French President Emmanuel Macron has declared himself a “positive pan-Africanist,” affirming his strong belief in Africa’s future.
Speaking in Nairobi on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit, Macron called for a new era of equal partnership between the continent and Europe.
Macron said Africa and Europe must move away from traditional donor-recipient relations and instead focus on mutually beneficial investment and cooperation.
“I am a positive pan-Africanist. I am not here to say this thing does not work well or to spoil a city,” Macron said during a discussion session attended by business leaders, innovators and policymakers.
“I am a positive pan-Africanist like President William Ruto,” he added.
Pan-Africanism is an ideology and movement that advocates unity, solidarity and self-determination among Africans and people of African descent across the world.
The philosophy promotes political, economic and cultural cooperation aimed at overcoming the effects of colonialism, exploitation and inequality.
Macron said he was pleased to return to Kenya, recalling his first official visit to the country in 2019 shortly after assuming office as French President.
“I am here first because I wanted to be in a country showing this transformation of the French software vis-à-vis Africa, meaning we want a new equal partnership,” he said.
The French leader noted that Kenya occupies a unique place in France’s relations with Africa because the two countries do not share a colonial history.
“There is no past relation with Kenya and no colonization, so it is probably easy to move forward together,” Macron stated.
He also praised his working relationship with Ruto, saying the two leaders share a common vision on Africa’s future and the relationship between Africa and Europe.
“Second is that I have a strong connection with President Ruto. We clearly believe in the same path forward for Africa and the relation between the continent and Europe,” Macron said.
“We believe that we have a common future, sovereignty, independence.”
Macron argued that sustainable partnerships between Europe and Africa must be built around investment in key sectors rather than dependency on aid.
“And we do believe that the solution is through investment in education, agriculture, health, economic opportunities rather than having a unilateral dialogue where North provides aid to the South. It does not make any sense any more,” he said.
Macron was among several dignitaries and Heads of State from across Africa and Europe who attended the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.
The summit brought together political leaders, investors, entrepreneurs and innovators for high-level discussions on Africa’s economic transformation, technology, trade, climate action and global partnerships.
The meeting, jointly hosted by Ruto and Macron, took place at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre and the University of Nairobi on May 11 and 12.
