Obama’s Focus on Africa

Attention should be paid to President Obama’s speeches, especially to the ones given during various visits around the world.

Obama’s communications reveal transcendental themes relevant to the region. At the same time, they bring to light crucial struggles that need to be overcome in the reconstruction of U.S. foreign policy, which has recently been degraded by excessive confrontation.

Besides the limitations of overarching political analysis imposed by the economic crisis, Obama’s speeches exude a feeling of opportunity. These prospects are intended to settle a debate regarding a new international order, a concept that generates suspicion and skepticism.

Almost two decades of absolute domination by the West following the fall of the Soviet Union, and observations of the current political and economic crisis do not inspire many to follow. The transatlantic alliance’s unilateral actions, which are rooted in Western culture, do not have much to offer and what they offer is dubious.

Obama presents thoughts that appear to be new, but are not distant from the fundamental ideas of “think tanks,” which have demonstrated their inefficacy and harmful influence during the last three decades. When his speeches include such ideas, the analysis usually amounts to: “Let’s give Obama and his team a chance, so that the U.S can rectify the enormous harm done to the world by both cold and hot wars.”

Obama offered Chile as a model for democracy and global interaction, and now it is Ghana’s turn to believe that rectification begins with recognizing progress in certain areas.

Latin America and Africa are important not only because of their resources and population, but also because of the accompanying political influence. Their influence can be used to reestablish equilibrium in a world that has shifted its focus along the Asia-Europe axis.

Last Saturday’s speech in Ghana is important because it stimulates the vision of the transcendental role Africa can play in a new political system. In this system, Africa represents a double tragedy: one of colonialism and one of useless independence.

The communication was devoid of the usual demagoguery that invites African governments to emerge from poverty through a mix of foreign aid and forced deviation from the colonial past.

There is no basis for an intervention that would ask Africa to become part of a global alliance that reevaluates how nations measure prosperity.

Asking Africa to be a partner in such an alliance is not just evidence of the continent’s maturity, but is also evident of a shift in how Western nations view Africa. It is no longer seen as a “rotten bag,” always seeking help through conventional channels.

Using Ghana as an example, in the same manner as was done with Chile and Cairo, Barack Obama and his administration are taking on the challenge to restructure priorities in a peaceful climate. This is not easy.

On the other side of things, the neoconservative opposition in the U.S. is taking an extremely risky stance regarding Obama’s position on Ghana and his network in Latin America. The risk is widely demonstrated in the opposition’s offensive to discredit the U.N. and OAS, especially the latter’s General Secretary Insulza, regarding Honduras.

The speech in Ghana centered on four principles that appear to be reasonable for any country in a development phase.

Topics such as governability, opportunity, health and peaceful resolution of conflict seem to be obvious areas in this simplified agenda. Even so, these objectives and goals have not been fully developed by the international community.

The U.S. is itself facing one of the most urgent public health situations in its history. It is, however, a universal issue due to the spread of epidemics and the structural deficiencies of public care systems.

Governability is not any less of an issue. Over time, governance has become the framework that needs most to be developed, so that the Charter of Fundamental Rights can be applied in developing countries in cooperation with the international community.

Values such as transparency, integrity, ethical conduct, protection of human rights and fights against corruption are simple and basic conditions of a social justice system.

“Opportunity” is an area that encourages political will, accompanied by a strategy to harness local resources and the benefits of independence. It is not a short-term feeling of prosperity and supremacy. However, it should aim at real productive development by avoiding objectives based on financial fantasies and should spare resources to sustain progress.

The focus on public health is not surprising. Public health is, and will be, fundamental to progress. In general, progress is halted by suspicion about the state’s control of the individual. However, these new ideas reveal that public health is a strategy to ensure security among nations.

Barack Obama’s administration is determined to introduce the concept of public health as an essential part of strategic security. Everything conceived as a function of social development is indispensable to sustain global development. “Countries should and have to be sustainable, beginning with health.” Health is not just an element needed for progress, but is a fundamental basis for peace, governance and economy.

With this speech, the U.S. reaffirms its position of not attempting to impose a government on any nation, and shows that the true essence of democracy consists of allowing each nation to determine its own destiny.

Obama has said that repression takes many forms and that one of them is when nations “condemn their people to poverty. No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves.”

I stress that Africa is a fundamental part of a highly interconnected and interdependent world.

The American president, rather than acting as the administrator of a nation aspiring to supremacy, spreads a message that corresponds to the goals of the U.N. General Secretary, who was never granted the opportunity to make such a speech.

We are waiting for the speech regarding Asia.

The crisis of credibility in Latin America and Africa should be addressed promptly, so that the opportunity to take the path opened up by Barack Obama can be fully taken advantage of.