African “Child Brides” and WHY MDG’s (Millenium Goals) Will Be Missed

Child Bride Symbolises Reasons Why MDGs Will Be Missed

Inter Press Service (Johannesburg)
NEWS
13 July 2007
Posted to the web 13 July 2007

By Stephanie Nieuwoudt
Cape Town
The woes of the child bride in many ways illustrate the conditions underlying the failure of African countries to achieve many of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The recently released United Nations report entitled “The Millennium Development Goals Report 2007″ states that “although there have been major gains in several areas and the goals remain achievable in most African nations, even the best governed countries on the continent have not been able to make sufficient progress in reducing extreme poverty in its many forms”.

Many of the MDGs deal directly with children and women, such as targets to reduce child mortality, maternal mortality, increasing enrolment at primary education level and promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women.

African newspapers regularly feature articles on the plight of child brides. In societies where girl children as young as ten years are married off, there is a failure to meet the MDG which makes provision for primary education for all children by 2015 (MDG 2). Young brides are taken out of school to meet the demands of their husbands.

When a young girl of 12 or 13 becomes pregnant, there is also an increased risk that she may die in childbirth or during pregnancy. Not only is her body not yet properly developed to carry a child to term, but lack of access to medical care in the rural areas further increases her chances of dying.

MDG 5 is aimed at the improvement of maternal health and reducing the maternal mortality rate by three quarters by 2015. Pregnant women of all ages are at risk, but a young girl even more so. Lack of education and early marriage draw the child bride into a spiral of poverty, addressed in MDG 1 which is the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger.

According to MDG 3, gender equality and the empowerment of women should be promoted. Needless to say, a girl who marries prematurely probably has little experience of equality in a marriage and will probably not be empowered.

MDG 6 is aimed at combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases. The child bride is at increased risk as she is often the third or fourth wife of a much older man. This exposes her to the HI virus and other sexually transmitted diseases. Due to her young age and lack of knowledge, she may also be more vulnerable to other diseases.

The 2007 report shows that the proportion of people living in extreme poverty is declining at a slower rate and is still at higher levels in sub-Saharan Africa than in the rest of the developing world. The number of people in developing countries worldwide who live on less than $1 a day fell from 31,6 to 19,2 percent between 1990 and 2004.

In sub-Saharan Africa the percentage fell from 46,8 to 41,1 per cent between 1990 and 2004. This is despite the per capita income of seven countries in this region growing by more than 3,5 per cent a year between 2000 and 2005.

According to the report, “the poorest are getting a little less poor”. Yet the greatest number of children who suffer from hunger are found in Southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

The figures for maternal mortality exhibit the discrepancy between sub-Saharan Africa and the developed world most starkly. In sub-Saharan Africa, one in every 16 women dies during childbirth or pregnancy. In the developed world the figure is 1 in 3,800.

Preventing unplanned pregnancies could prevent around one quarter of maternal deaths, including those resulting from unsafe abortion. But only 21 percent of women in sub-Saharan Africa used contraceptives in 2004. Few women in the region receive adequate antenatal care.

Improvement in women’s access to health care has been negligible in sub-Saharan Africa. The proportion of deliveries attended by skilled health care personnel went up from 42 to an almost equally dismal 45 percent between 1990 and 2005, while showing an overall increase from 43 to 57 percent in the developing world during the same period.

Total net enrollment ration at primary education level went up from 54 to 70 percent between 1990/1991 and 2004/2005 in sub-Saharan Africa. Again, the overall rate for developing countries is significantly better, jumping from 80 to 88 percent in the same period.

The 30 percent of children not going to school in sub-Saharan Africa translates into 72 million individuals of whom 57 percent are girls. These figures may suffer from underreporting as many children are registered but do not attend school.

In sub-Saharan Africa more children of secondary school age are attending primary school than secondary school. The report states that late enrollment puts children at a disadvantage by causing potential learning problems and lessening opportunities to advance to a higher level of education.

According to the report, progress made to achieve MDG 4 – reduction of child mortality – is slowest in sub-Saharan Africa. AIDS, malaria, war and conflict contribute to high child mortality figures.

But progress was recorded with the prevention of measles and a decline in deaths caused by the disease, thanks largely to improved immunization coverage throughout the developing world. In sub-Saharan Africa, the percentage of children immunised between the ages of 12 and 23 months has improved from 57 to 64 percent between 1990 and 2005.

According to the report, measles vaccination campaigns have also led to other life-saving interventions such as the provision of mosquito nets to protect people against malaria; de-worming medicine; and vitamin A supplement.

Although HIV infections have decreased in the developing world, deaths from AIDS continue to rise in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of the 39,5 million people who have the illness worldwide, live in this region. Africans dying annually from AIDS rose from some 200,000 in 1990 to two million in 2006. The sharing of contaminated needles in drug use has emerged as a worrying new cause of HIV infections in especially Mauritius, Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania.

Globally an increasing number of married women are becoming infected with some 48 percent of people infected with HIV being women.

The report also shows that prevention measures are inefficient, that most young people do not have a comprehensive grasp of HIV and that only 11 percent of pregnant HIV-positive women in low- and middle income countries were receiving services to prevent the transmission of the virus to their newborns.

However, HIV prevalence has shown a slight decline between 2000 and 2006 in sub-Saharan Africa.

At a recent international summit in Nairobi on Women’s Leadership on HIV/AIDS organised by the Young Women’s Christian Association, World Health Organization director general Margaret Chan said that gender inequality and domestic violence are among the factors which drive the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

She pointed out that 500,000 babies are born with the virus every year and 80 percent of them are in sub-Saharan Africa.

US Trade Rep Schwab to Attend US- African Trade Conference (AGOA) in Ghana

USTR Schwab to Attend U.S.-African Trade Conference in Ghana

United States Trade Representative (Washington, DC)
PRESS RELEASE
13 July 2007
Posted to the web 13 July 2007
Washington, D.C.
United States Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab will participate in the 2007 U.S.-Sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum in Accra, Ghana on July 18-19 where she will discuss ways to enhance two-way U.S.-African trade and investment and the importance for African countries of a successful outcome of the World Trade Organization Doha Development Round.

The annual meeting, also known as “the AGOA Forum,” is an outgrowth of the landmark African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and brings together ministerial-level government officials from the United States and the 39 sub-Saharan African countries eligible for AGOA trade benefits, as well as representatives from the private sector and civil society.

“AGOA has changed the landscape of U.S.-African trade relations.  By opening up new opportunities for U.S.-Africa trade and investment, AGOA is helping African countries to use the power of trade and free markets to grow their economies and reduce poverty,” said Ambassador Schwab. “The AGOA Forum is also an opportunity for the United States and our African partners to reaffirm our shared interest in advancing the World Trade Organization’s Doha Development Agenda negotiations.”

“The AGOA Forum allows us to consult with all of AGOA’s stakeholders – including African government officials and African and American businesspeople and civil society representatives – on ways to build on AGOA’s achievements,” Ambassador Schwab noted.

Since the first full year of AGOA in 2001, two-way U.S.-African trade has more than doubled, reaching $71.3 billion in 2006.  This includes a two-fold increase in non-oil AGOA imports from Africa — including apparel, manufactured products, and processed food items – as well as a doubling of U.S. exports to sub-Saharan Africa.

The theme of the 2007 AGOA Forum is “As Trade Grows, Africa Prospers:  Optimizing the Benefits Under AGOA.”  Many of the sessions will focus on how AGOA beneficiary countries can diversify their exports and make the most of the broad range of products eligible for duty-free treatment under the AGOA program.  Ambassador Schwab will co-chair a plenary session on challenges to AGOA implementation and a session with senior African officials on the Doha Round and other trade issues.  Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Karan K. Bhatia will co-chair a roundtable on issues affecting textiles and apparel trade under AGOA.

Background on AGOA

The African Growth and Opportunity Act, passed by Congress and enacted in 2000, is a U.S. trade preference program that is reducing barriers to trade, increasing exports, creating jobs and expanding opportunity for Africans to build better lives.  Under AGOA and the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), eligible countries can export almost any product to the U.S. duty-free – nearly 6,500 products from apparel to automobiles, and footwear to processed food products.

AGOA has been a measurable success in achieving increased trade between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa.  In 2006, U.S. imports from AGOA countries totaled $44.2 billion — more than five times the level of AGOA imports in 2001, the first full year of AGOA.  Much of this increase was related to oil, but non-oil imports — including non-traditional African products such as apparel, footwear, automobiles, and processed agricultural goods — more than doubled from $1.4 billion in 2001 to $3.2 billion in 2006.  In 2006, over 98% of imports from AGOA-eligible countries entered the United States duty-free.

AGOA has also created opportunities for U.S. businesses.  Because of AGOA, Africans are increasingly seeking U.S. inputs, expertise, and joint venture partnerships.  U.S. exports to sub-Saharan Africa more than doubled from $5.9 billion in 2000 to $12.1 billion in 2006, driven in large part by growth in manufactured products exports such as machinery, oil field equipment, motor vehicle parts, and telecommunications equipment.

AGOA is one of several tools the Administration is using to strengthen trade and investment relationships with key African partners.  The United States has signed three new trade and investment framework agreements (TIFAs) with African partners over the last year (Rwanda, Mauritius, and Liberia), bringing to nine the number of such agreements with sub-Saharan African partners.  The United States is also negotiating a Bilateral Investment Treaty with Rwanda and exploring such negotiations with other African countries.  In addition, the United States is carrying out a wide range of trade capacity building activities to help sub-Saharan African countries to take full advantage of trade opportunities, including those available under AGOA, and to increase growth and reduce poverty.

US Government: Regional Groups Key to Building Community of Democracies

Regional Groups Key to Building Community of Democracies

United States Department of State (Washington, DC)
NEWS
12 July 2007
Posted to the web 13 July 2007

By Eric Green
Washington, DC
Regional and inter-regional cooperation lies at the “very heart” of the Community of Democracies, the State Department’s Paula Dobriansky says, referring to the coalition of countries created in 2000 to promote and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide.

Speaking July 12, Dobriansky, under secretary of state for democracy and global affairs, stressed the importance of regional cooperation in reinforcing “core principles of democracy.” In addition, she said, a “democratic bridge” between regions is crucial in supporting fair and impartial electoral observation missions worldwide, promoting human rights and fostering civil society.

Democratic bridges are essential in the face of a recent “pushback” against civil and human rights defenders globally, such as in Venezuela and Zimbabwe, she said.

Dobriansky spoke on the second and final day of a “Democracy Bridge Forum” between the Organization of American States (OAS) and the African Union (AU), held at OAS headquarters in Washington. The forum focused on applying the tenets of the OAS Inter-American Democratic Charter and the AU’s Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance. The OAS adopted its charter in September 2001 and the African group its charter in January 2007. (See related article.)

Dobriansky said the forum is a direct outcome of an April 2005 Community of Democracies ministerial conference in Santiago, Chile, where participants expressed their commitment to strengthening democracy worldwide. The group’s fourth ministerial conference is scheduled for November in Bamako, Mali.

Although the Community of Democracies is still relatively new, Dobriansky said, the group has made “considerable progress” in building what she called the “architecture of democracy.” She said the organization can serve as a “cornerstone” for a global network of democratic states and regional and inter-regional groupings that share similar values in working toward common goals.

Dobriansky said the community also backed the creation of the U.N. Democracy Fund, which was formed at the suggestion of President Bush to help established democracies support new democracies and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide. Since its inception in 2005, the fund has provided about $36 million in direct grants to more than 120 projects globally, with a particular emphasis on supporting nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in emerging democracies, she said. (See related article.)

The Democracy Fund, in turn, supports the International Center for Democratic Transition, an initiative which arose from the 2005 Santiago meeting, Dobriansky said. Based in Hungary, the center provides guidance to countries making the transition to democracy.

In applauding the center’s creation, President Bush said in a May 2005 speech that established democracies “must help the world’s newest democracies succeed. The United States will continue to call upon our friends and allies across the world to help in this noble cause.” (See related article.)

The United States, said Dobriansky, strongly urges the OAS and the AU to become partners with the U.N. Democracy Fund and the Center for Democratic Transition. She said both initiatives show “great potential” in supporting democracies in the Americas, Africa and elsewhere.

As “democratic governments and societies, we must support and protect freedom of expression,” Dobriansky told her audience. She said the Community of Democracies has “pledged to foster positive environments for civil society, both domestically and internationally,” and that through such actions, “regional organizations like the OAS and the AU are very essential in encouraging civil society to take action against those who seek to curtail and abuse” fundamental freedoms.

OTHER FORUM SPEAKERS

OAS Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza told the forum that the most crucial challenges facing his region are economic growth, poverty and social inequality, and the increase in crime.

The secretary-general said free and fair elections are not enough to make a government truly democratic. Governments, he said, also must be able to provide for freedom of the press, respect for human rights and citizen participation.

Alpha Oumar Konaré, chair of the African Union, said his region does not lack resources, yet it is the poorest continent in the world. Nations “need to promote the values that we know will make a difference: the values of democracy, the respect of the rule of law and the respect of liberty,” Konaré said.

Abdoulaye Diop, chair of the convening group of the Community of Democracies, pointed to concrete benefits citizens derive from democracy, such as the encouragement of stability and good governance. Diop, also Mali’s ambassador to the United States, said the group hopes to use the results from the OAS-AU conference in a final document that will be issued at the Mali event in November.

(USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Ethiopian Minister of Trade and Industry Girma Biru to Co-Chair Annual Agoa Session

Girma Biru to Co-Chair Annual Agoa Session

The Reporter (Addis Ababa)
NEWS
14 July 2007
Posted to the web 14 July 2007

By Hayal Alemayehu

Trade and Industry Minister Girma Biru will co-chair a session at the sixth African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) forum scheduled to be held in Accra, Ghana, from July 18-19, it was learnt.

The minister and two high-ranking trade officials will next week leave for Accra to participate at the conference, which is expected to witness the attendance of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

This year’s AGOA forum, which will run under the theme: “As Trade Grows, Africa Prosper: Optimizing Benefits under AGOA,” aims at strengthening the partnership for economic reforms and development between the United States and the thirty eight African nations eligible for the Act, according to the event organizers.

Of the major discussion topics to be deliberated upon at the forum, Girma Biru will co-chair the session entitled “Facilitating agricultural trade and development under AGOA,” which marks the significance the sector plays in Ethiopia’s economy.

The other priority agendas of the conference include: Taking stalk of progress on AGOA implementation, broadening opportunities under AGOA, addressing health challenges to Africa’s productivity under AGOA, enhancing supply capacity of small and medium enterprises under AGOA, and US and government technical assistance programs.

“The forum is an important part of AGOA because it represents an ongoing dialogue between Africa and the United States to ensure that the benefits that accrue from AGOA are realized,” Todd Moss, US Deputy Assistance Secretary of State for African Affairs, was quoted as saying on Monday in Washington.

Moss will join other officials, trade experts, and business executives at the forum in offering tips and advice on how to gain access to the American market. The forum will also include a meeting of finance, economic and trade ministers as well as separate sessions hosted by civil society and business groups, according to the organizers of the event.

Since AGOA passed into law in May 2000, Africa’s exports to the US have nearly tripled, according to a study released two weeks ago by William Jackson, Director for African Affairs Office of the US Trade Representative. However, Ethiopia’s experience under AGOA fared poorly compared to the other thirty seven AGOA eligible African countries.

Ethiopia’s export to the US under AGOA fetched slightly over seven million USD in 2006, an amount that barely counts compared to the 44.2 billion USD the thirty eight AGOA eligible countries shared from AGOA exports (to the US) in the same year, the study indicated. Ethiopia’s exports under AGOA has, nonetheless, been exhibiting a growth despite the amount remaining lower compared to the other African nations. Likewise, Ethiopia’s overall exports to the US have over the last three years been surging by 20 million USD on average to stand at 81.1 million USD in 2006. Trade transactions between the two countries favor the US, where Ethiopia exhibited a 54.5 million USD trade deficit with the US in 2006.

Currently, Nigeria, South Africa, Angola, Gabon and Chad are the top five beneficiaries of AGOA.

This year’s AGOA forum is assumed to better attract the attention of the world, with Condoleezza Rice expected to deliver a keynote speech at the conference. Scheduled to visit Israel and the West Bank during a five-day trip, Rice will take a stop in Accra for talks on the African trade, according to the State Department. This will be Rice’s first trip to Ghana.

United States African Development Foundation Presents its Investment Model at the 2007 Agoa Forum in Ghana

United States African Development Foundation Presents its Investment Model at the 2007 Agoa Forum in Ghana

US African Development Foundation (USADF) (Ghana)
PRESS RELEASE
14 July 2007
Posted to the web 14 July 2007
Accra, Ghana
The US African Development Foundation (USADF) is participating in the AGOA Forum as part of a concerted effort to increase its visibility and promote its development model focuses on investing in African small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

USADF is an independent public corporation founded in 1980 by the US Congress with a mandate to reduce poverty in Africa. USADF fills a unique niche in the spectrum of federally funded development agencies. Instead of top down, state-driven policy initiatives, USADF pursues a comprehensive, bottom-up, capacity- building strategy centered upon African entrepreneurs. As a former client, Uganda Marine CEO Yogesh Grover, says “[ADF] didn’t just give us funds, they were supportive throughout the process. They have been more of a friend and more of a partner than a donor that just gives money.”

In its 27 years USADF has invested in more than 1,700 businesses and community-based organizations. Currently, USADF manages a portfolio of 240 investments that have helped establish thousands of new enterprises and created more than 110,000 jobs – more than 45% of which employ women.

USADF recognizes that only Africans can sustainably develop Africa. Rod MacAlister, President of USADF says that “We invest in African’s own ideas. USADF helps Africans beat their own poverty. We don’t just teach Africans “how to fish,” we help African entrepreneurs own a fleet of boats and market their production.”

Through investments in SMEs, USADF encourages individual risk, ownership and profit incentives that are the primary drivers of private sector growth. USADF is highlighted in the original African Growth and Opportunity Act of 2000 (AGOA) because its authors recognized that market access, in and of itself, would not reduce poverty in Africa without a simultaneous investment in African SMEs. USADF complements the primary market access goals of AGOA by making targeted investments in the dreams of individual African entrepreneurs, thereby building capacity for trade in local and regional markets and in export businesses.

As USADF grows, its success is noticed throughout the continent. John Agyekum Kufour, the President of the Republic of Ghana said, “[W]e are pleased with the tangible results that the US African Development Foundation program is producing; generating jobs and income for the rural poor, developing non-traditional exports, and linking our producers to the global market.”

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf notes, “USADF’s programs will help lay the foundation for Liberia’s economic recovery and growth.” And President Paul Kagame of Rwanda has said “USADF’s presence will result in thousands of Rwandans having reliable jobs and increased incomes.”

Representative Donald Payne, Chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health asserts, “AGOA has yet to deliver on its promise. There are lessons from the USADF model and the impact it is having on African entrepreneurship that should be scaled up and applied to AGOA.”

As a result of the synergy between USADF and AGOA, USADF will have a strong presence in the 2007 AGOA Forum. Mr. MacAlister will participate in the Plenary Program on Market Development. In addition, he will address the assembled Ministers on the USADF model which requires matching funding from participating African governments. For example, USADF’s partnership with the government of Ghana will direct up to US$10 million to Ghanaian SMEs.

Nate Fields, CEO for Africa Operations, will present ADF’s view of the opportunities and challenges in organic agricultural exports.

E. Diane White, Chief Strategist for the USADF Buyer Linkages Program and Willa Shalit, CEO and Founder of Fair Winds Trading and Macy’s sourcing agent, will lead a discussion on how to reach global consumers by changing the brand of African handicrafts from souvenir trinkets to objects of art. In addition, they will explore new partnership models for transforming high potential African-owned craft enterprises into viable home décor businesses, local models of best practice and powerful demonstrations of success.

The main AGOA forum event is July 18-19 at the International Center in Accra and is open to pre-registered participants. There will be a day-long civil society-led event open to the general public at the Ghana Institute for Management and Public Administration on July 17, 2007.

One Big Africa Possible-But Should Only Democracies Should Be Members ??

One Big Africa Possible-But Only Democracies Should Be Members

The Nation (Nairobi)
NEWS
13 July 2007
Posted to the web 13 July 2007

By Simwogerere Kyazze
Nairobi
Forget Muammar Gaddafi’s pie-in-the sky African Federation, writes SIMWOGERERE KYAZZE, successful and democratic African states should form a union of the like-minded as a precursor to the African Union, admitting only those countries that embrace democracy and equal economic opportunities

African leaders debate the formation of a Union Government in Accra, Ghana, where South Africa’s Thabo Mbeki told them, ‘you cannot pass a resolution and that becomes the basis for unification.’

Just last week, President Thabo Mbeki joined scores of other heads of states and governments to declare that the time for the United States of Africa was not now.

Speaking at the AU Summit in Accra Ghana, President Mbeki said rather scornfully that the USA cannot be created by decree or by sloganeering.

“You cannot unify the continent by decree,” Mbeki said. “You cannot pass a resolution and that becomes the basis for unification,” he emphasised.

It’s actually appropriate that Mbeki issued the sharpest critique of the “USA” idea, and that the rebuke seemed to be directed at Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi who demanded the immediate creation of a continent-wide government.

Mbeki is a committed if cautious Africanist and has, with former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, been the driving force behind both the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad) and the African Union (AU). He therefore seems to have earned the right to criticise such pie-in-the-sky ideas like the United States of Africa.

As for Gaddafi, he has blown hot-and-cold with the rest of Africa for donkey’s years and not surprisingly, he’s the biggest advocate of the continental federation.

Gaddafi seems to think that because Africa is weak and disorganised, a big USA government should have been formed like last year.

It’s the idea of political and economic unity in Africa, and the consequences for errant African states that really matter. The return to normalcy in South Africa, Mozambique, Kenya and Ghana and the continued upward swing of Senegal and Botswana seems to have created several far-flung outposts of democracy, good governance and real economic growth on the continent that can conceivably spur change elsewhere.

It’s not by accident, for example, that other heads of state listened when Mbeki and Kenya’s Mwai Kibaki shot down the USA idea. They are both respected for what they’ve done in their countries. This brings us to a rather radical idea of limiting entry to the most prestigious continental clubs. No offence to Colonel Gadaffi, but he probably lost the right to speak on behalf of anyone, let alone the Libyan people, when he chose his undemocratic path. He’s been in power for longer than some of us have been alive, and we’re not your average spring chickens either. Having taken power in 1969, Gadaffi has ruled supreme in the oil-rich country ever since, and only the very brave (or foolish man) will bet against him dying in the country’s largest tent.

Most of Gaddafi’s neighbours are not models of democracy either. Tunisia is a thinly disguised dictatorship with some of the most oppressive laws against freedom of expression and of the media in Africa; Egypt has only recently entrenched emergency laws in place for nearly 50 years in the constitution (a measure critics say will only consolidate Hosni Mubarak’s grip on power and pave the way for his son, Gamal, to take over); Algeria’s military won praise from the Americans for ignoring the results of a democratic election in 1991 and the country has been chaotic ever since. Morocco is still a kingdom with a real king.

The case of Morocco is particularly galling, because it also illegally occupies the Western Sahara. If you’ve not heard of this “country”, it’s because it’s never really been a contiguous (border-sharing) political entity because when Spain abandoned it in 1975, Morocco promptly invaded and annexed it. King Hassan II even withdrew from the OAU in 1984 because most African states supported the right of the Polisario to self-determination. Indeed, well before Darfur and other crises, the Western Sahara was one of Africa’s biggest tragedies.

Morocco of course has friends in high places. The Arab league recognises its right to annex Western Sahara, while the United States of America has refused to recognise the Polisario Front.

The Americans are quite cosy with Morocco over the so-called war on terror, and Rabat is said to be one of the CIA’s extraordinary rendition destinations where suspects are tortured into confessing real and imaginary anti-American plots.

The hypocrisy of the US position was manifest in President Bush’s assertion a few years ago – to worldwide consternation – that Israel cannot be expected to withdraw from ALL the lands it occupied in the 1967 war with its Arab neighbours; a war that cost Palestinians their country.

Meanwhile, the Americans are busy pushing for the creation of brand new state in Europe – Kosovo – an entity that has never existed in any way, shape or form, except as part of Serbia, a country Washington does not like very much.

There is however, something that Morocco needs from the rest of Africa, which the Americans might not be able to provide – a seat at the high table.

When the Morocco withdrew from the OAU, it tried to join the European Union (imagine the cheek) probably thinking that it would be supported by the thousands of Western tourists who come to sun themselves on its beaches. It didn’t happen.

Indeed, despite its ambivalence to African institutions, Morocco still participates in the things that matter on the continent-like the Africa qualifiers for World Cup football and the Africa Cup of Nations. These would be a big stick with which to hit the country for its continued defiance of AU positions.

Imagine what would have become of great athletes like Said Aouita, if Morocco had been banned from competing in the Olympics under pressure from the AU. Imagine what would happen to football clubs like Wydad Casablanca and FAR Rabat if they could not compete in the African Champions’ League or the CAF Cup; or if their national soccer team, which is one of the strongest on the continent, could not compete in the Africa Cup of Nations.

Unfortunately, this is the prices countries pay for intransigence. Ask the South Africans.

While US Vice President Dick Chenney (then a US Congressman) was calling Nelson Mandela a “terrorist” who deserved to be in jail in 1986, precious few of us black Africans had ever visited the Republic of South Africa. And while then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher refused to impose sanctions on the racist regime allegedly because “it would hurt black people”, African countries showed a remarkable degree of unity by maintaining a near total boycott of Pretoria while supporting the African National Congress. One result of this splendid isolation is that while South Africans are self-sufficient in many ways, their lack of international exposure has been one of the biggest hindrances to even faster economic growth and a more just society.

The larger point about African unity is that if it’s worth having, it had better be one of the catalysts of change across the entire continent.

The European Union for whatever it is worth, offers an individual European the opportunity to travel and live in any one of 27 countries, do business using virtually one currency and get a job across much of the union. The price that former East-bloc countries had to pay was to embrace democracy, guaranteeing human rights and the rule of law.

The EU experience

The benefits have been faster economic growth and more just societies. For example, while Ireland was once one of the poorest EU members, it’s one of the richest today, thanks to massive amounts of targeted aid and technical advice from the EU. The Celtic Tiger’s situation is currently being replicated across Eastern Europe. Even Turkey, which in our lifetimes has no chance of joining the EU because of its large Muslim population (and the subliminal racism in Europe), has been trying to clean up its act since it was told that it “could” join the EU in the future.

That is how you build a club: make it a success, invite only like-minded fellows and show off your success-stories.

The EU was originally a Franco-German affair before it was joined by Britain, thus incorporating Europe’s three largest economies. Who wouldn’t want to associate with them? The EU had also set up very strict entry rules which meant that dictators in former Soviet satellites would never even smell the inside of the club. It then showed off the gleaming success stories in Ireland and Greece (both basket cases less than 30 years ago), and the rest, as they say is history.

The African Union has a chance to move towards this kind of relevance. But only if it starts as a nucleus of only a few countries which are serious about the things that ought to matter-real democracy, free choice, rule of law and economic opportunities for every citizen.

As it is now, the AU is just a debating club which has to endure the occasional diatribes of Brother Gaddafi. Ditto the United States of Africa.

The author is a a PhD student at Rhodes University, South Africa.