Under Secretary Shannon: Good morning. It’s a great pleasure to be
here today. Thank you President Lindborg for your very kind and generous introduction.
To you and to Ambassador Carson and to the U. S. Institute for Peace. I am very grateful for
the invitation to participate in this important and timely symposium.
And it's a great pleasure to be here with General Waldhauser, thank you sir for taking
the time to do this. You've done incredible work at AFRICOM. We were las together in London,
at a event on Somalia with Secretary Mattis. It's aways to be with you sir. Thank you.
You know it a tremendous pleasure for me to cross 23rd street and leave behind the 1950s
federal architecture of the State Department for the soaring beauty of the United States
Institute of Peace. USIP has proven itself to be a unique and
vital institution within our policy landscape. It is not only the keeper and dispenser of
remarkable expertise in the practice of peace building and conflict resolution, but is also
a convener and convoker of first category. USIP brings together some of our best strategic
thinkers and most interesting organizations to discuss, debate, and shape American foreign
policy. Today is one such occasion. I am honored to
help open this symposium on the relationship between the United States and Africa, with
a special focus on the emerging partnerships that will define that relationship in the
21st century. As Nancy noted, I am long-in-tooth as a diplomat.
I have served our great Republic for 34 years. Curiously, I have spent 17 years of that career
in the 20th century and 17 years in the 21st century. This fulcrum has allowed me to witness and
participate in some remarkable moments of transformation and change. It has also taught
me that history does not end, it accelerates. Today, change has velocity, driven by technology
and connectivity. My experience has taught me that American power and American values
can have a transformative impact on global change. I believe this is especially true
for Africa. The partnership that we offer is especially relevant for countries in the
midst of profound transitions from authoritarian to democratic governments, from exclusive
to inclusive societies, from autarky models of development to ones based on open markets
and regional integration, and from global isolation to intense participation in world
events. As we consider the purpose and nature of our
relationship with Africa, it is important to note two things. First, Africa’s emergence
as a point of global interest and strategic convergence. What happens on the continent
over the next few years will shape the world’s economy, security, and well-being. Africa
is no longer an addendum to global geopolitics. Instead, it is a bridge from the Indo-Pacific
region to the larger Atlantic community, while also connecting directly to Europe and the
Middle East. In the State Department it touches every geographic bureau, and at the Defense
Department it connects to every geographic combatant command. In short, Africa’s centrality
makes it immediately relevant to our success and demands attention and engagement.
Second, as far as the United States is concerned, Africa is already a continent of allies and
partners. With a few notable exceptions, the vast majority of African states share our
commitment to free markets, equitable trade, democracy and the rule of law, secure borders,
and effective responses to global terrorist threats.
African states’ progress towards open markets and free trade have spurred economic growth,
development, and tremendous opportunity across the continent. Indeed, six of the world’s
ten fastest growing economies are in Africa. By 2030, Africa will represent almost a quarter
of the world’s workforce and consumers, and by 2050 Africa’s population is projected
to double to two billion people. And our balance of trade with Africa is near
parity--thanks to booming demand for infrastructure investment, aircraft, consumer products, and
services. African states consistently attract strong investor attention from American companies.
Democracy and the rule of law are also advancing on the continent. Competitive, participatory
elections are becoming the norm. Just two weeks ago, we witnessed the Supreme Court
of Kenya’s decision to overturn the August 8 Presidential elections, and President Kenyatta’s
mature decision to respect that ruling. The independent legal process, and broad support
and respect for the Court’s decision, reflect the strength of Kenya’s democracy.
Finally, African allies and partners are stepping forward to lead regional initiatives to address
long-running conflicts and humanitarian crises. In the Lake Chad Basin, Nigeria, Niger, Chad,
and Cameroon formed the Multinational Joint Task Force to fight Boko Haram and ISIS-West
Africa, and are coordinating military operations, civilian security, and humanitarian assistance.
The United States is proud to support this and other regional initiatives to bring security
and stability to citizens affected by conflict and food insecurity.
Though there is much to commend in recent developments on the continent, we all know
that African states continue to face significant challenges. And any relationship, however
strong, requires care and nurturing if it is to grow. As President Trump, Secretary
Tillerson, and our national security team engage with our African partners, they will
be guided by four strategic purposes. First, advancing peace and security. Doing
so, yields dividends for citizens in Africa, and advances our own national security.
We are looking to African partners to take the lead in resolving regional conflict, and
we will continue to partner with the African Union and regional organizations that lead
successful efforts to end violence and prevent mass atrocities. While our hope and commitment
to seeing an end to the devastating man-made crises in DRC, South Sudan, and other locations
is enduring, the long term sustainability of our financial commitment requires continuing
contributions from our assistance partners. We will also require greater political commitment
from African leaders who want peace and stability in their countries and in their region. This
will ensure that our support and investment is effective and enduring.
On the continent, we are working to build the capacity of regional peacekeepers, whose
numbers continue to increase in Africa. In the past year, we have provided training to
peacekeepers from over 20 African countries actively engaged in UN and African Union peacekeeping
operations. This engagement has allowed more than ten battalions to deploy more effectively
into some of the world’s most dangerous operations in Somalia, Mali, South Sudan,
and the Central African Republic. Generously, Africans now comprise over 70 percent of the
peacekeepers in Africa, up from 40 percent ten years ago. We acknowledge that peacekeeping
comes with a tremendous risk. We both mourn and honor those Africans who have given their
lives in peacekeeping operations. The United States also addresses peace and
security through humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations such as refugees and
internally displaced people. In 2016, we provided more than $1.5 billion to UNHCR’s humanitarian
operations. With the support of USAID and the Department of State’s Bureau of Population,
Refugees, and Migration – for example – an estimated 1.8 million people in South Sudan
receive life-saving humanitarian assistance every month.
Our work to advance peace and security is not just regional. Increasingly, it is global.
African states are partnering with us to address the danger that North Korea presents to the
world. We asked African countries to join us in restricting political and economic engagement
with North Korea, shutting down North Korea’s illicit trade networks, and publicly opposing
North Korea’s reckless missile and nuclear tests. Numerous African partners have taken
concrete actions, but more needs to be done. Second, countering the scourge of terrorism.
This Administration seeks to partner with African allies to confront and counter terrorism
in Africa, including defeating Boko Haram, al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, and ISIS-West
Africa. In recent years, African countries have intensified their regional and domestic
efforts to take greater ownership on this front, often with great success. In Somalia,
the African Union and Somali security forces are driving out al-Shabaab. Working through
AU leadership, regional peacekeeping partners such as Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Burundi,
and Djibouti are helping to lead the way in this effort.
Military, law enforcement, and intelligence tools are vital to defend against these threats,
but military force alone is not enough for a sustained peace. We must work with our partners,
including civil society, traditional authorities, and religious leaders, to address the root
causes of conflict, combat marginalization, and create economic opportunity. There is
no long-term solution to terrorism absent this comprehensive approach.
Any progress in our counter-terrorism efforts, however, will be undone by abusive and illegal
behavior by security forces. We will continue to hold our allies to the highest standards
and ensure that individuals who fail to respect human rights in this important fight are held
accountable. The challenge now is for our African partners
to complement their successes on the battlefield with trained law enforcement personnel to
provide civilian security and economic policies to kick start moribund local economies.
Third, promoting prosperity through economic growth and investment. This Administration
seeks to do business not just in Africa, but with Africa, moving the focus of our economic
relationship with the continent from aid to trade and investment. Trade will be free,
fair, and reciprocal, and our investors will be more competitive. This is about creating
jobs for both Americans and Africans throughout the continent.
One of our most important bipartisan endeavors in the economic arena is the African Growth
and Opportunity Act, or AGOA. AGOA has been the cornerstone of U.S. economic engagement
with countries of sub-Saharan Africa since 2000.
To highlight a few of the achievements: U.S. investment in sub-Saharan Africa increased
from $9 billion a year in 2001 to $34 billion in 2014 and created over 300,000 jobs across
Africa. U.S. exports to Africa rose at an even faster
rate, from $6 billion in 2000 to $25 billion in 2014.
U.S. imports from sub-Saharan Africa under AGOA totaled almost $11 billion in 2016, a
14% increase from the previous year alone. These successes, and the knowledge that trade
helps strengthen democratic institutions and reinforce regional stability, are prime reasons
the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly approved legislation in 2015 to re-authorize AGOA for
ten more years. We remain committed to our economic partnerships
with Africa and will continue to seek opportunities to strengthen two-way trade and investment.
USAID, for example, has established three trade hubs to help the African private sector
take advantage of AGOA and expand exports to the United States. Additionally, the Millennium
Challenge Corporation, or MCC, provides economic assistance to governments that have already
established good policy environments. Most of the MCC’s work has been and continues
to be in Africa. Finally, promoting democracy and good governance.
Efforts to secure enduring peace are undermined when governments fail to provide good governance
and uphold the rule of law – the foundation for security and the driver of inclusive economic
growth in free societies.We see the corrosive effects of corruption as fundamentally detrimental
to the future success of African societies. An AU study estimated corruption costs the
continent roughly $150 billion last year, or per year. Bribes and low-level corruption
worsen poverty and inequality, and harm citizens’ faith in government. Corruption - particularly
at the highest levels - deters foreign investment, foments instability, and diminishes the capacity
of security forces and other institutions to deliver basic services.
The United States will continue to partner with regional organizations to advance good
governance and the rule of law. In The Gambia, when President Jammeh reneged on his commitment
to accept the results of the presidential election in December 2016, the Economic Community
of West African States, or ECOWAS, stepped up with other regional leaders and took a
principled stand for democracy. ECOWAS and regional leaders organized a strong diplomatic
campaign to influence President Jammeh to give up power. He ultimately stepped aside,
peacefully ceding power to his democratically elected successor, President Barrow. This
was an excellent example of an African-conceived and African-managed effort in strengthening
democracy, and one that we were proud to support. Luckily, our Acting Assistant Secretary for
African Affairs, Don Yamamoto, will talk later today in a deeper and more detailed fashion
on the importance of good governance and democracy. It's not my purpose to take from him his speech.
But I do want to underscore that as Nancy noted, I've spent most of my career in Latin
America and Africa. I spent two years working in the African Bureau on Central African Affairs,
and four years in Johannesburg as a Regional Labor Officer, traveling throughout southern
Africa but also working directly with the South African trade union movement, from 1992
to '96. I learned a lot during this period of time, but I learned about democratic development.
And the thing that has struck me and that have carried with me from Africa is not just
the importance of civil society and grassroots development to democracy, but also that our
understanding of democracy, the United States' understanding of democracy, must move beyond
the institutional and electoral aspects of democracy and must understand the importance
building democratic societies and states because ultimately our purpose is not just to allow
citizens to have a voice in determining the national destiny in creating a mechanism for
peaceful transfer of power, it's also to help counties insure that individuals have a voice
in determining their own destiny. In other words, having not just the opportunities but
the resources necessary in order to achieve what they want to achieve. What out founding
fathers would call the pursuit of happiness. There's remarkable people in this audience
today. I see dear friends like Linda Thomas-Greenfield and others who have worked so hard on Africa.
And I've been lucky enough over time to work with groups of diplomats who shaped my understanding
of diplomacy and shaped my understanding of the world. Many of them have worked on Africa.
And my time in Africa has added to that education because it was not just a diplomatic education
it was a political education, and I learned from the Africans I worked with and it is
knowledge that I have carried with me across an entire career. And, as I noted at the beginning,
I understand and recognize the profound impact the United States can have in helping societies
shape themselves. And as we look deeper into our future with Africa and the partnerships
we have already and will continue to develop, it's absolutely important, it is absolutely
important, that we become relevant everyday to Africa's success. And again, I thank you
all for your patience this morning, I thank you for the opportunity to speak to you.
Let me conclude by saying that Africa is a place of trusted friends and partners. We
must continue to journey together in our quest for peace and security, inclusive democracy
and good governance, a trained work force with economic opportunities, and an empowered
civil society. As an old African proverb says, “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If
you want to go far, go together.” We plan to go together with our African partners.
Thank you very much.