At a time of global geopolitical competition, France co-hosted the two-day Africa Forward summit on May 11-12 in Nairobi, Kenya, where French President Emmanuel Macron and Kenya’s President William Ruto joined African leaders vowing to boost economic exchanges and investment and to strengthen joint responses to major global challenges.
At the conclusion of the summit, the French and Kenyan Co-Presidents as well as the participating Heads of State and Government adopted the Africa Forward Summit Declaration, outlining a renewed partnership dedicated to peace and security with a focus on inclusive growth, innovation, sustainable development and mutual prosperity.
The first day of the Africa Forward summit was dedicated to youth. It began with encounters between Macron and Ruto with young people and businesses and the culture and sport sectors. Macron then took part in the closing ceremony of the business forum on May 11, the French government said in a press release.
“We want to help it, to invest alongside Africans, and move away from the vertical approach and into an approach of equality, partnerships and joint investment,” he said. “Today, through your commitment and work, 23 billion euro in investment has been announced for the African continent. Alongside this, 9 billion euro has been raised in investment in Africa by African entrepreneurs and investors. This is unprecedented and it is precisely the springboard that we needed, that we need and that we now want to take to a new level,” the French President said.
He acknowledged that France’s presence in Africa has been shaken over the last 25 years, noting that big companies and government bodies saw Africa as their back yard. “China has arrived, and so have Turkey and the United States, among many others. And many other African countries. They have said: ‘We are more competitive than you, and better than you.’ They have won market share and countries that have developed have given this market share to people who were more competitive than us,” Macron said.
Africa needs investment, not aid
Africa is developing at an unparalleled rate, Macron said, adding it is the world’s most dynamic continent. “Last year, its economic growth was faster than southeast Asia’s. It is a continent with more than a billion young people under 30. So, it is time for us, France and Europe, to wake up, as we have been doing in recent years. And we have woken up,” the French president was quoted by Élysée Palace as saying.
Macron’s statements were nothing new, he was repeating what many others in the U.S. and a select few in the UK and Europe have been saying for over a decade, while the EU itself was focusing on expanding foreign aid instead of pressing for structural reforms that support greater investment and deeper development.
“The African continent does not want us to come along with aid. People in Africa want us to come and invest,” he said. “We now need to build things together, alongside the African continent, and ask where businesses want to develop, in energy, infrastructure, education, agriculture or health. We need to invest together and produce together. This conceptual revolution is what we have set in motion in recent years,” the French President said. Time will tell if the EU bureaucrats hear his words.
The second day began with the Summit’s opening plenary session. In his opening speech Macron argued that the challenges faced in Africa and in Europe are the same. “Africa wants peace, prosperity and sovereignty. The partnership we want from this Africa Forward Summit, the partnership I believe in between Africa and Europe, is one that serves peace, prosperity and that independence and strategic autonomy,” Macron was quoted by Élysée Palace as saying.
He noted that France supports this agenda whereby Africa is present on the United Nations Security Council. Similarly, France supports an agenda for an African Union that has greater capabilities and resources for its peace and security operations and which, in close coordination with the United Nations, can form its own mediation initiatives, with the means to build its own peace and security solutions.
Macron acknowledged that the main source of financial flows towards African countries are remittances from the African diaspora. “They come from all those who have emigrated, who are working hard in many countries to send money back to their families. These flows exceed the aid provided by governments. But the approach we must now embrace is one of co-investment,” Macron said.
This co-investment should go into building a formal economy, investing into human capital, talent and youth, Macron said, noting that the major difficulty for Africa is having an overly large share of its economy that remains informal and does not allow the middle classes to emerge and move forward. To address this, co-investment must go into moving up the value chain and working together to build a stronger agricultural sector and a robust industry so that Africa is not only where raw materials, critical minerals and rare earths are extracted but also where processing occurs, the French President said, adding that co-investment must go into supporting Africa’s infrastructure and energy transformation.
At the closing ceremony, Kenya’s President Ruto thanked Macron for discussions and commitments on projects and programs ranging from nuclear energy to infrastructure development and education.
Kenya’s President said that future partnerships involving Africa should be grounded in equitable partnership, investment and innovation. “Africa cannot continue to occupy the margins of global financial system while carrying some of the greatest economic potential anywhere in the world,” he said, adding that the future of the global economy will increasingly be shaped by Africa’s people, markets, energy potential, minerals, innovation and ideas.
“Africa is approaching the future with ambition. We have seen very strong commitments on energy transition and industrialization because we understand that no country can industrialize in the dark. We have advanced discussions on digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence and innovation, because Africa must enter the AI, not only as a consumer of technology, but as a developer of technology,” he said, adding that above all this summit has created a new model of engagement between Africa and its partners, forming a “relationship grounded in mutual respect, investment shared prosperity, and equality.”
