The Importance of Learning from Each Another

By Ambassador David Shinn

From China, Africa and the African Diaspora: Perspectives by Sharon T. Freeman
(AASBEA Publishers)

My perspectives on Africa are based on over 37 years of experience in and study of

Africa, which includes having lived in various countries in Africa for a total of 17 years
until I retired after concluding my last post as Ambassador to Ethiopia in 1999. It is fair
to say that collectively my experience and my continued interests qualify me as an
Africanist.

Despite years of experience in Africa I constantly marvel at its diversity and at all of the
different cultural expressions that are in evidence throughout the 53 nations within
Africa. Many factors no doubt account for such diversity such as religion, ethnicity,
climate, altitude, and natural resources, among others. While it isn’t easy to pinpoint what
causes a culture to be what it is, one can observe common threads on a regional basis and
certain common traits of people within nations.

For instance, one can readily observe what appears to be a collective personality type, if
not a culture, among West Africans for instance, which is very entrepreneurial and
outgoing. By contrast, East Africans appear to be more reserved, with the exception of
perhaps Somalis who are as entrepreneurial as Nigerians.

The point is Africa is made up of many nations with many different cultures; it’s
complicated. It behooves all development, trading, and investment partners to step back
and understand Africa and its rich history and aspirations before forging ahead with a
“one size fits all” approach.

I remember when I first entered the Foreign Service there were few personnel who were
knowledgeable about Africa. In fact, I chose to focus on Africa in my university studies
precisely because there was a paucity of information about it and experts on it at the State
Department. It wasn’t easy studying Africa at George Washington University (GWU),
however, because while some universities had Africa studies Department, GWU wasn’t
one of them so I had to pull the pieces together from different departments.

When the West first got interested in Africa after the early liberation movements on the
continent, the West had a vested interest in countering African interest in Eastern
European style socialism. This lasted throughout the 1970s.

During the 1980s and 1990s the focus of the international community toward Africa
shifted and greater emphasis was placed on developing Africa. The problem was that
there were many theories about how to promote development but not a lot of experience
in successfully promoting it anywhere, at least not as a matter of policy.
By the 1990s the region of the world that showed the fastest and deepest development
was Asia, but much of its development was attributable to significant contributions of
knowledge and capital from its Diaspora and a high savings rate and strong work ethic.

By contrast, Africa was kind of a laboratory for testing out theories about macroeconomic
policies and institution building, which by the turn of the century appeared to be
insufficient, especially without necessary physical infrastructure.

Democracy, as measured by the number of nations that have elected leadership, has
faired better. Today, there is little doubt that it has taken hold and is rooted firmly in a
number of countries such as Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania, and a
few others.

It hasn’t been easy for African leaders to go through the decades-long transition from
military rule to more democratic forms of governance, however. Now, with the advent of
China entering the scene-- fortified by demonstrated economic success based on a more
government-centric approach--there is growing concern in the West that African
leadership will revert back to less democratic regimes.

Some observers believe that China is selling its style of governance to Africa, but I don’t
think so. I believe that China is selling its wares and buying what it’s buying. I don’t
think China has the least bit of interest in trying to convince Africa to follow its model
because it knows that Africa cannot do it.

China itself doesn’t have a one-policy formula. They have several models; a model for
the coastal areas that is more industrial, a model for the western interior that is more low
technology oriented, a Special Economic Zones model, among others.

More importantly, the Chinese know something that the Africans should be very clear on,
which is that the two main contributing factors to the success of China are its culture of
hard work and its high household savings rates.

Any nation that wants to follow the Chinese model of success must ensure that its
citizenry is prepared to forgo holidays, weddings, funerals, and to work from sun up until
sun down then to save most of their salaries. This is the Chinese culture but not the
African culture.

There is a question that many African leaders are pondering, which is how to create a
collective voice where needed in dealing with China. Certain issues cry out for a common
approach and single voice. For instance, it’s a fact that adulterated medicines have come
into Africa from China. And while the Chinese Government might maintain that it is the
fault of private actors and that the government has nothing to do with it, in my view, if
the Chinese are serious in having positive intentions toward Africa they would crack
down on such behavior.
Is it possible for the Chinese government to crack down when they want to? Of course it
is. They could, for instance, undertake random inspections of export shipments and
severely punish offenders. The word would get out and the behavior would change.

Imagine, by contrast, if a single small African country like Togo went up against the
Chinese to demand such actions, no one would listen, but if African leaders banded
together their collective voice would be heard.

Some progress has been made to speak in a unified voice by African regional
organizations such as COMESA, SADC, and ECOWAS but more is needed, as the
impact of some actions will be detrimental for centuries to come. Losing hundred year
old wood forests to Chinese companies who [purchase timber from African loggers who
follow poor environmental practices is case in point; such forests can’t be replaced for
generations.

It’s all about learning and acting upon that knowledge. We must all learn from one
another as well. There’s no place for arrogance and a lack of humility in the new world
order.

The U.S. can learn from the Chinese. For instance it could learn how to listen to the
Africans better and to deepen its understanding of how the informal economy works. It
must also recognize that ideals are one thing but the reality on the ground is another.
Closing the divide between these two must be an objective.

The Chinese can learn from the Americans and Europeans as well. One of the key lessons
it can learn is how to be more transparent in what they are doing so that there is less
suspicion about it. Right now no one knows how much money they are spending in a
given country, for instance. Greater transparency leads to greater efficiencies and helps
the entire development community ensure that their efforts aren’t duplicative.

The Chinese must also learn from the Africans and pay more attention to African civil
society.

The Africans, in turn, can learn from all of its partners, and one important lesson it can
learn from the Chinese, in particular, is its work ethic. It should also learn how to
anticipate and take steps to prevent pandemics that undermine its population and future.

Finally, there is an opportunity for all stakeholders to form strategic alliances to create
“win-win” situations for all.
______________

David Shinn has been an adjunct professor in the Elliott School of International Affairs at
George Washington University since 2001. He lectures around the world on African
issues and China-Africa relations. He has written numerous articles about Africa in
academic and policy journals and contributed chapters to several books. He is the
coauthor of An Historical Dictionary of Ethiopia. He is currently working on a
comprehensive book that looks at the China-Africa relationship historically and up to the
present.

Ambassador Shinn served for thirty-seven years in the U.S. Foreign Service with
assignments at the State Department in Washington and embassies in Lebanon, Kenya,
Tanzania, Mauritania, Cameroon and Sudan. He served as ambassador to Burkina Faso
from 1987-1990 and Ethiopia from 1996-1999. His service in the State Department
included positions as Director of East and Horn of Africa Affairs in the mid-1990s and
Coordinator for Somalia during the international intervention there in the early 1990s. He
has a BA, MA, and Ph.D. from George Washington University and a certificate in
African studies from Northwestern University.