(3 minutes read)
· Not to fall behind the US, China and Russia, the European
Commission proposed a closer partnership with Africa to fight climate
change and create jobs
· The plan, though comprehensive, did not detail how much
money the EU plans to spend in African nations
Not to fall behind the US, China and Russia, the European Commission
proposed a closer partnership with Africa to fight climate change and
create jobs. European Union unveiled the five-point strategy for
member governments to approve ahead of an EU-African summit in October
this year.
The plan, though comprehensive, did not detail how much money the EU
plans to spend in African nations. Experts feel that the plan is an
attempt to involve Africa in the EU’s new policy to make the bloc the
world’s first “climate-neutral” continent by 2050. This would mean
that considerable investments would go for reduction of greenhouse
gases beyond what can be absorbed.
Not all being happy about the plan. Oxfam and Caritas, two
organizations involved in the development and welfare works, warned
the plan would lead to migration. While the number of migrants trying
to reach Europe has fallen since the 2015-16 crisis, instability and
droughts in the Sahel and the lack of jobs in sub-Saharan Africa mean
thousands of people still seek to cross the Mediterranean, given an
opportunity. An EU trust fund for Africa was set up in 2015, which
provided more development money for the continent has so far been
mainly focused on deterring migration..
The EU’s executive commission’s focus will be on climate change,
developing the computer-based digital economy, economic growth and
employment, security and good governance and migration. The EU hopes
African leaders will sign and endorse the strategy at October summit
in Brussels. EU has substantive trading relations with Africa, which
was worth 235 billion euros (US$269 billion) in 2018. That was almost
twice that of China’s trade with Africa and around five times that of
the United States. EU is also a major investor in Africa and its
foreign direct investment in 2017 stood at 222 billion euros (US$254
billion), more than five times the figure for either of the other two
major powers.
