Africa and Europe: a Shared Future

Foreword

Romano Prodi

The analysis offered in this collection of essays does not focus on Africa’s tragedies and challenges; rather it outlines a possible strategy for its future. This approach is what makes this short book original and its analysis distinctive. Of all the changes in the African scenario, with respect to the rest of the world, this book focusses on Africa’s political, institutional and economic characteristics in order to point out its opportunities. There is no complaint or despair in it; this series of essays by different authors offers instead a lucid, realistic analysis of the future possibilities of the African continent.

The first challenge concerns Africa’s opportunity to exploit its great potential, which would truly make it a continent whose unity, while certainly based on its sub-regional dimensions, is however capable of expressing a common strategy. In order to do this its sub-regional dimensions must be strengthened, but without neglecting the creation of a network between them. This is no easy task because it requires intense institutional work. Agreements aimed at creating a single market for the entire African continent have now taken a big step forward in this direction. These agreements – totally impossible until a few years ago – have in fact led to the Treaty establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA), which entered into force in 2019. However, this important result is clearly not enough: in fact, there cannot be an African market without building the infrastructure necessary for free trade.

Institutional progress must not be underestimated since it is an essential, indispensable prerequisite both for the creation of sufficiently large markets and for the development of economies of scale that will allow Africa to become a leading player, not only in the trade of raw materials, as is already the case now, but also in manufactured goods and agricultural products.

Another very interesting issue regards the sought-after and very important economic and political relationship between Africa and Europe. It is of great interest to explore how this can be strengthened through a broad agreement to provide electricity for the indispensable economic life of the continent. In fact, not only do 300 million Africans not have access to clean water, but also more than twice as many have no access to electricity, without which there can be neither agriculture nor industry. Hence, one obvious solution is to come up with proposals and projects dedicated to creating great prospects for energy production from renewables, such as wind and mainly solar energy – potentially abundant throughout the African continent. However, triggering what we might call the “renewable energy revolution” in Africa requires a sound political strategy: strong synergies with Europe and a close relationship with Africa within a regulatory framework that, once again, expresses continental unity to the greatest extent possible. It is also clear that energy is an ideal area where China and Europe could collaborate on a major project. In theory, this could be crucial to finally implementing the Silk Road. It is ←10 | 11→equally true that there is no point in hiding the political difficulties that stand in the way of this obvious and convenient source of cooperation.