Panel addresses future of U.S.—African Relations

Panel addresses future of U.S.-African Relations

by Lan Nguyen
The Trail (University of Puget Sound)
February 18, 2005

From students interested in careers in foreign policy to inquiring citizens of Tacoma, several dozen people gathered in Trimble Forum on Feb. 10 to watch the a panel discussion addressing the future of U.S. and African Relations.

Introducing the speakers was junior Nick Brown, who is the campus representative for AID (Americans for Informed Democracy), which sponsored the discussion.

Brown initially became involved with AID while studying at the University of Lancaster in England. Lancaster’s International Relations secretary told him about an opportunity to go to Berlin, Germany, expenses paid, for a summit with the group.

Although Brown was skeptical of the group at first, the free trip to Berlin enticed him to apply. Brown ended up “sold on their mission statement.”

“I think all of us in AID are of the mind that, while it's fine to encourage debate, a lot of extremely politically divisive issues are bandied about in this country and the actual substantive debate is rare,” Brown said. “We try to tackle issues that can be talked about constructively: where liberals and conservatives aren't going to put up barriers (at least not initially) that hinder conversation.”

For the discussion, Brown started out with a list of 30 panelists, and narrowed it down to the best three. “We go for people who are knowledgeable about the issues, have practical experience in the given area, and who would help to keep a balanced discussion,” he said.

The panelists included Lewis MacFarlane, formerly of the U.S. State Department; Ann Lewis, USAID Administrator in Rwanda; and Peter Gishuru, President and CEO the African Chamber of Commerce of the Pacific Northwest. Also providing occasional commentary was moderator Jeffrey Cunningham.

The first of the three panel speakers was MacFarlane, who started by providing the audience with a series of startling facts about the condition of Sub-Saharan Africa. The first subject was the issue of health in Africa, and the rapid number of deaths due to AIDS, malnutrition and disease.

"More Africans die in a month of disease than the total estimate of the tsunami in Asia," MacFarlane said. Although careful not to minimize the significance of the tsunami, MacFarlane was trying to make it clear that the death rate in Africa is alarming and without recognition, its chances for recovery are slim.

“Africa just doesn’t fit into our agenda. We don’t have a lot of interest in the region,” he said. MacFarlane continued by provoking questions about the United States' role in relation to Africa, both economically and politically.

"How generous of a nation are we?" he asked. "How much should we allocate?"

The next panelist was Lewis, who spoke of her experiences as an administrator for USAID in Rwanda.

USAID is a program that provides foreign assistance to underdeveloped countries. The program was started on Nov. 3, 1961, by President John F. Kennedy. The program was organized after Congress passed the Foreign Assistance Act, which reorganized foreign assistance programs.

According to the USAID website, the program became the first U.S. foreign assistance organization whose primary emphasis was on long-range economic and social development assistance efforts. Freed from political and military functions that plagued its preceding organizations, USAID was able to offer direct support to the developing nations of the world.

Lewis also spoke about Rwanda's genocide in the early 1990s, where a history of tension between two ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis, resulted in a brutal genocide of the Tutsis.

As she stressed the importance of learning about the Rwandan crisis, Lewis also urged the audience to go see the movie “Hotel Rwanda,” which portrays a true story about a hotel owner in Rwanda who struggles with the devastation of genocide in his country.

From there, Lewis reminded the audience that there are currently reports of genocide occurring right now in Sudan.

In Darfur, a region on Sudan's western border with Chad, the Sudanese Government has been using Arab "Janjaweed" militias, its air force and organized starvation to deliberately and systematically kill the black Sudanese. So far, the death toll has reached 70,000 since the conflict began in early 2003.

Finally, Gishuru, who was born in Kenya, took the podium to discuss what the U.S. should do to help the development of African nations economically.

As the President and CEO of the African Chamber of Commerce of the Pacific, a membership based, non-profit organization promoting trade and investment relationships for businesses in the Pacific Northwest and in Africa.

Gishuru stated that the future of Africa's economic growth lies in the U.S.’s investment in the region.

"We need to look at South Africa not as a recipient, but a business partner," Gishuru said. "We must put money in their pockets for them to pay for their needs."

As the speakers summed up their presentations, each emphasized the importance of recognizing Africa as a part of the world’s market. Especially drilling in the point was Gishuru, who believed that the fastest way that Africa can recover from its economic and social status in the world is to gain market power.

"Let's face it, we're living in a global world,” Gishuru said.