Africa seems to be sinking deeper and deeper in crises

Even before the first quarter of the year is over, the continent seems to be sinking deeper and deeper in a quagmire of natural and man-made crises.

Suddenly, yesteryear’s dreams of a new era of massive socioeconomic rebirth seem to be receding, and Africa finds itself stuck in the old trap of dependency.

That millions of Africans live in destitution and squalor is now a moot point, and it is not surprising that hordes are constantly attempting to flee the continent even as it enters what appears to be its panhandling season.

Just last Thursday, for instance, more than 250 Nigerian would-be migrants reportedly drowned in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast as they attempted to cross over to Europe, fleeing a homeland they deemed hopeless.

Unfortunately, statistics show that such disasters are not isolated, and that thousands of desperate Africans are risking their lives daily as they seek to find succour elsewhere.

According to credible reports, nearly 6,000 people have been picked up by Italian-coordinated rescue boats since the end of last week, bringing the number of salvaged would-be immigrants taken to the southern European nation since the beginning of the year to almost 22,000!

In the meantime, the continent they are desperately trying to leave behind continues to be ravaged by disasters that its leaders are barely able to deal with.

UTTER HELPLESSNESS

Gripped in what appears to be utter helplessness, the leaders of many African countries are resorting to the panhandling culture that saw the continent become dependent on foreign assistance as the only means of resolving problems.

Poignantly, in recent times several African countries, including Kenya and Somalia, have declared drought to be national disasters.

At the same time, it has been reported that almost the entire southern Africa is home to millions of people faced with starvation.

According to media reports, that region needs $2.7 billion to feed 23 million people.

Alarmingly, last month the World Food Programme said that the drought that has ravaged the region for some time may have affected 49 million people.

Not surprisingly, the Southern Africa Development Community chairperson, Botswana’s President Ian Khama, recently said the bloc would declare a regional emergency and appeal for international help.

SADC chairman’s remarks came at about the same time that the WFP was announcing it would need $610 million for the next 12 months to confront the spectre of hunger in the most affected SADC countries.

Ironically though, some of them, like Zimbabwe and Mozambique, have recently also appealed for assistance after being hit by floods.

Given that kind of paradox, it is clear few African countries are prepared to institute measures that would enable them mitigate the effects of predictable natural disasters like current drought and floods.

FOOD RESERVES

For instance, few countries have sufficient strategic food reserves in their silos.

At the same time, there are no credible efforts made to manage the continent’s huge water resources.

Not surprisingly, in the face of the receding dream of economic renewal, the continent is falling back into the same old habit of begging, even as it is hit by avoidable epidemics like cholera.

Rather than take self-reliance seriously for once, the continent is once again becoming dependent on foreign Non-Governmental Organisations even for internally manageable projects such as water and sanitation.

Unfortunately, it was precisely that chronic ailment of dependence on foreign assistance in the past that saw Africa caught up in the stranglehold of massive debt burdens, mostly relating to unmet commitments to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Now, as Africa relapses into the familiar panhandling mode, the global donor brigade is gleefully back on the scene, ostensibly prepared to bail out the “Dark Continent” once again.

Tellingly, in recent weeks massive amounts have been pledged for different foreign aid undertakings around the continent.

Just over the past week, for instance, the World Bank announced a $57 billion in financing for Africa.

Over the same period Canada released $119 million to fight hunger in Africa, even as Japan gave $9 million to drought-hit Madagascar and handed Cameroon a $92 million medical lab grant.

As for the dreaded so-called conditionalities, well, we will just have to wait, even as the continent’s already massive debt burden swells frightfully.

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