Africa must launch tough economic reforms, says Clinton

African nations must stop seeking handouts and begin tough structural reforms, particularly in the area of trade, if they truly want to improve their economies, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday.

“Most of the work that needs to be done needs to be done in Africa,” Clinton told a forum about US diplomacy on the continent.

“If you look at trade between African countries, it is abysmally minimalistic,” Clinton said. “African countries don’t trade with themselves. They have barriers and tariffs and customs problems that stand in the way of developing their own economies.”

Clinton’s sharp comments came in response to a question about broadening the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a measure passed by Congress in 2000 which gives favourable access to US markets to dozens of African countries.

While many African governments hope the benefits can be made permanent, Clinton signalled that Washington is going to look for signs that African countries are serious about improving their own domestic economic policies.

“The United States will do our part, but African countries have to start doing their part and making the changes that will grow the economies in the sub-Saharan region,” she said.

“It means doing things that are going to run afoul of special interests and government bureaucrats and businesses that already have a lock on a market,” Clinton added.

“They’d rather have the biggest piece of a small pie than a smaller piece of a big pie. So if you are going to have that mentality, it is really hard to utilise the incredible tool that AGOA is.”

Both Clinton and US President Barack Obama have used trips to Africa to stress good governance, saying local leadership is as important as foreign help in the drive to eradicate war, corruption, and disease in Africa.

Although big improvements under AGOA have been made, overall US trade with sub-Saharan African countries remains small, accounting for just slightly more than 1 percent of total US exports and about 3 percent of total US imports in 2008.

US imports from sub-Saharan Africa grew about 28 percent in 2008 to US$86 billion, although higher oil prices accounted for a large chunk of that increase.

Sounding almost exasperated, Clinton indicated that Africa’s arguments for the redress of economic imbalances left by colonialism were beginning to wear a little thin – at least in Washington.

“For goodness sakes, this is the 21st century. We’ve got to get over what happened 50, 100, 200 years ago and let’s make money for everybody. That’s the best way to try to create some new energy and some new growth in Africa,” she said.

Andrew Quinn (Reuters, Washington)

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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits seven nations in Africa.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits seven nations in Africa next week, anxious to show the continent is a priority for the Obama administration even as it tackles a host of other issues.

She will visit Kenya, South Africa, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Liberia and Cape Verde.

WHAT HAS THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION SAID ABOUT AFRICA?

President Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan, gave a landmark speech in Ghana this month when he urged Africans to take greater responsibility for stamping out war, corruption and disease. He also said Western aid must be matched by good governance.

The Obama administration says Africa is a foreign policy priority, but with so many challenges from Iran and North Korea to the financial crisis, experts are skeptical how much attention the U.S. government will pay to the continent.

WHY IS KENYA IMPORTANT FOR THE UNITED STATES:

Kenya is America's key partner in East Africa. Clinton will press the Kenyan government to deal with corruption and political deadlock after the disputed 2007 election and urge the creation of a local court to handle the perpetrators of post-election violence.

Some Kenyans viewed Obama's decision to go to Ghana first as a snub to his 'homeland', but others felt it was correct not to reward the country's corrupt and tribally tinged political elite.

While in Kenya, Clinton will attend an annual trade meeting with sub-Saharan Africa nations.

The United States is looking into whether to suspend trading benefits it gives to Madagascar because of democracy concerns after last March's coup. Such a move could cause the country's $600 million-a-year textile industry to collapse.

WHY IS CLINTON MEETING SOMALIA'S PRESIDENT IN KENYA?

Clinton wants to bolster the shaky transitional government of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed who is struggling to take control from hard-line opposition fighters bent on overthrowing his government.

The West fears Somalia could become a haven for foreign militants looking to attack the region and beyond.

The United States is also concerned about a rise in piracy off Somalia's shores, including attacks on U.S.-flagged ships. America's involvement in Somalia in the 1990s ended in a shambles and experts warn Clinton against inflaming the situation.

WHAT IS THE STATE OF U.S. RELATIONS WITH SOUTH AFRICA?

The Bush administration had a prickly relationship with South Africa's former President Thabo Mbeki, who was critical of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and other issues.

With new presidents in both countries, Clinton will want to reset relations and is expected to press Pretoria to be more of a global and regional player. Clinton's staff say she will press South Africa to use its influence to get Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe to implement reforms more quickly.

WHY IS ANGOLA INCLUDED IN THE SEVEN-NATION ITINERARY?

Oil producer Angola is seen as an emerging financial powerhouse in Africa. The United States imports 7 percent of its oil from Angola, which rivals Nigeria as Africa's biggest oil producer and heads the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

The trip could help boost U.S. investments in Angola's once-prosperous farming sector. U.S.-based Dole Food Co. and Chiquita Brands International, have been in talks with local authorities to invest in the banana industry. Clinton will encourage Angola to diversify -- it relies on oil and diamonds for 90 percent of its exports. Washington sees agriculture as a way to lift millions out of poverty in Africa.

WHAT WILL THE MESSAGE BE IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO?

DRC is of huge strategic importance to the region and home to U.S. corporate interests in the mining industry, which is bogged down in a contract review.

An ongoing conflict in the east will be a focus and Clinton is set to visit Goma where she plans to highlight the plight of women who are raped and subjected to other atrocities. Another subject on her agenda with Congolese leaders will be the need to do a better job of fighting corruption.

WHAT WILL CLINTON DO IN NIGERIA?

Many in Africa's most populous nation, oil producer Nigeria, saw Obama's choice of Ghana for his first trip as a deliberate snub. Clinton's trip is partly aimed at mending that dented pride.

Security in the Niger Delta is a key concern as well as corruption, which is a major disincentive to investors. Nigeria's effort to contain violence by radical Islamists in parts of the north is also likely to be raised with more than 180 people killed in recent days.

WHY LIBERIA?

Clinton will be looking to bolster Africa's only woman president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, on her brief stop in Liberia's capital Monrovia. Clinton will reaffirm U.S. development assistance for Liberia, which was founded by freed former American slaves.

Johnson-Sirleaf is seen by the outside world to be doing a good job fighting corruption but the country's Truth and Reconciliation Commission recently recommended she be barred from office because of her association with warlords.

WHY IS SHE STOPPING OVER IN CAPE VERDE?

Cape Verde is a popular refueling stop. A group of islands off the coast of Senegal, the United States sees Cape Verde as an African success story.

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