Helping Africa overcome

The standard reaction to the word "Africa" in the West is a sense of overwhelming frustration. Africa is notorious as the land of failed states. Western societies are ones in which democracy, the rule of law and judicial independence are basic building blocks, and the population is relatively prosperous and happy. It is therefore incomprehensible to imagine an entire continent of nations lacking most of the basic structures of Western societies and suffering from numerous problems, all intertwined and each seemingly impossible to solve. It is difficult to know where to begin. The continent suffers from dire poverty that none in the West have imagine; AIDS and other diseases are rampant, killing off entire sections of the population; and few African have access to adequate health care, education, or water. Africa's problems are so broad and so basic that attempting to address them often appears a lost cause. Solving even one of these problems would require significant time and resources, and would still leave much to be desired. Why try when you are destined to fail?

Bush's summer trip to Africa conveyed this attitude. The greatest numbers of pictures taken by the media were of the Bushes petting elephants in a safari. Bush's interest in the continent was piqued not by Africa's hardship, but by its potential link in the terrorism chain. America's attempts to steer clear of Liberia's civil war show unwillingness to get tangled up in a messy mission which is destined to fail.

Certainly, there are moral implications to this attitude toward Africa. What do Western ideals mean if we are willing to sit idly by as an entire continent of people starves and perishes? It is ethical to value African lives drastically less than Western lives? The moral case for intervention and engagement in Africa has been made numerous times before, and despite its imperative, Western governments have usually preferred allocating their resources to causes that would better further their strategic and economic interests.

Regardless of the extent to which the West is willing to aid Africa in its struggles, Africa must eventually learn to stand on its own. The initiative to solve Africa's troubles should come from those who themselves suffer the burden of daily life under present conditions, and feel a sense of urgency to change their lives for the better. African countries need to make independent attempts at development, and approach the rest of the world for limited financial or logistical support.

Ordinary Africans want to change their lives for the better. Yet most initiatives in African countries are led by international organizations of sorts, ranging from NGOs to the World Bank. Africans cannot lead these efforts since they are trapped under oppressive, corrupt and incompetent governments. Democracy is virtually nonexistent throughout the continent, and Africans are thus incapable of having influence over their own affairs. There is no place for society-wide democratic debate on the issues facing each country under current levels of state oppression; African countries are mostly ranked as "Partly Free" or "Not Free" by Freedom House reports. The rule of law is virtually nonexistent in most countries, and 23 countries are currently led by former war lords or military leaders. Between 1960 and 1997, Africa has seen 78 violent regime changes. Money allocated for poverty reduction, AIDS medications, or education frequently finds its way to the bank accounts of African leaders, who often spend most of their time tucked away in luxurious villas in the Alps or in Paris. Without stable governments that seek to implement the will of their peoples, no progress can come from the African people themselves.

The West has other priorities besides for Africa. It doesn't want to try where it is destined to fail; it sees more important places to spend its resources. Under these circumstances, policy towards Africa needs to be focused on creating the conditions necessary for Africans to make real progress on their own: democracy and good governance. The West must make it a priority to focus all diplomatic and economic ties with Africa on forwarding these goals. It must not turn a blind eye to oppression and financial mismanagement even when its own interests are at stake. Instead, the West should speak out against human rights abuses in Africa, and consistently demand that governments include their constituencies in decision-making. When Western money is being invested in Africa, standards of transparency should be set and strictly enforced. Transparency and advances in human rights should be conditions for every type of engagement with African countries, and African leaders should not receive financial support and be heavily condemned if such conditions are not met. By focusing on these issues, the West will ensure that its money is spent wisely in Africa, and help the continent begin to overcome its hardships alone.

Karen Karniol-Tambour is a new 'Prince' columnist. She is a sophomore from Netanya, Israel.