Background Africa
Unrest in Africa is not doing trade any good
There is trouble in West Africa. Military forces have committed coups in Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. Things are also restless in countries such as Senegal and Ivory Coast. Anti-Western sentiments among the population are being fueled. But whether the common man will benefit much from the revolutionary wave blowing through this part of the world remains to be seen.
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Choose the subscription that suits youFrance was once the great colonial power in West Africa. Although the former colonies have been independent for a long time, France still had a finger in the pie. Consider, for example, currencies that are still linked to the euro, (uranium) mines that are still largely exploited by French companies or military actions in recent years against Boko Haram and Islamic State. Add to that Russia, which is trying to gain support in the region for various reasons, and you have a cocktail that is certainly not favorable for continuity.
Neocolonialism remains a thorny theme in African politics that some are gratefully taking advantage of. Several West African countries are dangling at the bottom of the lists when it comes to prosperity and security and what could be easier than to blame the former colonizer for this. Clever generals play on the sentiments of the people and take power under the guise of innovation. It remains unclear how much support these leaders have among the people. Democratic elections are generally not at the top of the priority list. And not unimportantly, these senior military personnel are often an elite in themselves who have often lost contact with the ordinary man they claim to stand up for.
Important trading partners
It may sound like a far-fetched summary of developments in West Africa. Yet the region is not entirely unimportant for European exports. In 2022, the EU exported €42,8 billion worth of goods to West Africa, according to Eurostat data. Food is an important category in this export. The EU is the largest trading partner for West Africa and, conversely, West Africa is the most important region for the EU when it comes to investments on the African continent. The unrest in various countries there is certainly not doing trade any good. Eurostat's statistics are of course lagging behind, so it is difficult to link concrete numbers to them now. From some sources you hear that there is reluctance to deliver goods. Payments have always been difficult because some countries want to limit the outflow of hard currency and that problem is only getting worse, not to mention the additional risks surrounding customs clearance, transport and so on.
