A COMMON FOREIGN, DEFENCE, SECURITY AND ECONOMIC POLICY FOR AFRICA?

A common Foreign, Defence, Security ans Economic policy for Africa? One of the factors that has shaped European integration has to do with Europe's relationship with the United States. For years the U.S. complained that there were so many countries in Europe that meant she had to deal with all of them one by one on major transatlantic issues. Having to deal with the so many countries made it difficult for the United States to craft policies that could help the mutual benefits of the two continents. Europe saw that each of the countries having separate foreign, security, defence and economic policies with the United States was not helping their course- hence they decided to have a common European Foreign and Security policy which has worked well with their relationship with U.S., China, India, Russia. 

Currently there are about 54 countries in Africa each with its foreign, security, defence, and economic policies and separately dealing with the EU, U.S., Russia, China, India, and Brazil etc to the detriment of these countries. For example there are separate oil and mineral laws in each of the African Union member countries making it possible for big and powerful corporations to negotiate for a bigger portion benefits that accrue from those economic resources. Meaning the continent can do better (in terms benefits, environmental sustainability) if it can have mining and oil laws cutting across all the countries. At the moment there is complete chaos with each country signing separate oil and mineral contracts based on local laws which only benefits the large corporations.

Can Africa learn from the European experience and formulate a common Foreign, Defence and Security policy for Africa?

By Lord Adusei