Experts eager to see Canada's African strategy brought forward to address perception of neglect

With the long-anticipated Indo-Pacific strategy now released, observers of Canada’s international engagement are looking to the federal government's efforts to craft an African strategy. The process is being led by Liberal MP Robert Oliphant (Don Valley West, Ont.), parliamentary secretary to the foreign affairs minister, to assess how best Canada should engage on the continent. Oliphant said in July that he was hoping to submit the strategy to cabinet by the beginning of December, but told The Hill Times on Dec. 5 that other work has dominated his time in the “last couple of months or so.” In an email, he said that he is continuing to have consultative meetings, noting that he is calling the African strategy a “Framework for African Engagement.” He declined an interview request due to the strategy’s ongoing work. Oliphant noted that work on Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific strategy, Haiti, Lebanon, gender-based violence in conflict, and religious freedom and belief have been occupying his time, as well as increased Question Period duties due to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly’s (Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Que.) travel schedule and committee work. The strategy is expected to look at expanding Canada’s diplomatic presence in Africa, as well as at Canada’s role on the continent in terms of foreign policy, defence and security, and political engagement. Earlier this year, the Canadian government announced it was opening a new diplomatic mission in Rwanda, as well as creating a permanent observer role at the African Union. Mafoya Dossoumon, a member of the Africa Study Group secretariat, said an African strategy should be released as soon as possible. “It’s time to bring this strategy out as soon as possible and for African countries to know where they stand,” he said. “It has become urgent for Canada to reinvigorate relationship ,” he said, remarking that the strategy should show a willingness from Canada to play a serious role in Africa. That can be demonstrated, Dossoumon said, by hosting a Canada-Africa heads of state summit in Ottawa. “The issue here is that there is a perception among African decision-makers that the relationship with Africa has been neglected and that Canada is not a steady or reliable partner on the world stage,” he said. “It is important to reset relations and send a strong signal that Canada is serious about playing a role in Africa and being a partner to African countries.” Dossoumon said it is “a concern” that the strategy has not been presented to cabinet yet, remarking that African diplomats have been asking for one for a long time. African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, left, visited Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa on Oct. 26. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade He said that the strategy needs to be properly funded to show that Canada is addressing the view that it has neglected its relationship with Africa. “For the strategy to be successful, there has to be a significant amount of resources allocated towards nurturing and developing that relationship long term,” he said. “It is not enough to have good intentions, there has to be follow through.” Dossoumon said he hopes the full-fledged consultation process continues, and noted the need to speak with the African diaspora in Canada and the Canadian diaspora in Africa to help craft the strategy. “We really do think that these two groups can help elevate the quality of the strategy because they understand what it takes for Canada and Africa to build a long-lasting partnership,” he said. University of Western Ontario professor Thomas Tieku, an expert on international relations and African politics, said there is a need for urgency in crafting the strategy. “The truth of the matter is it is a policy that should have been crafted yesterday,” he said. "We need a clear strategy as to what we are doing on the African continent.” He said the strategy shouldn’t necessarily be focused on how much money is being spent, but instead it should look at how the funds are being used. He said the approach to Africa should be more strategic and systematic. “A strategy would help us systemize the way we approach the continent,” he said. Tieku said Canada shouldn’t be following its allies in their approach to Africa. “Because we don’t have any strategy, we usually … follow the western crowd,” he said, noting that Canada can take an increased role as it doesn’t have the colonial baggage of European nations and imperial baggage of the United States. “Anytime we go with the western crowd, their negative becomes our negative,” he said. Tieku said Canada has a built-in linguistic advantage in engaging with Africa, as well as its membership in the Commonwealth and La Francophonie. University of the Fraser Valley political science professor Edward Ansah Akuffo, an expert on Canada’s strategic approach to Africa, said since the continent is going through a transformative process, it is essential for Canada to reassess its own relationship with Africa. “Canada should find a way to position itself to re-engage or to reset its relationship with the continent,” he said. Akuffo said there is a level of urgency to the strategy as Canada is “late to the African continent.” “This is a strategy that should have been in place decades ago—at least 20 years ago,” he said, noting that the strategy should be launched “as soon as possible—possibly immediately.” He said Canada has always viewed Africa as an add-on or on the periphery of Canada’s diplomatic interests. Akuffo said that has to change, and that investment in an African strategy should be in the “same neighbourhood” as the nearly $2.3-billion over five years in the Indo-Pacific strategy. Carleton University international affairs professor David Hornsby, an expert on Canada’s foreign policy in Africa, said the development of the strategy is moving slower than he anticipated. He said the strategy is “really important” to address the multitude of reasons for the declining status of Canada’s African relationship, which he remarked was seen in Canada’s unsuccessful 2020 bid for a temporary seat on the United Nations Security Council. “There is importance to signal to our African partners that we care and are interested,” he said. Hornsby said there are also geopolitical, security, and economic advantages to rolling out the strategy and offering a “template.” “We need a guide in how we are going to engage and how we are going to support,” he said, remarking that the Indo-Pacific strategy can be used as a template to establish an African one. Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced a new diplomatic mission in Rwanda earlier this year, as well as a permanent observer to the African Union. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade With nearly $2.3-billion committed to the Indo-Pacific in the government’s new strategy, there will also have to be sizeable commitment to Africa, Hornsby said. “We can’t be suggesting that one reason is better than another so there is going to have to be an acceptance of real money being put on the table in order to make this work,” he said. Aside from the funding aspect of the strategy, he said there is also a need for a political change in the approach to the region, which he said then needs to be institutionalized within Global Affairs. “It needs to be driven politically and it needs to be recognized that we are there for the long haul,” said Hornsby. University of Calgary instructor Christopher Roberts, president of African Access Consulting, said he is hoping that those crafting the strategy are starting on the basis of better understanding Canada’s role in contemporary Africa. “We don’t have a good grasp of Canada’s post-independence history in Africa,” he said, remarking that an engagement plan for the future in Canada-Africa relations needs to look to the past to understand where Canada has held a positive and negative role on the continent. He added that more resources have to be earmarked for fixing visa processing on the ground in Canada’s African diplomatic presence. “The hoops that Africans go through to try to get a visa to come to Canada—and this is long before COVID, and COVID made it harder—have been ridiculous,” he said. “If that is not the No. 1 way to engage with Africa—to find resources and strategies to fix the broken visa system—then you might as well throw out the entire African engagement strategy,” Roberts said. “That’s got to be front and centre in this strategy.” nmoss@hilltimes.com The Hill Times

Experts eager to see Canada’s African strategy brought forward to address perception of neglect

'The truth of the matter is it is a policy that should have been crafted yesterday,' says University of Western Ontario professor Thomas Tieku.

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