Jonn Edwards

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL -
A BI-PARTISAN LOOK AT PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES' VIEWS ON
US-AFRICA RELATIONS...in their own words

1. Despite international efforts to resolve the Darfur conflict peacefully, the killings and rape continue in western Sudan, and the conflict is described as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today. Similar mass atrocities have been visited on the people of northern Uganda and eastern Congo. If elected President of the United States, what specific actions would you take to end the genocide in Darfur, as well as the mass killings in Uganda and Congo? What preventive measures would you recommend to keep similar tragedies from becoming full-blown genocide in the future?

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I traveled to Uganda and met with President Musuveni and I saw firsthand that the situations in Uganda and Congo are no better. Attention must be brought to the crises in these countries. As president, I will make a clear, unambiguous public statement of support for the Juba Peace Talks and for Special Envoy Chissano’s efforts. I will also dispatch a high-level presidential envoy to work with the leadership of Special Envoy Chissano and commit sufficient funds to support the U.N. Juba Initiative Fund.

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            As president, I will take a tough stance on situations that could result in genocide. I will direct the economic and diplomatic resources of the United States to prevent political conflicts like those that generated the situation in Darfur from resulting in genocides.

2. Africa is blessed with abundant natural resources, especially petroleum, diamonds and valuable products. Unfortunately, much of this natural wealth is not brought to bear for the benefit of African citizens. As President, how would you work with the resource-rich but economically poor countries in Africa to ensure that their incoming revenues from oil, gas and mining, as well as from other resources, are used to promote poverty alleviation and development rather than simply to fill the coffers of corrupt officials? How would you act to effectively seek the recovery of stolen bilateral aid money?

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I will support groups providing microloans averaging less than $200, as these loans encourage entrepreneurship and draw a 98 percent repayment rate. The additional business this creates will stimulate the economies of the region on a local scale, allowing many to rely on themselves and their ingenuity rather than big business. I will increase resources fivefold for non-profits running these microfinance programs. I will also encourage nations to give their citizens the right to invest in property, and promote property law reform in the Millennium Challenge Account.

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It is essential that taxpayer money not be wasted. Resource revenues should not go toward funding the extravagant lives of corrupt officials. I will work with African countries to help them create accountability measures to ensure that poverty alleviation and development remain at the forefront of their economic policies.

3. Africa is facing several environmental challenges, including climate change that threatens traditional African livelihoods, dwindling water resources that deprive more than 200 million people access to safe water and may lead to conflict, diminishing agricultural capacity that has lead to food dependency and disappearing plant and animal species that threaten Africa’s great biodiversity. Given the importance of African ecosystems to the continent and the world as a whole, what policies would you pursue as President to help African nations face these challenges such that the solutions are linked to sustainable development practices?

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            The World Health Organization has found that every $1 invested in clean water yields an economic return of $8. Combating climate change through reduced carbon emissions will help protect the ecosystems of Africa, but it will not be sufficient to provide safe water for the millions of people who do not currently have access to it. I will double the U.S. investment in clean water. I will also convene an international summit of governments, businesses, and non-profits to agree on necessary investments to make water safe worldwide by 2015.

4. Two years ago, the G8 discussed 100% debt relief for the poorest countries, a large increase in development aid and changes to world trade rules that to make it easier for African economies to grow. However, these ideas have yet to be fulfilled through the policies of donor nations. The United Kingdom took the lead on these issues, but the United States and other G8 nations have been reluctant to follow through. As President, how would you deal with the issue of African debt so that poor nations are not crushed under this growing financial burden while ensuring that monies that formerly went to debt service were now able to be devoted to the social and economic needs of these nations?

As president, I will create a new Cabinet-level position within the White House to coordinate global development policies across the federal government.  This adviser will have the authority to coordinate budgets among the relevant programs at the U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Departments of State, Treasury, Agriculture, Commerce, and Defense, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the U.S. Trade Representative, and other relevant agencies.  During Cabinet meetings in the Edwards administration, this official will be a voice for the fight against global poverty. 

5. When the African Growth an Opportunity Act was first introduced in Congress in the mid-1990s, its mantra was “trade not aid.” However, at least 80% of AGOA trade involves oil and natural gas. What strategies would you propose as president to ensure that African small and medium enterprises outside the extractive industries more broadly realized the benefits of AGOA, which offer more than 6,500 items that Africans can export to America quota-free and duty-free? What would your guiding principles be as regards American trade and investment in Africa?

6. China has become a major international player in Africa through its increasing level of investments in Africa, especially in the extractive industries as well as numerous infrastructure projects. The Chinese also have promised African leaders that they will double aid and scholarships for African students. However, the G8 nations have warned China that its promise of $5 billion in cheap loans and credit without conditions could worsen Africa’s debt crisis and cause a repayment problem. Moreover, Western nations are concerned that China will be an impediment to the promotion of transparency and good governance in Africa if China is not supportive of international efforts in this regard. What steps would you take as President to address the issue of China’s role in Africa? Do you see the Chinese role as harmful or helpful overall to African nations?

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            We must do everything we can to ensure that China moves into the mainstream of the international economic community, particularly regarding the protections that govern their trade deals. If China participates as a mainstream player in the global economy, it will be easier for Western nations to effectively promote transparency and good governance in African nations.

7. The creation of a combined Africa Command, uniting military, diplomatic and humanitarian assistance personnel under one umbrella, has many in civil society concerned about what is perceived to be a militarization of Africa policy. The concern is that the War on terror is at the top of all considerations for US action, such as has been the case recently in Somalia. As President, what would be your overall policy thrust towards Africa? How important a role would you assign to military and intelligence considerations in devising an Africa policy? What policies would be adjusted to minimize the security dangers from insecurity due to high unemployment among young, rising numbers of orphans due to AIDS and conflicts and the large number of internally displaced persons?

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Unemployment, high AIDS orphan rates and massive numbers of internally displaced persons create serious insecurity among developing nations that results in security threats for the rest of the world. In order to minimize these security threats, I will initiate comprehensive investment in the region through education and health initiatives, economic and political development.

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Investment in clean water, preventative medicine, and working towards universal access to treatments for diseases like HIV/AIDS and malaria will help stabilize developing nations by eliminating some of the unrest caused by a diminished working population and will restore the basic human rights of health and dignity to these people who have suffered from these maladies for far too long.

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Along with education, health and sanitation, I will invest in microenterprise. Successful microfinance programs making loans averaging less than $200 spark entrepreneurship while drawing a 98 percent repayment rate. In addition, microinsurance can provide an inexpensive and effective way for poor families to avoid bankruptcy from death, illness, and funeral expenses. I will increase resources for non-profits running these programs five-fold. I will also strengthen democracies by expanding support for the National Endowment for Democracy, to strengthen political parties, train candidates, educate voters, and monitor elections. In addition to these economic and political investments, I will promote labor and property rights by promoting property law reform in the Millennium Challenge Account, encouraging nations to give their citizens the right to invest in property.

8. Africa’s institutions are increasingly more active in peacekeeping and peacemaking. Most notably, the Economic Community of West African States served as the primary mediator and peacekeeping force in the sub-region during the conflicts in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea Bissau. More recently, the AU has dispatched missions to Darfur, Sudan, Burundi, and Somalia. However, Africa’s sub-regional and continental organizations suffer from severe logistical, resource and capacity constraints. How will the US Government in your Administration work to increase their effectiveness in peace activities as well as in other governance and economic pursuits?

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9. Over the last five years, African states have taken bold steps towards institutional reform through the adoption of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and its accompanying African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). These new institutions seek to increase economic development and encourage good corporate and political governance. Indeed, the 2002 G8 summit at Kananakis, Canada, adopted NEPAD as the framework by which it would approach development assistance. How will you, as President, work to reinforce NEPAD and the APRM as development and accountability standards for Africa?

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10. It is estimated that women in African nations are responsible for three-quarters of all agricultural work and comprise about three-quarters of overall economic output. Nevertheless, women continue to lack full ability toe exercise their political and economic rights in many nations, and girls are still too often prevented from receiving an education that will enable them to take their full place in society. As President, how would you integrate efforts to enhance the status of women and girls in Africa into overall Africa policy?

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In addition to promoting universal education, I will rescind President Bush’s executive order barring U.S. family planning aid to foreign non-profits that provide abortions for reasons other than a threat to a woman’s life or incest, provide abortion counseling or referral, or who advocate to make abortion legal. This rule forces women to choose between the funding vital to their mission and providing essential health services. With this barrier removed, African women will be able to receive the care they so desperately need, paving the way to greatly reducing the number of unnecessary pregnancy-related deaths.