US must avoid the mistakes of the past in Africa

Outlet: Arab News

Language: English

Abstract: The US is relegating itself to a back seat in Africa rather than pursuing a coherent policy to safeguard its professed ideals better. In the past few decades, the US has mostly prioritized counterterrorism operations in conjunction with humanitarian interventions, albeit limited. Meanwhile, Libya continues to be severely divided as the governments, weakened by incompetence and corruption, unleashed unaccountable security forces on the public, escalating resentment and encouraging the rise of extremist organisations that garnered some support from desperate locals. The US-Nigeria partnership established to combat the Daesh affiliate Boko Haram suffers from the same irreversible malignancy of failed security-focused interventions, resulting in Nigerian government forces perpetrating some of the worst examples of human rights abuses with weapons bought from the US. These instances underscore the negative impact of past Western interventions in Africa. For US efforts in Africa to succeed, there must be more tangible actions beyond rhetoric, such as investing more in governance and other priorities that are comprehensive and responsive to the continent's needs and realities.

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