African states are unviable in the long-run unless they cooperate and defend one another

The modern-day African state is averagely sixty years old. With many African countries gaining independence around the 1960s, that decade marks out commencement of building of many of our African nations, as we know them today. 

For countries that did not meet their independence during that period, the freedom attained by their peers can be said to have been a landmark for the beginning of brotherly support to break the shackles of colonialism. 

From around that time, the continent would witness Botswana standing up for black South Africa. Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ghana and others would take active steps to fight alongside Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Namibia to ensure their independence from colonial rule. Put simply, from the 1960s, Africa would begin proactive work together to ensure self-rule across the continent, and within three decades would register reportable success.

Only the deranged would down-play the effort and rigor of that phase of African emancipation but as well, only denial would make one not to see that the African dream has fallen short. Economic emancipation is still a distant wish for all of us on the continent. Recent estimates put the continent’s GDP at US$3.1trillion, altogether. This about the same as the GDP of the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is only a quarter the size of the country of Tanzania. And while we underperform, about thirty percent of global minerals reserves are in Africa alone and the continent has sixty percent of the world’s cultivable land. 

Readers would already know that Africa has the highest poverty rates in the world. About twenty-three of the twenty-eight poorest countries in the world are in Africa. About 35.5 percent of Africans live on lessUS$1.90 per day presently. Africa’s debt is rising, and the continent’s huge natural resource endowment is being staked for the accumulating liability. It requires no unique expertise to conclude that this is not sustainable.

The reason for our contradictory circumstances are various. Our inability to ride on synergetic advantages and rise together is key among them. Our nations are inward looking, protectionist, and predominantly self-centric. As a result, our markets are extremely fragmented and unable to impact one another meaningfully. 

Consequently, we rely on food imports while residing on the greatest potential for agricultural production. We struggle to travel between our countries. It is easier for foreigners to travel across Africa than ourselves. 

Our modes of production are mainly outward looking, aiming at supplying foreign markets which load burdensome conditions on our supplies to them. Intra-Africa trade remains too low to uplift our masses. We do not look out for one another, and even in the face of attack from external quarters, we do not respond collectively to defend our own. 

As such, when Zimbabwe gets afflicted by sanctions from western powers as punishment for correcting colonial injustice around land ownership, the rest of us are practically unconcerned. We do not speak out for Zimbabwe, as long as we are left with just enough leg room for our own maneuvers. 

In worst case scenarios, we witness Zimbabweans being harangued by their brothers in neighboring South Africa, as they try out neighborhood opportunities to navigate their present challenges. It is forgotten by our South African brothers that the apartheid regime bombed Harare for standing with them when it mattered. We do not hear the African Union questioning the injustice meted on Zimbabwe for working to correct the historical evil committed against their forefathers.

In all, to a large extent, we are all living as individual nations standing lonely, trying to lift ourselves up by our boot straps. We do not do well, and it is for obvious reasons. Our micro-economies, considered in isolation from one another, are incapable of meaningful influence on the global stage. When external players work themselves out to sabotage oil mining projects in Uganda, the rest of the continent trudges on, somewhat unconcerned. Africans have little to no feelings for one another.

And then, interestingly, within each individual African country we have the most active political engagements. Competing stakeholders, trying to gain or retain control of these nations work tooth and nail to attain their goals. 

There is so much in-country political activity, often oblivious of neighborhood goings-on. I am pained to let us all know that it does not matter how much we work ourselves out, seeking in-country perfection, we shall never see reportable transformation as isolated African nations. No single African country is meaningfully and sustainably viable on its own. We might occasionally see flickers of the light of hope around us. It is the simple work of glow worms.  

Raymond is a Chartered Risk Analyst and risk management consultant
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