Report: US cannot compete with China in Africa

The 2022 US–Africa Leaders’ Summit, which took place from 13 to 15 December in Washington DC, was the second such event in history. It has been widely seen as part of an American attempt to counter growing Chinese influence in Africa.
America's intensified efforts to compete with China in
cooperating with Africa face several obstacles, with the Chinese development
model being more attractive to the developing nations than the US model, Dr
Ezzat Saad, director of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, said in an
interview with Sputnik.
"It is remarkable that China does not seek to impose
its development model or governance system on other countries, but through a
flexible Chinese policy that is compatible with the changing conditions [...]
in Africa, and is based on a development pattern that meets the needs of the
continent away from competition or any ideological considerations, in contrast
to the American approach in this regard," he underlines.
Saad also notes that Washington treats Africa "as a
bloc without states with their own interests and concerns", which
"undoubtedly reflects the strength of the relationship between Washington
and Africa".
Campaign to pressure China
The American strategy on the continent, which is characterized
by a high level of politicization of relations, is connected to the US global
political interests, says Ovigwe Eguegu, a Nigerian policy adviser at
consultancy Development Reimagined, specializing in geopolitics - with
particular reference to Africa in the changing global order.
"I think the US, of course, would continue to increase
its pressure campaign on China and try to recruit African countries to take
part in western-sponsored UN resolutions and proposals also in the United
Nations, the Human Rights Commission, to try to use the UN system to exert
pressure on China. And that is likely to increase both. There's a concern that
African countries are not going to play along," he notes.
Paltry aid
There are all sorts of fields of competition among foreign powers
in Africa. One of the most important is investment, as the continent is still
"in dire need" of funding, mainly to develop infrastructure and human
capital, says Nicholas Dweh Nimley, a writer and research scholar on
China-Africa Cooperation who is also chief editor of Liberia's NEWCOM
Television. According to him, if the US was serious about wanting to compete
with the East Asian giant, it could provide low-interest loans to Africa or
write off infrastructural loans as China does - but it is uncertain whether
such measures would be approved by Congress, "because it is the US
taxpayers' money".
For his part, Saad believes that the announcements made at
the Washington summit - such as plans to invest at least $55Bln in Africa over
the next three years, to allocate $2.5Bln for food aid and to lend up to $21Bln
through the International Monetary Fund to low and middle-income countries -
are too paltry to eclipse Chinese influence.
“Too little, too late”
The bottom line is that the aforementioned western
initiatives are 'too little, too late', even according to some western experts,
and that inflation and domestic policies in major western countries will limit
the funding that governments will provide, and the private sector in these
countries will be very reluctant to invest in an environment of
instability," Saad said.
China, in contrast, sees insecurity in Africa as a
consequence of insufficient sustainable development, believing that economic
and technical assistance as well as investments in infrastructure projects are
necessary to achieve "stability, security, social peace and good
governance in the countries of the continent", he underlines.
China is Africa's main direct backer, with its investment
roughly double that of the US.
Another area where the US and China are rivals in Africa is
trade. Chinese exports are dwarfing US exports to Africa because of the
difference in approach, Nimley notes. In his opinion, "it is about
quantity over quality", as China supplies Africa with products and
services more suitable to the continent's purchasing power, which is still
quite low.
China is Africa’s largest trading partner
"The US model speaks about quality over quantity, but
looking across Africa, you will see the [African Union] headquarters, funded by
China; ongoing ECOWAS [Economic Community of West African States] headquarters,
funded by China; the African Center for Disease Control, funded by China;
railways, bridges, being funded by the Chinese loans. So why does the US model
speak more about quality work? The people of Africa are hoping to see the
presence and for them to do more," he emphasizes.
China is Africa's largest trading partner, with the volume
of trade between the Asian state and the continent reaching $254Bln last year -
four times the value of trade between the US and African countries.
China is favorite destination for African students
There are several more spheres in which the US seeks to
counter China. One such is education, Nimley notes, with America often the more
attractive for Africans because of easier integration "despite China being
the favorite destination for African students thanks to the scholarships
provided annually". The expert also noted climate change aid and military
support as potential fields of developing US-Africa cooperation.
However, notes Saad, the history of US-Africa policies has
made it difficult for Africans to trust Washington's promises, a situation
which has been exacerbated by the US not following up on pledges made recently
- for instance, the 2014 US-Africa Summit "did not result in concrete
commitments". The expert also emphasized that the experience with western
states, including the US, "does not inspire developing countries to trust
the seriousness" of American investment initiatives.
Discrepancies between rhetoric and reality
Among notable discrepancies between the rhetoric in the 2014
summit when "America’s commitment to Africa’s security" took center
stage, and the post-summit reality was the ongoing crisis in Sahel, which could
not be tackled either by the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), or by
America's European allies.
Dr Frederick Golooba-Mutebi, Ugandan independent researcher
and political scientist with a special interest in political economics notes
that in general, where policy is concerned, America's approach is to
"lecture and bully" Africans whereas China's approach is better
appreciated by Africans, and this is a great stumbling block is America wants
to compete for Africa's affections, he believes.
Competing with China very difficult for US
"[Competing with China is] going to be very difficult
[for the US], for as long as the Chinese are going to keep playing the game
that they're playing right now – of flexibility, of non-interference, of
willingness to invest money, I'm not sure the US is flexible enough to play the
kind of game the Chinese are playing. I'm not even sure that the Europeans are
able to play the same game. I think that the Chinese have been much more
creative and shown much more foresight in what they want to do in Africa. And I
don't think western powers are going to be able to catch up with them,"
Golooba-Mutebi notes.
Nimley says he does not think the US will achieve the role
it wants to play in Africa in the medium term. He notes that America "is
starting with $15Bln out of a total of $55Bln" whereas China has provided
$60Bln to African countries through loans and other mechanisms. "So, for
the US to regain its role, they need to help Africa to develop," the
expert concludes.
Source: Sputnik News