NIIA Sports Diplomacy, US-African Summit and US Consulate Dinner: The Challenge of Agenda 2034
Bola A. Akinterinwa
In the making of a New World, international understanding and cooperation appear to have become a desideratum for survival. Emphasis is increasingly being placed on how to promote economic productivity and better life. In the past one week, three significant events took place that were aimed at better international understanding and economic development in the United States and Nigeria. In Nigeria, the United States Consul General to Nigeria, Mr. Will Stevens, adopted the food diplomacy approach to promote a better US-Nigeria relations by hosting a Christmas dinner diplomacy to which fifty leading scholars, media professionals, business entrepreneurs and other notable Nigerians were invited. The dinner was held on Thursday, 15th December, 2022 as from 6pm in Ikoyi, Lagos.
Similarly, the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) held a conversation on ‘Sports, Culture, and Diplomacy’ on the same day as from 11am at the newly renovated rotunda of the Institute. It was the third in the series of ‘The Conversations’ newly put in place by the Director General of the NIIA, Professor Eghosa Osaghae. Unlike the Brainstorming Series introduced by Professor Bola A. Akinterinwa, former Director General of the NIIA, which focused on all aspects of international questions, ‘the Conversations’ are specifically targeted at how to use sports as an instrument of nation building and development. This sports diplomacy is put in place on the initiative of a ‘football diplomatist’ Segun Odegbami who got married in the early 1970s and whose marriage, in the eyes of Chief Ebenezer Obey, a Juju maestro, the whole world and heavens got to know about it. The NIIA and Chief Odegbami have been collaborating towards ensuring that West Africa play host to the 2034 World cup.
And perhaps more significantly, the US President, Joe Biden held the second US-Africa Summit from Tuesday, 13th, to Thursday 15th, 2022 in Washington. The first summit took place in Washington and aimed at removing the irritants in the relationship and seek better ways of fostering better understanding, economic development, democracy, and maintenance of global peace and security. Explained differently, the US Consul General capitalises on promoting people-to-people engagement to sustain the good US-Nigeria ties. The NIIA-Odegbami collaboration is to ensure that West Africa not only hosts the 2034 World Cup but also that the hosting is made a major instrument of national and regional development. The same objective is true of the 2022 US-Africa summit. Let us explicate the diplomacy of the summit and the sports agenda.
US-Africa Summits
The first US-Africa Summit, with the theme, ‘Investing in the Next Generation,’ took place from Monday 4th to Wednesday, 6th August, 2014 in Washington, under the presidency of Barack Obama. The first summit was considered the biggest event any US President has ever held with African Heads of State. Structurally, it was divided into three, based on the stakeholders involved. The first day was reserved for the civil society, the second day was for businessmen and economic entrepreneurs, while the third day was for the summitry.
The issues discussed and events held varied from the African growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the Young African Leaders Summit, trade and investment, to youths and business leaders, US-Africa Business Forum and one day Spousal Programme hosted by First Lady, Michelle Obama and former First Lady, Laura Bush. In essence, how to promote investments in Africa’s future; advance peace and regional stability; how to ensure better governance for the next generation, especially in terms of efficient, effective and transparent governance as instruments of human development; increasing investments in women for peace and prosperity; as well as providing skills and opportunities to the youths; were the major concerns of the summit. These concerns were not in any way different from the concerns of the 2022 summit.
What should be noted about this first US-Africa summit is that a post-mortem analysis of it by the United States Institute of Peace shows that the event was globally covered by the press, with under-reporting of the perspectives of the African participants. Emphasis was generally about the positions of the United States. Probably as a result, the whole summit meant very little for many people in various African countries. As noted by the United States Institute of Peace, even though opinion is mixed on achievements of the summit, most critical views are not positive. For instance, in the case of an evaluator in Chad, ‘it was shocking for the Chadian population to see that a president who stayed in power for 23 years over rigged elections, and who did not hesitate to liquidate, arrest and harass opposition leaders, members of the national assembly, human rights activists and journalists, could be invited by a country known as the most democratic in the world.’
The 2022 US-African Summit, as noted earlier, was held last week in Washington on the invitation of the 46th US President, Mr. Joseph R. Biden Jr. The 2022 US-Africa Summit was more of a desideratum than it was in 2014 for various macroeconomic and unexpected environmental conditionings. In the period from 2007 to 2017, there was a decline by 54% in the United States trade with Africa, while China’s trade with Africa grew by 220%. In terms of influence politics, this was to the advantage of China. Not only did China led the world in 2016 in the creation of new jobs in Africa, the year 2020 witnessed business deals worth $ US 735 billion with 623 Chinese businesses, compared to the United States’ 80 companies with $22 billion. In fact, China has sponsored 46 port projects in Africa while the United States has nothing to its credit.
Besides, records have also shown that, since 2006, China has not only hosted the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation every three years, China, about ten years ago, also installed satellite televisions in 10,000 African villages and loaded them with free Chinese stations broadcasting state-sponsored content (vide Embassy of China documents). Thus, since the United States is currently in stiff competition with China over global leadership, it cannot be in the long interest of the United States to allow expansion of Chinese influence in Africa to the detriment of American interest.
Apart from China as a rival to contend with, there is also Russia which is similarly targeting Africa as a foreign policy focus. Russia held a Russo-African summit during which it pledged nuclear plants and fighter jets to African leaders. This development has led to a sharp division among African leaders about two months ago when a vote was taken at the United Nations General Assembly to sanction Russia reportedly for invading Ukraine in February 2022. Thus, the United States has two powerful challengers to contend with in terms of influence sharing in Africa.
And without any whiff of doubt, Africa is still very rich in strategic mineral resources for which the major powers are struggling. For instance, Congo plays host to more than two-third of the world’s cobalt, which is an important constituent of lithium-ion batteries. In the same vein, Guinea has over one-third of the world’s bauxite which is required in the production of aluminium. The need to ensure access to Africa’s mineral resources, as well as be able to contain the rising of Sino-Russian influence to the detriment of US interests largely explain the new special measures taken to woo Africa in order to dissuade African leaders from going along Russian and Chinese paths.
In this regard, a new vision is adopted: strengthen partnership to meet shared priorities, by particularly not treating Africa as an underdog, but as equal stakeholder. At the level of financial and macroeconomic commitments, the United States pledged an investment of $55 billion over the next three years in collaboration with the US Congress. The United States pledged to commit $782million in global health security program and stronger health systems. Additionally, the United States announced the sum of $2 billion for emergency humanitarian assistance for Africa and $150 million in new funding in support for climate adaptation and resilience’
At the level of maintenance of peace and security, the 21PAS (the 21st Century Partnership for Security) was put in place and $100 million is to be provided by the United States. As for the protection of democracy and good governance, the ADAPT (African Demographic and Political Transition) was similarly introduced to support governments and civil society organisations. $75 million is earmarked for this.
More importantly, at the level of global governance and diplomacy, the United States not only supported Africa’s membership of the G-20 but is already planning to travel to Africa in 2023. As explained by the White House, up to $21 billion is to be lent through the International Monetary Fund for low and middle-income countries for the purposes of African resilience and recovery efforts. And perhaps most significantly, an MoU between the United States and the AfCFTA (African Continental Free Trade Area) Secretariat aimed at expanding engagement, to promote equitable, sustainable and inclusive trade, boost competitiveness and attract investments in Africa was signed. The DTA (Digital Transformation with Africa) was also launched at the US-Africa Business Forum. Over $350 million is to be invested and more than $450 million in financing the DTA.
When compared with the 2014 US-Africa Summit, there is no disputing the fact that the 2022 summit is of greater improvement and impact, especially in terms of quality of the new commitments. The enthusiasm shown at the summit is partly explained by the quick decision of Nigeria and Rwanda to sign the Artemis Agreement which facilitates collaboration and establishes the principles enunciated in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty for safe, sustainable and responsible exploration and use of the Outer Space.
The same happiness is also shown with the PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Reliefs), the President’s Malaria Initiative, and the DFC’s announcement of plans to ‘accelerate regional manufacturing capacity for vaccine tests and therapeutics, including PEPFAR’s plans to procure 15 million HIV tests produced by African manufacturers by 2025 and the shift, at least, 2 million patients on HIV treatments to use African-made products by 2030.’
NIIA’s Sports Diplomacy and Agenda 2034
The intervention of the Honourable Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN, was particularly noteworthy at the 3rd Conversation of the NIIA-Segun Odegbami Sports Diplomacy. The Minister spoke on an ‘integrated West African Transport and Infrastructure: History, Potentials and Feasibility.’ He noted that ‘the investment of the Buhari administration in infrastructure, particularly roads and bridges, are not just national investments, they have international consequences, because they facilitate connectivity between many parts of Nigeria, and beyond.’ These roads and bridges include the Ekok-Mfun Bridge linking Nigeria with Cameroon, which was commissioned on 3rd November, 2022 and PMB’s investments in broadband connectivity, such as the 560km Kano-Maiduguri highway and the 220km Abuja-Makurdi highway.
Secondly, the Minister said ‘human beings need to connect, to interact, to exchange, and to share, and this happens through business, sports, tourism and many more undertakings. It is the global Sea, Air, Land and Water Transportation network that makes this possible.’ More interestingly, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria also said: ‘sports and tourism, especially are about destinations first, before the economic side kicks in, and if you cannot get there, you lose, not only the sporting and tourism, but also the value chain and trickle-down economic benefits, which are almost unquantifiable.’
Thirdly, and perhaps most interestingly, the Honourable Minister pondered on what should be done with the infrastructure after building them. This is where the nexus between and among the three major events of the past one week is important and should be explained and underscored. The ultimate objective of the 2022 US-Africa Summit is to fast-track development in all its ramifications and deepen bilateral ties, particularly in the area of infrastructure.
In the same vein, the objective of the NIIA-Odegbami Sports Diplomacy is to bring the whole world to West Africa with Nigeria serving as the coordinating epicentre of the 2034 World Cup. In this regard, the likelihood of the FIFA granting the request for West Africa to host the 2034 World Cup without having developed infrastructure and assured security environment in place, cannot but be highly remote. Thus, while the diplomacy of the 2034 World Cup is on, especially in terms of diplomatic negotiations, how to fund it, and kick-start intra-regional consultations, can be likened to the aspect of the US Consul General’s dinner diplomacy, because of connectivity and publicity, which the event really was.
Seasoned scholars were there: Professor Eghosa Osaghae, Director General of the NIIA; Professor Enase Okonedo, Vice Chancellor of the Pan-Atlantic University, Lekki; Professor Mike Faborode, former Secretary General of the Committee of Vice Chancellors; Professor K.O. Adebowale, Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan; Professor Chinedum Peace Babalola, Vice Chancellor of Chrisland University; Dr. Chinwe Christy Isitua, Dean of Faculty at the Afe Babalola University; etc. Several accomplished media professionals were also there: Mike Okwoche, broadcast journalist with the TVC; Omolara Omosanya, News Controller at the FRCN; Victor Mathias, correspondent with the Channels Television, Najite Atirene, Foreign Affairs Correspondent with the Lasgidi FM; Emmanuel Essien, Programs Manager of the Cool FM, etc. Equally notable as well are the business gurus: Olamide Ayeni-Babajide, CEO of Pearl Recycling; Kari Tukur, Vice President of MasterCard sub-Saharan Africa;, Ayo Animashaun, CEO of the Smooth Promotions and Hip TV; Olatomiwa Williams, Country Manager of Microsoft, etc. And perhaps most interestingly were the architect of the dinner diplomacy connectivity, Clemson Aiyegbusi; and his other consular functionaries: Temitayo Famutimi, an Information Specialist, and Ibrahim Aliyu all of whom are of the Public Affairs Section (PAS) at the US Consulate General.
In essence, the common message from the three main events of the past one week is to avoid double standard policies and promote interconnectivity in order to make the objective of Agenda 2034, which is to have West Africa, with Nigeria at the epicentre, play host to World Cup 2034. For instance, the US-Africa Summits of 2014 and 2022 were fraught with policies of double standard. It has been observed that autocrats with chequered human rights records were invited but the White House says it wants to keep dialogue with everyone. As put by the US Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs Assistant Secretary of State, Mr. Molly Phee, ‘we think actually engaging and consulting and talking about our different perspectives and seeking to advance US values is an appropriate way to meet challenges that we face in common.’
To a great extent, the US government may not be blamed for not inviting some countries, considering that the African Union had suspended some countries for coup-making – Mali, Sudan, Guinea and Burkina Faso – and therefore does not want to condone unconstitutional change of government by unconstitutional means. Apart from this, the United States does not have diplomatic ties with some countries, such as Somaliland and Eritrea, and therefore need not invite them. However, the United States cannot adopt the stick and carrot diplomacy and still expect to have constructive understanding with African leaders. The United States wants to sanction countries that support Russia against Ukraine and simultaneously talking about equality of shared values. In the journey to 2034 World Cup competitions, Nigeria must not play the holier- than-thou card. Emphasis should be on connectivity and consultations. In this regard, connectivity and the quality of attendance at the US Consul General’s Dinner Diplomacy is not simply to take advantage of the Yuletide Season to further promote the objectives of the 2022 US-Africa Summit in Washington, but also to underscore the need for connectivity in the conduct and management of inter-state relations. Connectivity is required in advancing the main objective of the NIIA-Odegbami Sports Diplomacy. Babatunde Fashola has said: ‘international sports and entertainment is not just by business and jobs for young people, it is the new global power with which to influence and shape not only the global policies but the global economy… A bid to host the World Cup by Nigeria alone or along with other West African nations must be led by Nigeria. The challenges of launching a successful bid are enormous enough but they are nothing compared to the actual hosting.’ If Ambassador Odegbami has been working tooth and nail since 2002 to make Nigeria play host to a World Cup, but to no avail in Nigeria but celebrated in West Africa, 2034 must not evade Nigeria. Odegbami’s sports diplomacy must begin with a well-delineated methodology, predicated on connectivity, Professor Akinwande Bolaji Akinyemi’s logic of Concert of Medium Powers, and regional Citizen Diplomacy.
