World Politics Review published on 13 February 2019 a commentary titled "
The New U.S. Strategy Fixates on China While Mimicking Beijing's Approach" by Cornelia Tremann, freelance writer based in Dakar, Senegal.
The author argues that by fixating on China, the new U.S. Africa strategy suffers from two fundamental paradoxes that will undermine its goals of containing China and developing a prosperous African continent through U.S. investment. First, acknowledging that Africa is not a U.S. foreign policy priority will make it harder for U.S. companies to enter African markets or win government contracts. Second, increasing commercial ties with African countries in order to advance prosperity, security and stability is what China has already been doing for decades in Africa. Boasting about a new U.S. strategy in Africa that looks a lot like China's while criticizing Beijing's approach, undermines American credibility.
I would add a third paradox. The U.S. government has minimal control over U.S. private sector willingness to invest in or trade with Africa. Market forces and profit are the major determinants, not government "encouragement." The government of China because of its top-down structure is in a much stronger position to "encourage" its private and state-owned sectors to invest in and trade with Africa.
The author concludes that a better U.S. strategy would be to recognize China as a legitimate actor in African development, acknowledge that despite the negative aspects [and there are some] it can be a force for good, and frame it as a regional partner.
