Obama Says ‘Look Inward For Solutions”

Obama Says 'Look Inward For Solutions” To the continent's economic problems instead of making "excuses" based on a history of dependence and colonization “ Prez Obama 08/03/2014

This makes Nkrumah a prophet
Here is the “great speech of Ghana's then president, Kwame Nkrumah”. It was on the 24 May 1963

“In independent Africa, we are already re-experiencing the instability and frustration which existed under colonial rule. We are fast learning that political independence is not enough to rid us of the consequences of colonial rule. The movement of the masses of the people of Africa for freedom from that kind of rule was not only a revolt against the conditions which it imposed. Our people supported us in our fight for independence because they believed that African governments could cure the ills of the past in a way which could never be accomplished under colonial rule.

Our continent certainly exceeds all the others in potential hydroelectric power, which some experts assess as 42% of the world's total. What need is there for us to remain hewers of wood and drawers of water for the industrialised areas of the world? It is said, of course, that we have no capital, no industrial skill, no communications, and no internal markets, and that we cannot even agree among ourselves how best to utilise our resources for our own social needs. Yet all stock exchanges in the world are preoccupied with Africa's gold, diamonds, uranium, platinum, copper and iron ore

Our capital flows out in streams to irrigate the whole system of Western economy. Fifty-two per cent of the gold in Fort Knox at this moment, where the USA stores its bullion, is believed to have originated from our shores. Africa provides more than 60% of the world's gold. A great deal of the uranium for nuclear power, of copper for electronics, of titanium for supersonic projectiles, of iron and steel for heavy industries, of other minerals and raw materials for lighter industries - the basic economic might of the foreign powers - come from our continent.

We have the resources. It was colonialism in the first place that prevented us from accumulating the effective capital; but we ourselves have failed to make full use of our power in independence to mobilise our resources for the most effective take-off into thorough-going economic and social development.

...Unite we must. Without necessarily sacrificing our sovereignties, big or small, we can here and now forge a political union based on defence, foreign affairs and diplomacy, and a common citizenship, an African currency, an African monetary zone, and an African central bank. We must unite in order to achieve the full liberation of our continent. We need a common defence system with African high command to ensure the stability and security of Africa. We have been charged with this sacred task by our own people, and we cannot betray their trust by failing “

So as we thank President Obama for telling us the obvious , we need to remind him of the “ shared” guilt . It was the West that got Africa caught in the an ideological War , which it neither started, understood nor had anything to gain from .All attempts to convince the West that ' African does not look East nor West but forward” fell on deaf ears . Let us be reminded that President Mandela for fighting for equal rights for his African people was labeled a communist “ and a “terrorist” and languished in jail for 27 years . The regime he fought was armed to the teeth with weapons from the West . The people who claimed democracy had only one opposition person in parliament . It was ruthless , vicious, cruel, and suppressive . Meanwhile they attracted more investments than the rest of sub Sahara combined . The West encouraged corruption as happened with people like Emperor Bokassa and Mobutu .and undermined if not eliminated the progressives , Lumumba, Nkrumah , Sekou Toure, Ben Bella, Samora Machel . Did the West invest in the Congo or simply took its wealth away .The Congo has never known peace since its independence in 1960 . Why is Mugabe still undermined? What happened in Liberia.

Dr Nkrumah identifies the following as challenges to African progress 1 Lack of capital or little available capital,2 no industrial base nor skill,3 no communications or disjointed communications, 3 no internal markets, 4 and that we cannot even agree among ourselves how best to utilise our resources for our own social needs 5 Lack of infra structural net work 6 An educated base 7 Ideological differences exasperated by the West

Let us remind readers that political independence was not achieved voluntarily and this resulted in animosity between the Colonizer and the Colonized. The departing master in nearly all cases did what they could to undermine the new administration . Mali and Guinea had to get start up loans of Ten Million pounds from Ghana . Others were devastated after many years of war, that tore up the infra structure . In others Rulers were imposed to ensure the interests of the departing master and not to better the interests of the citizens . Where the interests of the departed masters where deemed to be in danger the new leaders were removed most of the time, violently

So how does a newly independent country and its citizens suddenly get access to capital especially in the environment of the West insisting on “Free enterprise” or capitalism . Socialism was an anathema to the West . How do the citizens then go into extraction of their God given resources in competition with the well established entities from the West handicapped by lack of expertise and markets . How do these newly independent citizens run profitable entities adding value to the local raw materials ?How do these newly independent countries and the citizens become profitable over night in the face of trade liberalization and the balkanized African market landscape?

Let us take a look at one of the sources of Finance , the IMF . The IMF is a self-described as an "organization of 188 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.”]The organization's objectives are stated in the Articles of Agreement[] and can be summarised as: to promote international economic co-operation, international trade, employment, and exchange-rate stability, including by making financial resources available to member countries to meet balance of payments needs

However as nothing is a free meal, conditions are invariably imposed among which is structural adjustment . What can be adjusted in a raw materials producing economic structure beats imagination

But some of the conditions for structural adjustment can include:

• Cutting expenditures, also known as austerity.
• Focusing economic output on direct export and resource extraction,

• Devaluation of currencies,
• Trade liberalisation, or lifting import and export restrictions,

• Increasing the stability of investment (by supplementing foreign direct investment with the opening of domestic stock markets),

• Balancing budgets and not overspending,
• Removing price controls and state subsidies,
• Privatization, or divestiture of all or part of state-owned enterprises,

• Enhancing the rights of foreign investors vis-a-vis national laws,

• Improving governance and fighting corruption.
While most seem reasonable some are painful 1 Cutting expenditure which usually leads to lay offs, cut back on education or health or infra structure 2 Devaluation , giving rise to increase in prices 3 Trade liberalization , making local produce uncompetitive in the face of dumping 4 Removing State subsidies 5 Privatization or divestiture of SOEs . Most of these result in reducing our independence and a lot of the SOEs may end up going for a song . This also reduces “know how”, transfer and technological transfer

Mr President you are aware a lot of these have not worked and may I remind you to look south at the on going problems of child migrants currently giving you headaches . Mr President , some where something is wrong with the world economic order . As much as African governments are guilty of below par leadership , among which is corruption , we have to accept that African countries have limited markets and access due to balkanization and so cannot have economies of scale . Also Africans in many cases cannot compete in the area of Free trade , and would prefer FAIR trade. How can you balance your budget if after breaking your back to increase produce prices drop as there is surplus and for lack of storage the produce needs to be dumped . As I write fishing trawlers get into our shores with impunity depleting our fish stock making us have to use meager foreign exchange to import to supplement out protein needs deficiency

Mr President we are grateful for your initiative and I so doing please let these words ring in your ears By Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah

“But just as we understood that the shaping of our national destinies required of each of us our political independence and bent all our strength to its attainment, so we must recognise that our economic independence resides in our African union and requires the same concentration upon the political achievement. The unity of our continent, no less than our separate independence, will be delayed if, indeed we do not lose it, by hobnobbing with colonialism” We have been too busy nursing our separate states to understand fully the basic need of our union, rooted in common purpose, common planning and common endeavour. A union that ignores the fundamental necessities will be but a sham. It is only by uniting our productive capacity and the resultant production that we can amass capital. And once we start, the momentum will increase. With capital controlled by our own banks, harnessed to our own true industrial and agricultural development, we shall make our advance.”

Forward ever, backward never!!
The writer Kojo Tamakloe is a Pan Africanist who believes African Unity is the solution to her underdevelopment