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Barack
Obama's first speech in sub-Saharan Africa
as US President, stressing Africa's
importance for the world, the vital role of
governance and the challenges of conflict
and corruption. Here are key excerpt from
the address to parliament in the Ghanaian
capital Accra on 11 July 2009.
11.07.2009 |
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I
do not see the countries and peoples of Africa as a world apart;
I see Africa as a fundamental part of our interconnected world -
as partners with America on behalf of the future that we want
for all our children.
ON COLONIALISM
AND RESPONSIBILITY
It
is easy to point fingers, and to pin the blame for these
problems on others. Yes, a colonial map that made little sense
bred conflict, and the West has often approached Africa as a
patron, rather than a partner. But the West is not responsible
for the destruction of the Zimbabwean economy over the last
decade, or wars in which children are enlisted as combatants.
In
my father's life, it was partly tribalism and patronage in an
independent Kenya that for a long stretch derailed his career,
and we know that this kind of corruption is a daily fact of life
for far too many.
Development depends upon good governance. That is the ingredient
which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long.
That is the change that can unlock Africa's potential. And that
is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans.
Repression takes many forms, and too many nations are plagued by
problems that condemn their people to poverty. No country is
going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to
enrich themselves, or police can be bought off by drug
traffickers... No person wants to live in a society where the
rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery. That
is not democracy, that is tyranny, and now is the time for it to
end. ... Africa doesn't need strongmen, it needs strong
institutions.
As
Africans reach for this promise, America will be more
responsible in extending our hand. By cutting costs that go to
Western consultants and administration, we will put more
resources in the hands of those who need it, while training
people to do more for themselves. That is why our $3.5bn food
security initiative is focused on new methods and technologies
for farmers - not simply sending American producers or goods to
Africa. Aid is not an end in itself. The purpose of foreign
assistance must be creating the conditions where it is no longer
needed.
Yet
because of incentives - often provided by donor nations - many
African doctors and nurses understandably go overseas, or work
for programs that focus on a single disease. This creates gaps
in primary care and basic prevention. Meanwhile, individual
Africans also have to make responsible choices that prevent the
spread of disease, while promoting public health in their
communities and countries.
Now
let me be clear: Africa is not the crude caricature of a
continent at war. But for far too many Africans, conflict is a
part of life, as constant as the sun. There are wars over land
and wars over resources. And it is still far too easy for those
without conscience to manipulate whole communities into fighting
among faiths and tribes.
These conflicts are a millstone around Africa's neck. We all
have many identities - of tribe and ethnicity; of religion and
nationality. But defining oneself in opposition to someone who
belongs to a different tribe, or who worships a different
prophet, has no place in the 21st Century. Africa's diversity
should be a source of strength, not a cause for division.
Culled from
BBC NEWS Publication
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