need to be demarcated into "General Recommendations", "Specific Recommendations", and " US Benefits" The thematic papers would then follow.

III SPECIFIC COMMENTS

1 "Economic Development, Trade and Investment, and Job Creation "

Paragraph # 1:: Bring the last sentence as second sentence of the Paragraph. This is a stylistic issue, and it makes more sense.
Paragraph # 2:: This Paragraph need to be extended into the chapter of the "US Benefits or Gains".
Paragraph # 8:: This Paragraph need to be extended into the Chapter of the "US Benefits or Gains".
Suggested Policy Recommendations # 11 7 12:: They are "General Recommendations " and need to be labeled as such.
Recommendations # 13 a &13 b:: are both "Specific Recommendations" and need to be labeled as such.
Recommendation # 14:: There is a need to have an institution to manage the Marshall Plan. For instance OECD managed the Marshall Plan in Europe.
Paragraph # 15:: There is a need for a cogent Paragraph explaining how the debt cancellation is in order. But, it has to be linked to such issues as more income allocation to African countries and better governance. It is very essential that this issue be not drowned into other themes.
Recommendations #20-5:: are "Specific Recommendations". They must be labeled as such. Emphasis on micro-finance, joint ventures, contact associations is very interesting and timely.

2 "Democracy and Human Rights"

Paragraph # 33:: ha good argument, which need to be expanded in "US Benefits or Gains".
Paragraph # 37:: is too strong; need to be tempered. Add, instead of the last sentence: President Clinton contributed to the improvement of relations with Africa. The steps he took, were in the right direction. He went to Rwanda. Very few US presidents could have done that.
Paragraph # 46:: is very good.
Paragraph # 47:: is a "General Recommendation". It should be referred as such.
Paragraph 51 and 52:: are very good "Specific Recommendations". One could add here that US should support rights of women, in terms of ownership of property.
Paragraph # 63:: is a sensitive, delicate and complex domestic issue. There are differences between the White House and the Pentagon. US is not going to sign it until there is enough safe guaranty that no US citizen is going to be placed on trial by the International Criminal Court (ICC). It is a complex issue that the US would like to be linked to the authority of the UN Security Council, whose power US would not like to weaken. Whether or not US signed it, is this policy relevant to US-African relations? It is a "General Recommendation".

3 "Sustainable Development, Quality of Life and the Environment"

This part is very informative. It has many very good "Specific Recommendation". They are very well divided.

Paragraphs # 86, 87, and 88:

are very good specific recommendations.

Paragraph # 89, 90, 91,92 and 101:

These recommendations, here are very valid and very good ones. But they call the US to ratify the Basel Treaty (# 89), the environmental regulations (90, 91 and 92) and the ban on land mines (101). They are sensitive and complex domestic issues. I do not foresee the US signing these treaties in the near future, because of differences between the White House and the Pentagon and domestic US corporate interests. US signing of the Basel Treaty on environment certainly makes sense. But US business interests do not want much change on environmental laws, that would make them pay more. US signing of the land mines makes sense too. US view is to protect US interests in Korea, and elsewhere. US does not sign many of these international treaties. When it signs such a treaty, it tends to make it the law of the land. But in general, US is often inclined to protect national interests. AS such, it rarely succumbs to international decisions. Too many domestic interest groups, especially the arms interests need to be protected. US furnishes about 70.0 percent of the worldwide arms trade. Any treaty, which could contribute to reducing that trade volume, might involve serious losses of jobs and the laying off of a lot people.

4 "Peace and Security"

The Policy Plan of Action defines security in terms of conflict, or lack of conflict, not just in terms of arms, armies, armed race or armed forces. Another more enduring source of conflict in Africa, is poverty. The eradication of poverty would contribute to solving many problems of conflict. It would also prevent conflict and spare the training of ECOMOG. It is true that Africans fight because of ethnic rivalries, but also to overcome historical rivalries originating from poverty.

Paragraph # 108:: can be tempered. Conflict existed in Africa as it did any place else. But slave trade, by benefiting from it, exacerbated it.
Paragraph #113:: Remember that one can enlist at 17 in US. The recommendation seems to be giving an advice in foreign policy. Indirectly the recommendation is saying that the US policy is not good. Keep the recommendation, but take the age of 18 out and put children without the age.

5 "Education and Culture"

This section seems well done. The use of African sister-cities, and technology, the artistic exchange programs, Swahili meeting foreign language requirements, are all good and precise "Specific Recommendations"

IV CONCLUSION

The NSA Pacific Coast Regional Summit's Policy Plan of Action is a sound and academic document of recommendations, which could benefit tremendously from the comments on adding a new chapter on "US Benefits or Gains", on the organization of the document, the definition of a few concepts, the tempering of some strong statements, the classification of recommendations into "General", "Specific", and "US Benefits or Gains". Some of these suggestions might contribute to making the recommendations more palatable to the US public and Congress.

I am raising again some of these issues that I raised, without success, in the Committee of "Economic Development..". But it is hoped that all the attendants and delegates of the Pacific West Coast Regional Summit benefit from it, before the Summit on February 16-29, 2000.

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