Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the most, if not the most, distressed regions of the world. In fact, the entire continent of Africa suffers from an extended crisis that has only been made worse by food speculation on the part of the west as well as the corruption of its own leaders. Unfortunately, the African people bear none of the responsibility for their troubles.
After centuries of slave trading and colonial rule, Africa found itself impoverished and under educated, which resulted in a deficit of infrastructure, health facilities, and industry. No country is blameless when it comes to the African slave trade. Six hundred years before the Europeans arrived on the African continent slaves were taken from Africa and brought to the Islamic Empire. Through the time of the Ottoman Empire the slave trade flourished. By the time the Portuguese, Dutch, French and English became involved, with the complicity of African kings and merchants, Africans were being transported from their countries at a steady rate. It is estimated that in the four or more centuries of the trans-Atlantic slave trade well over four million Africans were sold into slavery.
In the 20th century cold war chess game between the west and the east Africa played the part of the pawn on many occasions. With the CIA backed (and Belgium sanctioned) 1961 assassination of the Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba (who was instrumental in gaining independence from Belgium in 1960) and the subsequent backing of the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko the west made it clear where their priorities lay. Those priorities continued with the west’s support of the corrupt Jonas Savimbi in Angola who sold between $500 and $800 million dollars worth of illegally mined diamonds to the South African De Beers Corporation; the overthrow of the socialist Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana (with CIA assistance); the support of the apartheid government in South Africa; and the complete takeover of the economic policies of most African nations by the IMF and the World Bank.
Some may argue that politics alone is not the only reason for the problems in Africa, and that AIDS and malaria as well as other diseases together with drought and wars are important factors to why Africa is economically distressed. But one can counter that contention by saying that without the intrusions of the west, which began, but did not end with the slave trade, the countries of Africa would have developed like other poor nations and would have been able to deal with health and infrastructure needs.
So, Africa is left in a vicious circle. The problems created by not being allowed to develop economically due to interference by the west have now become fodder for increased poverty which leads to more health issues, like AIDS and malaria, which leads to a higher mortality rate thus depriving the continent of potential leaders, which leads to increased dependence on the west.
It is not enough for the world to aid in humanitarian relief. It is now up to all countries to do their part to end the problems they are at the root of. There must be increased amounts of money in aid to solve the immediate problem of hunger and the causes that lead to hunger. There must be educational training in technology, so that Africans can solve their own problems. There must be regulations on food speculators who drive the prices of food beyond what the average African can afford.
Research has shown that for a country to be successful three primary conditions must be in place:
low infant mortality rates a democratic rather than an authoritarian form of government an economy that is connected to the rest of the world
We have seen how when a country fails, such as in Afghanistan or Somalia, there follows increased likelihood of civil wars as well as war with neighboring countries. That leads to refugees and the spread of disease as well as the furthering of poverty and instability.
America has learned from the past what it took to rebuild Europe after World War II. The Marshall Plan was crucial to Europe’s recovery. And that rebuilding was necessary and vital to our own national interest, just as a strong Africa will be in our best national interest. The Marshall Plan did not only offer humanitarian aid to Europe after WW II ended. It also provided a plan for economic development. It was successful due to bipartisan support, the leadership of President Truman, and an informed public.
After the First World War the hard peace terms inflicted on Germany led to Hitler taking power which led to World War II. Poverty does breed a climate of despair where terrorism thrives. We see that in the reality of the pirates off the coast of Somalia as well as the terrorist groups based in Afghanistan.
With the population of the world now over 6 billion the population of sub-Saharan Africa accounts for almost a sixth of the world total. It is also an area growing at as much as four times the rate of other regions. The world cannot afford to have such a large percentage of its population trapped in poverty. It serves the world’s interest for something to be done and it must be done immediately.