Africa Rising 21st Century

  As the international community tries to help the government of Ethiopia craft a lasting peace following the hoped-for definitive end to the conflict in Tigray, one hopes there is due consideration of the difficulty in making ethnic federalism in Ethiopia finally work. It hasn’t thus far, and if the flaws in the current system aren’t properly addressed, it never will We in America (as in much of the developed world) understand federalism to be a form of administration in which a central government operates in conjunction with regional governments (provincial, state, cantonal, territorial or other sub-unit governments) in a single political system. It was first embodied in the Constitution of the United States of 1789 as a relationship of parity between the two levels of established government.   In the United States, that means that the federal government must govern in concert with states.   However, in Ethiopia, as in just about all of Africa, the understanding o...

  World Press Freedom Day was celebrated on 3 May, and most people probably don’t take it too seriously.   We tend to take the various media for granted.   In this country, we read, listen to and watch those outlets that affirm our beliefs and reject those that contradict our views as liars.   However, we retain the ability to read, listen to or watch whatever media we choose. The last Administration and the current Administration have contrasting relationships between the Presidents and the media that cover them.   President Donald Trump labeled many of the media as enemies of the people, and he had a long-running antagonistic relationship with many in the media, even at times those most favorable to him.   President Joe Biden has a much more positive relationship with those who cover him.   The media seems uninterested in any negative coverage of him…thus far.   The thing is, however, that neither the previous Administration nor its recent p...

               There’s a video making the rounds on YouTube that states that somehow the Honorable Marcus Garvey was not a genuine Pan Africanist.   It cites figures such as Edward W. Blyden, Alexander Crummel, Martin Delaney, Henry H. Garnett, T.T. Fortune, Alexander Walters, B.T. Washington and others as more authentic examples of Pan Africanism.    No offense to those dignitaries of the Diaspora, but how can anyone reasonably reject Garvey’s Pan African credentials?   African leaders such as former Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah were obviously influenced by Garvey’s call of “Africa for the Africans; those at home and those abroad”. This was exemplified by the Black star on Ghana’s flag from the Garveyite Black Star Line shipping company.   The Nation of Islam, however you may regard it today, was birthed by followers of Marcus Garvey, and in fact, many Black Republicans, especially in the East, were descendants of...

 (This article appeared first on allAfrica.com) The decision by Sierra Leone to shut down the operations of U.S.-owned SL Mining has called into question that government’s commitment to the rule of law with regard to foreign investors. The U.S. Government has initiated various programs to boost U.S.-Africa trade and investment - from the African Growth and Opportunity Act ( AGOA ) to the Prosper Africa initiative that was launched in 2018. The success of these initiatives depends in part on American companies receiving fair treatment in their dealings in Africa. Prosper Africa “brings together services and resources from across the U.S. Government” to promote U.S. business activity in Africa, but how can there be robust U.S. investment on the continent if the legitimate interests of American companies are not respected and the U.S. government doesn’t take action to support American business interests? Consider Sierra Leone. In December, the Millennium Challenge Corporation...