In recent years, major reserves of oil have been discovered at various locations across Africa. If this ‘black gold' represents an opportunity for economic growth, the fear that the windfall may not benefit the local populations - and maybe even become a curse - is shared by Sub-Saharan African citizens and experts alike.

In 2009, Modern Ghana’s Nana Adjoa Hackman suggested a possible solution:

It is common practice for oil and gas producing countries to negotiate local content agreements with interested IOCs [International Oil Companies] in an attempt to secure for the country a higher share of the value from oil and gas projects. This trend has surfaced as a result of the realization of the poor economic performance of many resource rich countries despite their vast wealth.

Tullow oil camp, Uganda. Image by Conservation Concepts on Flickr (CC BY 2.0).

Taking the example of Ghana, he explains:

As part of measures being undertaken to put in place the framework for Ghana's oil and gas production, a Bill entitled the Ghana Petroleum Regulatory Authority (GPRA) Bill was released in October 2008. (…) Sections 100 to 105 inclusive of the Bill deal with the promotion of local content, specifically, the involvement of the state oil company, provision of goods and services by local entrepreneurs, as well as the employment and training of citizens of Ghana.

The adoption of the local content policy framework in Ghana followed in 2010, however it is still pending parliamentary endorsement. The latter is now more urgent than ever, as finding employment is a preoccupation for an increasing number of Ghanaian citizens.

Commenting on an article entitled ‘Youth Angry-Over Elusive Jobs In Oil Industry‘, Christiane Badgley writes:

Oil brings in huge amounts of money, of course, and along with that come expectations of many, well-paid jobs. The problem is that the industry – at least as it exists in Ghana now – doesn’t generate much work. (…) We’ll have to wait for details on how the government intends to increase local content and participation, which is easier said than done. Training, education, quotas, regulation, penalties, taxation, incentives – the government has multiple options for addressing the question.

In Uganda, the same move towards the adoption of a local content policy is being made, as explained on the In2EastAfrica website:

Uganda wants a strong local content in the nascent oil and gas industry for its citizens to gain skilled manpower and a competitive supply edge. This is in an attempt to ensure revenues trickles down, averting the resource curse.

Indeed, avoiding the oil curse is important for Uganda, particularly if it helps to prevent the emergence of other Joseph Kony- like characters. Petroleum was, after all, discovered in the north-west, near the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the epicenter of the 30 year long conflict led by the Lord's Resistance Army chief. A local content policy would hopefully create employment for local populations and distract them from the path of war.

In Kenya case, where oil was found earlier this year, Local Development Network of Africa asks on Twitter:

@ledna: How far have discussion on #Ghana “local content” for the oil and gas sector gone? #Kenya (new found oil) could learn from that

Günther Schulze, professor of economics at the University of Freiburg, Germany, adds another perspective on the World Bank blog:

The biggest -but most important- challenge is to build and maintain good institutions. (…) transparency will be the most powerful lever for accountability. If Kenyans know exactly how much oil is being produced, how much royalties oil companies pay this would already be a major step in the right direction. (…) Kenya’s strong civil society and creative industries, especially in ICT, can play a strong role in monitoring the oil revenue flows and proposing solutions on how to spend the money well. Then the resource curse can be turned into a blessing.

This post and its translations to Spanish, Arabic and French were commissioned by International Security Network (ISN) as part of a partnership to seek out citizen voices on international relations and security issues worldwide.

Visit the ISN blog and see more related stories.

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The report states that almost 5% of Africa's agricultural land has been bought or leased by investors since 2000, and emphasizes the fact that this is not a new issue, yet points out that the number of such land deals has increased tremendously in the past five years.

Many observers are increasingly worried that these land deals usually take place in the world's poorest countries and that they impact its most vulnerable population, the farmers. The benefits seldom go to the general population, partially because of a lack of transparency in the proceedings of the transactions.

An additional report by Global Witness, entitled Dealing with Disclosure, emphasizes the dire need for transparency in the making of land deals.

World's poorest nations targeted 

The Global Witness report lists that 754 land deals have been identified, involving the majority of African countries for about 56.2 million hectares.

Target countries of land deals from the Land Matrix Project

The nations targeted are usually some of the poorest in the world. The countries with the most deals in place are Mozambique (92 deals), Ethiopia (83), Tanzania (58) and Madagascar (39). Some of those deals have made headlines because they were conducted to ensure control over food imports, when the targeted regions faced major food crises.

The NGO GRAIN has already explained in detail the gist of their concerns in an extensive report released in 2008:

Today’s food and financial crises have, in tandem, triggered a new global land grab. On the one hand, “food insecure” governments that rely on imports to feed their people are snatching up vast areas of farmland abroad for their own offshore food production. On the other hand, food corporations and private investors, hungry for profits in the midst of the deepening financial crisis, see investment in foreign farmland as an important new source of revenue. As a result, fertile agricultural land is becoming increasingly privatised and concentrated. If left unchecked, this global land grab could spell the end of small-scale farming, and rural livelihoods, in numerous places around the world.

In Malawi, land deals have grown increasingly prevalent to the detriment of the local farmers. A report from Bangula explains the challenges faced by Malawian farmers, Dorothy Dyton and her family:

Like most smallholder farmers in Malawi, they did not have a title deed for the land Dyton was born on, and in 2009 she and about 2,000 other subsistence farmers from the area were informed by their local chief that the land had been sold and they could no longer cultivate there. […] Since that time, said Dyton, “life has been very hard on us.” With a game reserve on one side of the community and the Shire river and Mozambique border on the other, there is no other available land for them to farm and the family now ekes out a living selling firewood they gather from the nearby forest.

Land construction in Madagascar. Photo by Foko Madagascar, used with the author's authorization

Farmers in Madagascar share similar concerns because they do not own the rights to the land they farm and an effective land reform is yet to be implemented. The Malagasy association Terres Malgaches has been at the forefront of land protection for the local population. They report that [fr]:

 Les familles malgaches ne possèdent pas de document foncier pour sécuriser leurs terres contre les accaparements de toutes sortes. En effet, depuis la colonisation, l’obtention de titres fonciers auprès de l’un des 33 services des domaines d’un pays de 589 000 km2 nécessite 24 étapes, 6 ans en moyenne et jusqu’à 500 dollars US. (..) .  Face aux convoitises et accaparements dont les terres malgaches font l’objet actuellement, seule la possession d’un titre ou d’un certificat foncier, seuls documents juridiques reconnus, permet d’entreprendre des actions en justice en cas de conflit.

The association also reports on the practices of a mining company Sheritt, in Ambatovy, which have created a buzz in the local blogosphere because of environmental concerns for the local population and business malpractices (via MiningWatch Canada):

Sherritt International’s Ambatovy project in eastern Madagascar – costing $5.5 billion to build and scheduled to begin full production this month – will comprise a number of open pit mines (..) it will close in 29 years. There are already many concerns about the mine from the thousands of local people near the facilities. They say that their fields are destroyed ; the water is dirty ; the fish in the river are dead and there have been landslides near their village. During testing of the new plant, there have been at least four separate leaks of sulphur dioxide from the hydro-metallurgical facility which villagers say have killed at least two adults and two babies and sickened at least 50 more people. In January, laid-off construction workers from Ambatovy began a wildcat strike, arguing that the jobs they were promised when construction ended have not materialized. The people in nearby cities like Moramanga say that their daughters are increasingly engaged in prostitution.

Video of a worker's testimony in Ambatovy.

Solutions for the local population? 

The plight of Madagascar's farmers' plight may be slowly changing though. Land reform discussions are in progress, according to this report:

 According to a paper presented at the 2011 International Conference on Global Land Grabbing, about 50 agribusiness projects were announced between 2005 and 2010, about 30 of which are still active, covering a total land area of about 150,000 ha. Projects include plantations to produce sugar cane, cassava and jatropha-based biofuel.
To prevent the negative impacts of land grabbing, (The NGO) EFA has set up social models for investors, with funding from the UN Development Programme (UNDP). The goal is to help investors negotiate with the people in the area where they want to implement projects, as a way to prevent future problems.

Joachim Von Braun, formerly  of the International Food Policy Insitute (IFPRI), wrote the following regarding land deals:

 It is in the long-run interest of investors, host governments, and the local people involved to ensure that these arrangements are properly negotiated, practices are sustainable, and benefits are shared. Because of the transnational nature of such arrangements, no single institutional mechanism will ensure this outcome. Rather, a combination of international law, government policies, and the involvement of civil society, the media, and local communities is needed to minimize the threats and realize the benefits.

The need for transparency in land deals is further emphasized by  Megan MacInnes, Senior Land Campaigner at Global Witness:

Far too many people are being kept in the dark about massive land deals that could destroy their homes and livelihoods. That this needs to change is well understood, but how to change it is not. For the first time, this report (Dealing with Disclosure)  sets out in detail what tools governments, companies and citizens can harness to remove the shroud of secrecy that surrounds land acquisition. It takes lessons from efforts to improve transparency in other sectors and looks at what is likely to work for land. Companies should have to prove they are doing no harm, rather than communities with little information or power having to prove that a land deal is negatively affecting them.

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One day after the March 4, 2012, blasts in the ammunition depot in Mpila, near Brazzaville, the time has come to assess the number of victims. Recent assessments vary from 150 to 200 deaths and 1,500 injured as a result of the blasts. The daze and confusion from the explosions have now given way to anger and a sense of solidarity.

On Digital Congo, a review of the press coverage of the blasts quotes the daily newspaper Le Phare, which offers a detailed account of the disaster [fr]:

D’après les responsables congolais, les explosions ont été provoquées par un incendie dans le dépôt de munitions de la caserne du régiment blindé du quartier Mpila situé au bord du fleuve Congo. Des habitants sont encore prisonniers dans leurs maisons. Ils disent que tout le quartier Mpila a été détruit, a précisé Betu Bangana [Chef du protocole de la présidence congolaise]. Il y aurait plusieurs centaines de blessés

A video posted on Youtube by Lebeization depicts the great impact of one of the explosions:

The following photo, shared on Congo Futur Espoir's album on Facebook shows the type of ammunition that was stored in Mpila:

A photo of the alleged type of munitions stored in Mpila depot - From Congo Espoir Futur 's Facebook page (posted with the owner's authorization)

The fact that such weaponry was kept in the center of the city has been the cause of the population’s anger.

Ghislain Nardello asks in the Facebook comments [fr]:

Pourquoi l'armement de notre force armée peut etre gardée au coeur de la Capitale (Brazaville)? Car ceci allait etre utilisé que pour la defense de notre nation contre les autres, mais aujourdh'hui cela a servi a la bataille contre nos propre frères et soeurs congolais, et aussi à la destruction des biens de l'État et des civils. Le gouvernement doit prendre en charge les morts et blessés et dédommager les familles et recontruire leurs biens.

Chancel Moussavou continues [fr]:

voila ce qui arrive quand on ne ne pense qu'aux armes! Tout cet argent dépensé pour l'achat de ces armes aurait servit a la construction d une ecole, d'un hosto ou bien d'une quelquonque entreprise! Comment les gens pouront ils se sentir en securité apres ce genre d accident! Franchement c'est pathétique!

Hospitals are currently overwhelmed as shown in this video taken from the Congolese National Television and shared by Patrick Eric Mampouya:

Congolese are starting to organize rescue and relief missions for the affected families and friends. The Paris-based NGO Synergies and Development of Africa has launched a call [fr] to the diaspora:

dans l’urgence, nous voulons renforcer les équipes sur le terrain ; apporter du matériel d’urgence médicale ou de première nécessité. Cela va des petits accessoires, des trousses de secours, des pansements, antiseptiques, petite chirurgie, compresses, médicaments, …

Congolese citizens are also mobilizing aid efforts through Facebook pages dedicated to Brazzaville.

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The Defense Minister made the following declaration on national television [li and fr]:

C'est juste un incident provoqué par l'incendie du dépôt de nos munitions. C'est pourquoi il y a eu des détonations. Certaines maisons ont été touchées par des éclats, leurs tôles envolées et des vitres brisées. C'est l'incendie du régiment blindé, lieu où nous conservons nos munitions, qui est à la base de tous ces dégâts. Pendant que je vous parle ici, nos experts se sont déployés sur le terrain pour éteindre le feu. Nous prendrons des mesures pour que les incidents de ce genre ne surviennent plus dans l'avenir. Nous présentons nos excuses aux hommes et aux femmes, à tous les frères et soeurs, pour ce trouble à la paix : des gens étaient paniqués, allant de gauche à droite. Nous vous prions de regagner vos domiciles car l'incident est maîtrisé. Nous vous rassurons qu'il ne s'agit pas d'une mutinerie, encore moins d'un coup d'Etat. Il s'agit juste d'un malheureux incident que nous regrettons. Nous avons appris aussi qu'il y a des blessés - ils ne sont pas nombreux - dus à ces éclats. Nous le regrettons.

The exact number of casualties is unclear at the moment, but according to several sources, hundreds might have lost their lives, and thousands wounded. The government first mentioned four casualties, and dozens wounded, an underestimated toll, according to Fortuné Ndombé, a Congolese journalist based in Brazzaville. The author contacted Ndombé by phone and he explained the situation at the time [fr]:

Je suis actuellement au CHU de Brazzaville. C'est une catastrophe on n'a jamais vu ça. Il y a encore des feux, beaucoup de maisons sont effondrées, c'est un vrai désastre. on n'arrive pas à expliquer ce qui s'est passé. (…) La situation pas encore maitrisée. Le gouvernment laissait croire qu'il n y a pas de morts, mais il ya plusieurs morts. Les hopitaux submergés. Je déplore que presque toutes les pharmacies soient fermées. Il faudrait les réquisitionner pour que les malades recoivent des médicaments. C'est peut-être demain que nous en saurons un peu plus. Si quelqu'un vous dit que la situation est maitrisée, ce sont des mensonges.

This assessment of the situation is shared by Twitter user @BaaRbieCaRteR, who writes:

@BaaRbieCaRteR:  4 morts 24 blessés !! Vous vous foutez de la gueule de qui ????! Ya plus de 300 morts ! On se croirait en Irak

She also posted the following photo, allegedly taken just after the second blast:

The second explosion in Brazzaville by BaaRbieCaRteR on Twitter

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In the past 10 months social movements have sprung around the world at an impressive pace. It all started with an act of despair in the town of Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia, and has now spread across 87 countries and 951 cities around the world according to the organizers of the United for #GlobalChange (October 15) Movement.

Demonstrating outside institutions is one way of expressing a desire for change in a society.  However, other forms of activism have existed for a while now and are now rekindled all around the world as a show of protest against the status-quo. Poetry slam is a well-known channel of expression for many activists in North America but the rest of the world has now embraced this unique blend of poetry and rhythmic oral story telling.

Many have found it difficult at times to relate to a form of expression that is often wrongly perceived as limited to the urban youth of North America. Poetry slam is however now firmly entrenched in the culture of many countries, especially in Africa because it incorporates the African tradition of oral story telling. Here are a few examples of poetry slam across the African continent and the context in which they were expressed.

The Arab revolution

King Bobo on UniversalSlam wrote a tribute to the youth of Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and Libya entitled ‘Liberté chérie j’écris ton nom‘ ( Beloved freedom, I write thy name) [fr]:

Liberté chérie j’écris ton nom
Ecoutez ce vent de liberté qui souffle dans toutes les langues
La jeunesse tunisienne s’exprime sur les murs
Avec des slogans tracés à la peinture
Liberté, liberté, liberté
La jeunesse égyptienne grave sur les sépultures
Des hiéroglyphes modernes inscrits pour le futur
La jeunesse syrienne ne voit que des balles perdues
Qui ricochent un peu partout et qui tracent sur les murs
Les poètes libyens de Benghazi murmurent
Des poèmes satiriques comme des caricatures

Algeria

Fodil Belhadj, an Algerian author, poet and blogger on Regards Africains (African eyes) [fr], slams about the promise of Algeria's independence [fr] and makes an analogy with his own story and his exile from his homeland [fr]

Fodil Belhadj also posts on his blog an open letter to the Algerian army [fr] :

.. Cela s’appelle l’autodétermination Chère Armée Algérienne. L’aurais-tu par je ne sais quel crime oublié ? Ah oui j’avais oublié que les Algériens s’étaient « trompés » en mandatant 188 députés du Front islamique du salut. Oui c’est vrai z’avaient qu’à pas voter pour de méchants islamistes, alors que toi tu es tellement, tellement sympathique. Chère Armée Algérienne. C’est tout ce que tu as trouvé comme argument spécieux, s’il en est, pour écraser ton propre peuple et rassurer « ta » communauté internationale…!
Sache donc grande muette puisque tu feins de ne point le comprendre, et à défaut de l’admettre, que démocratie signifie : Se soumettre au verdict des urnes.

Republic of Congo

Abd al Malik is a well-known singer and poet who grew up in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo. Socially and politically engaged, most notably on the perception of Islam in France, he created with other artists the group ‘New African Poets' (NAP) [fr]. In his poem, ‘Soldat de plomb' (Toy soldier), Malik describes the struggle of a disaffected youth trying to fit in:

Soldat de plomb, soldat de plomb
Bien sûr qu'un sourire nous aurait fait plaisir,
Juste un peu d'attention et peut-être ça aurait été autrement.
Nous aurions été des enfants normaux et pas des enfants soldats,

Morocco

In Morocco, the independent news portal Mamfakinch described how the February 20 movement voiced their desire for change a few months ago in a different manner [fr]:

Nous sommes jeunes, nous sommes capables d’innovation ! Pour ne pas tomber dans la banalisation de nos formes de protestation, et au vu de l’essoufflement que peuvent ressentir nos concitoyens et principalement les jeunes par les sit-in répétitifs, la coordination de Rabat des jeunes du 20 févier a décidé de diversifier ses formes des contestations.
C’est dans cet esprit nous avons choisi, après un long débat, de faire un Flash-mob: Plus précisément, un Freeze ( on explique plus bas le principe) et un petit concert de musique et poèmes contestataires.

Here is a video of part of the protest:

Madagascar

Some may argue that the original seeds of peotry slam were sowed in Madagascar. Malagasy culture has always incorporated Hainteny (Malagasy for “knowledge of words”), a traditional form of Malagasy oral literature and poetry involving heavy use of metaphor.

Kabary is the the spoken public discourse of the Hainteny and the earlier form of Kabary dates back to the 18th century. Kabary are often used during social gathering such as engagement parties or wedding where the speaker for each family would engage in verbal jousting. Usually declined by men, here is a rare instance of a Kabary spoken by Malagasy women [mg]:

Mauritius

Poetry slam has also taken a foothold on the island of Mauritius. Stefan Hart de Keating also known as StefH2K is one of the pioneer of poetry slam in the Indian Ocean. StefH2K explains that the presence during the slam is just as important as the quality of the text.

Fictif discusses the identity crisis that the Asian minority can sometimes feel in Mauritius [fr, kr]:

LE Sino-Mauricien

Aujourd’hui
Je veux slamer
Pour tous ceux
Qui comme moi en ont marre
D’être mis à l’écart
Car je ne suis pas qu’un petit Chinois
Mais un Mauricien
Comme toi… comme toi… comme toi
Oublie mon accent chinois
Ma langue maternelle, c’est le créole
Ki to ti kroir toi ? Mo pa konn koz kréol ?
Même si je regarde Jackie Chan à la télé
Ou pratique le kung-fu
Fou, hein ?
Ma danse préférée reste le séga

There are many causes for which people protests in the streets or engage in political discourse. What has come to fruition is that the manner in which we do so tend to feed into one another more rapidly. Similarily, poetry slam has moved beyond borders to reach as a unique channel for self-expression and social activism. In fact, the rise of social media probably played a role in the quicker dissemination of poetry slam as a universal voice for the oppressed.

This post is part of our special coverage Languages and the Internet.

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Robert Bourgi, a shady lawyer and advisor for “African affairs” has confessed [fr] to French media he acted for years as a go-between for French politicians and Francophone Africa heads of states, delivering approximatively $20 million in cash to former President Chirac, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Dominique de Villepin, and extreme-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen, to finance past election campaigns.

Screen shot of Lawyer R. Bourgi on BFM TV

“Not exactly breaking news”

Despite the storm of denials and libel suits, Mwona Mboka in Congo echoed a widely shared feeling [fr], in France and in Africa:

Ce n’est pas un scoop, tout le monde le sait. Il a tout simplement oublié de nous révéler le montant des commissions qu’il prenait au passage.

Françafrique, a generic name for French neocolonialism and the plundering of  natural resources in its former colonies, has been investigated  for years, though books, articles and documentaries (video). However, this is the first time that a key player of  the “Françafrique” network, on a first-name basis with African presidents, have revealed insider information.

His confession reads like a mafia-film script: wads of cash stuffed in suitcases or even in African drums delivered to the Elysee Palace, codenames such as “Mamadou” for Minister De villepin, and “Daddy” for late Gabonese President Omar Bongo.

The cast of alleged funders, all African presidents, include: the late Omar Bongo in Gabon, Blaise Compaoré in Burkina Faso, Laurent Gbagbo in Cote d'Ivoire, President Wade and his son Karim in Senegal, Denis Sassou Nguesso in the Republic of Congo, and even President of Equatorial Guinea, a former Spanish colony, Teodoro Obiang.

A close aide of ex President Gbagbo [fr] in Côte d'Ivoire has confirmed Bourgi's allegations.

'50 years of Françafrique is enough!' - Demonstration poster (2010) from website Survie.org

Reactions from African blogospheres

Thousand of comments and reactions have flooded African blogospheres. In the Republic of Congo, an oil-rich country riled with poverty, 216 Congolese expressed on Mwinda.com [fr] the anger, humiliation and exasperation shared by netizen accross Francophone Africa.

René Mavoungou Pambou [fr]:

Voilà qu’on nous flanque en plein visage les méfaits ou crimes dont est capable la prétendue douce France, berceau des droits de l’homme.

Mouk writes [fr]:

tant que la France sera en Afrique, il n y aura ni paix ni développement. la classe politique française étant l'une des plus prostituées au monde, la démocratie et les libertés pour les africains ne la concernent pas.

Ata Ndele, on the same comment thread, is thinking ahead [fr]:

Les spécialistes africains du droit peuvent-ils nous dire si nous pouvons , nous aussi, porter plainte en tant que partie civile ?

A number of commentators, like Yacobi, turn their anger toward their leaders [fr]:

Vous hommes politiques africains, commencez à mieux traiter vos peuples, les blancs vont vous regarder différemment.

Mame Diop, on his Facebook page [fr], links the money sent to France and the widespread underdevelopment:

Combien de mères vont encore mourir ce soir en donnant la vie, faute de dispensaire, d'ambulances, de routes praticables, de médecins! Combien? […] Débarrassons nous de cette bande de macaques!!!

'When will we quit?' - Anti-Françafrique poster

In Senegal, Seneweb [fr] site is bursting with reactions to the alleged implication of President Wade and his son, as the 2012 presidential election looms:

Lune: Je crois que laisser une minute de plus Abdoulaye Wade et sa maudite famille à la tete de notre pays releverait de la lacheté

Mooo [fr]:

je pense que le temps est venu de limiter nos relations avec ces puissances occidentales voyous qui nous ont maintenu dans la pauvreté,les guerres civiles,les dictatures pendant des siècles.Le moment est venu pour l'Afrique de s'ouvrir aux autres puissances et pays émergents tels:La Chine,Le Japon,le Brésil et certains pays arabes.Nos relations d'avec les puissances occidentales pendant des siècles ne nous valu que tristesse et misère.

Senegalese Ahmadou Fall thinks it is already the case [fr] on Afrique en ligne:

Le choix des dirigeants (chefs d'États) n'est plus une prérogative de la France au gré de ses intérêts et de sa stratégie géopolitique.La France qui reçoit ces valises de la honte, remplies de billets destinés au financement occulte de partis politiques est cette même France qui perd sa place dans cette Afrique qui s'oriente vers d'autres partenaires…Le Rwanda de Paul Kagame l'illustre assez bien avec la destitution du français comme langue officielle, au profit de l'anglais. La percée des pays asiatiques en lieu et place des anciennes puissances coloniales montre qu'il faut plus que jamais changer d'attitude et de stratégie…

Adopt a French presidential candidate!

In Burkina Faso, a country troubled by violent mutinies in the army, Leyla M. Diallo launches a tongue-in-cheeck appeal to her president, on opposition Facebook group Blaise Campaoré doit partir (Blaise Campaoré must go) [fr]:

Toi qui es assuré de gagner ton élection à 80% des suffrages exprimés, partage un peu de ta béatitude avec un candidat perclus de sous-financement aigu sévère. Toi, dont les dépenses courantes sont moins contrôlées que dans les pays du Nord: parraine un présidentiable français!”

Faso.net has republished a column from Le Pays, urging civil society to come forward [fr]:

les Africains doivent comprendre qu’ils sont les vrais perdants dans cette histoire. Il est temps qu’ils fassent preuve de maturité et prennent à bras-le-corps leurs responsabilités. L’obligation de rendre compte, inhérente à toute gouvernance démocratique, doit cesser d’être un simple discours. La balle est, pour cet aggiornamento, dans le camp de la société civile africaine. Elle doit sortir de sa torpeur et prendre le relais, pour demander des explications à tous les gouvernants

In France, where a judge has scheduled a preliminary hearing of Robert Bourgi, Survie.org, the pioneer organisation who filed a lawsuit against African leaders and their “ill gotten gains” in France, urges French voters to demand a thorough parliamentary investigation, on the eve of their own presidential election:

un tel audit devra poser toutes les questions qui fâchent, qu’il s’agisse du soutien aux dictateurs africains et aux contreparties obtenues, du financement occulte de la vie politique française, du rôle de l’armée française et de ses multiples ingérences, des multinationales, du franc CFA, etc.Au-delà des mallettes et des millions d’euros évoqués dans cette affaire, il est utile de rappeler que l’Afrique est victime d’une prédation économique et financière particulièrement sophistiquée

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Written by Abdoulaye Bah · Translated by Thalia Rahme · View original post [fr] · comments (1)
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On at least two previous occasions in Nigeria and Zimbabwe, consumers have falsely been led to believe that new inexpensive computers were developed in Africa, when they instead turned out to be rebranded Chinese imports.

Could this be the case for the VMK Tablet?

According to the company, it will be available for purchase in September at the retail price of 200,000 Francs CFA (roughly US$400 or EUR300).

Congolese Minister of Post and Telecommunications, Thierry Moungalla (left) with CEO of VMK, Verone Mankou. Image from the Minister

Taking a closer look

VMK is originally a web agency. Its CEO, Verone Mankou is 25 and works as an IT assistant at the Ministry of Post, Telecommunications and ICT.

The plan is for the VMK tablet to debut during the Africa Web Summit in the capital Brazzaville, which is hosted by the Ministry as part of their effort to see Congo become a Central African digital hub.

I interviewed Mankou on Skype text chat and he told me that the research and development department of VMK is only a “tiny department”. Considering how much weight other technology companies put on “R&D” I was surprised that VMK managed with much less. It was likewise surprising to discover another interview with Mankou on Cameroonian website Ingenieris [fr] where he apparently describes the development of the tablet as a major expense:

Ingenieris: VMK Congo est-elle rentable?

VMK: (Rires). Elle aurait pu être rentable si je n’avais pas eu l’idée de lancer une tablette. C’est une idée très couteuse en effet. Elle avoisine à elle seule près 80% de notre budget, vous imaginez les concessions que nous faisons tout le temps pour financer ce projet. Je profite de cette occasion pour féliciter toute l’équipe de VMK qui comprends les enjeux et accepte de travailler dans ces conditions.

Designed and engineered in Congo or China?

In my chat with Verone Mankou on Skype, he told me that he himself designed the hardware. Mankou said:

Je me suis occupé tout seul de la conception de la tablette. Pour la conception de l'appstore-like de la tablette j'ai delegué ce travail à un ami qui est au Canada… idem pour la conception de l'interface qui a été confiée à un partenaire en Asie.

On the following picture taken from VMK's blog on the tablet, it says the tablet is “Designed and Engineered in Congo by VMK”. On the picture below, posted on May 24, 2011 on the same blog, the story has changed, and the words on the tablet say: “Designed in Congo. Assembled in China.”

"Designed and Engineered in Congo by VMK"

"Designed in Congo. Assembled in China"

These are just prototype photos, but do they suggest a fluid understanding of the difference between drawing, designing and engineering technology hardware? In my interview, I asked Mankou about the disparity on the photos, and he explained this was a result of the product prototype evolving over time:

Au cours de la conception j'ai decidé de migrer vers une nouvelle mouture plus aboutie et plus ergonomique.

Assembled or Made in China?

So the tablet is assembled in China. VMK have even posted photos from a visit to the factory on their blog. The name of the factory has been blurred, but one license plate confirms that it is located in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province which is a huge economic center and the headquarter of many tech companies. It is also the heart of China's “shanzai” electronic pirating trade.

Picture of the Chinese factory where the VMK Tablet was assembled in Shenzhen

It's no secret that the tablet is assembled in China, but it's worth considering how easy it is to get similar electronics produced and branded in Shenzen. The VMK tablet has a 7-inch screen, a 1.2 GHz processor, and uses the Android Operating System. Online electronic retailer and wholesaler, McBub.com (based in Shenzen) advertises a tablet with very similar specifications and similar design. If you order in bulk you can get them branded with your own company's logo for only a little extra.

Tablet advertised on McBub.com

The basic retail price is about half that of VMK's tablet.

I asked Verone Mankou why someone would spend more money to buy the VMK tablet, when they could have a similar product for a lower price, and he explained the difference in price is mainly due to to VMK's planned “after-sales services” and local presence in Congo.

VMK has only released photos showing the rear of the tablet, because they say they are “still in the process of securing various trademarks” and don't want to “encourage copycats“. On the prototype photos, VMK's logo occasionally appears with the “V” reversed.

Past “Made in Africa” disappointments

On Skype, I also interviewed Patrick-Eric Mampouya, a Congolese journalist and blogger [fr] who said he is skeptical about the VMK tablet being made in Africa, and specifically in the Republic of Congo:

On peut mettre de belles images sur un blog sans qu'il y ait une quelconque réalité. On ne peut pas apprécier ce genre de technologie sur les images. (…) Je peux prendre n'importe quel tablette et changer le logo.

We can only hope it will not be a repeat of the Nigerian Encipher, or the Zimbabwean Nhava laptop.

In November 2010, a Zimbwabean company announced that it would sell a locally manufactured, assembled and produced laptop at the price of 200 dollars. Many Zimbabweans purchased the device to support a local initiative and the economy. Disappointment was great when it transpired in February 2011 that the Nhava laptop was “imported from China, and only rebranded Nhava“.

In one Zimbabwean online forum, a comment celebrating the new VMK tablet (“Hooray! Congo makes a tablet computer!!!”) is met by a skeptical comment by another forum member.

Acerbically, Vakuru Chaivo writes:

Do you remember the “Nhava” guys who used to lie that they “manufacture” laptops in Zimbabwe? All they did was trawl the backyards of China picking up laptops discarded by experimenting Chinese high school students and then stick their Nhava logo and then ……voila..we had our first “indigenous laptop manufacturers”. I hope its not the same issue with the VMK tablet.

Written by Julie Owono · comments (11)
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Written by Abdoulaye Bah · Translated by Claire Ulrich · View original post [fr] · comments (0)
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Written by Lova Rakotomalala · comments (0)
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The month of January set the tone for the rest of the year with the traumatic fallout from the earthquake in Haiti, the  attacks against the Togolese football team at the African Cup of nations in Cabinda and the firing of tear gas against protesters in Madagascar.  The end of the year did not provide much respite from violence as the ongoing political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire has already claimed close to 173 lives and social tension sparks riots in Tunisia.

The year 2010 was also marked by the 50th anniversary of the independence of  many African countries, highlighted by a controversial military parade at the Champs-Elysees in Paris and the hosting of Young African Leaders Symposium by US president Obama.  Throughout the year, citizen media in Francophone countries was once more at the forefront of information dissemination and often found itself under duress for exercising their right to free speech.

An Ominous Start

The earthquake took everyone by surprise but despite the frequent interruptions of phone services and generally poor access to internet, Haitian citizen media responded to the challenges and provided frequent updates and a much needed on the ground perspectives regarding the recovery effort.

In the midst of the tragedy, a francophone “show of solidarity” was discussed at length when Senegal's president Wade offered free land to Haitians earthquake survivors. The offer was met with a mix of skepticism and support by Senegalese, Haitian and citizen media worldwide.

On February 18th, a coup took place in Niger in which President Mamadou Tandja was captured after a gun battle in the capital, Niamey, led by led by Col. Abdoulaye Adamou Harouna.  The general sentiment of the Nigerien citizen media seemed to go from “blasé” to “good riddance”.

The financial crisis also affected the African continent; African bloggers reacted to the apparent differential treatment from the IMF when it comes to helping countries like Greece compared to some African nations.

From financial to natural crises, The northern and western African regions were plagued by prolonged period of rains and severe floods. Morocco, Mauritania, Benin, Nigeria and Togo were amongst the most affected by floods with initial reports often provided by citizen media.

The security and stability of the west African region was also on the mind of bloggers when AQIM made headlines repeatedly by taking hostages  in Mali and killing Michel Germaneau in July and again capturing several employees of AREVA hostages in Niger later that year.

AQIM Area via Orthuberra on Wikimedia - Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0

Celebrating Independence in Francophone Africa

Despite the weary start, the year 2010 was also supposed to be a celebration of 50 years of independence and a critical election year for many African nations. Yet given the delayed human development progress, questionable governance and mismanagement of natural resources, many African bloggers wonder whether there is really a cause for celebration in Africa so far.

Yet the celebrations went on, sometimes quite lavishly as seen in Brazzaville, Congo.

None of these celebrations caused quite the stir that the military parade of African soldiers on Bastille Day at the invitation of French president Sarkozy provoked. With the growing exposure of the corrupt nature of “La Françafrique“,  refering to the relationship between some African leaders and French lobbying groups, many observers pointed out that the presence of African armies at the Champ-Elysees was condescending and awkward at best, not unlike Sarkozy's Dakar speech. [Another speech by the French president in Grenoble this summer about delinquents of foreign origins and the forced expulsions  of Roma people also provoked intense reactions in the francophone blogosphere.]

A  different approach was taken by the US administration in marking the multiple independence anniversaries in Africa. In early august 2010,  US President Obama held a three-days symposium for Young African Leaders to exchange ideas on how to foster development, human rights and democracy.  The emphasis on the youth of Africa was in clear contrast with the presence of the old guards of African leaders showcased on Bastille Day.

Hoping for Transparency

Year 2010 was also supposed to be the year when some African nations would make important strides towards free and transparent elections.

That hope quickly faded away.

The electoral process in Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Madagascar and Rwanda were all at some point subject to major question marks, marred with missed deadlines, suspicions of massive fraud and acts of violence.

Yet one has the feeling that citizens in those countries are eager to move forward and prove that mediocre leadership cannot hold countries back forever. The rise of a burgeoning civil society and local citizen media provide hope that progress are being made, often in spite of proper governance.

Théophile Kouamouo and Saint-Clavier Oula

The impact of online citizen media has become evident enough that authoritarian African governments have taken major steps towards increasing censorship of digital media. Ivorian bloggers and journalists were arrested in July for publishing documents on corruption in cocoa and coffee trade.  Since the Ivorian political crisis broke out in December, many bloggers and twitter users have withdrawn from their online activities and are no longer posting updates on the situation because of personal threats.

In Madagascar, a slew of journalists and political opponents were arrested for alleged threats against national security and voicing their dissents online.  Steps towards more control of online  content in Madagascar are also being taken,  highlighted by a proposal that all Malagasy digital content are to be be managed by a single private provider (fr).

It is yet to be seen whether this year's lessons from some African nations' electoral hardships  will be learned by their neighbors. Senegal and Cameroon among others will face important electoral deadlines  in 2011. Cameroonian bloggers do not appear overly optimistic about the upcoming elections. As for Senegal, local citizen media has already been quite vocal  about  perceived nepotism and corruption inside the current administration.

It would be a refreshing sight in 2011  if the streak of dubious electoral results and post-electoral violence were to be halted for a change. African leaders owe that much to their resilient population.

Written by Lova Rakotomalala · comments (1)
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It all begin in March 2007, when the Catholic Committee against Hunger and for Economic Development (CCFD) - Terre Solidaire  published a report on the  embezzlement of public funds by politicians of the South [fr].  It's title?  “Ill-gotten gains…too often bring profit: Dictators' fortune and Western complacency.”

Focusing on domestic goods of the countries victimized by their leaders, the study by the CCFD - Terre solidaire [fr] revealed abuses at the national level:

« Par exemple, Mobutu a transformé Gbadolite, son village natal au Zaïre, en un « Versailles de la jungle », avec une cinquantaine d’hôtels, un aéroport international qui pouvait accueillir le Concorde et plus de trois palais. Quant à Denis Sassou Nguesso, président en exercice au Congo Brazzaville, il détiendrait, avec sa famille, la moitié de l’économie du pays»

A police investigation confirmed most of the allegations and uncovered the existence of many other goods [fr] in the form of both real estate and personal property (including cars and the dictators' bank accounts).

Sassou Nguesso's house. Source: témoignages.re

The report alleged that the clan of Omar Bongo Odimba (OBO) of Gabon had appropriated 39 real estate properties, of which 17 of there were in the name of their leader.  Most of the properties were located in the 16th arrondissement of Paris.  It also identified 70 bank accounts, 11 of them in OBO's name; and an automobile fleet of at least 9 vehicles whose total value is estimated at 1,493,443 euros.

survie.org reveals [fr] that, in addition to OBO's ill-gotten gains in France,

« En 1999, le Sénat américain a publié un rapport d’enquête sur l’origine de la fortune du président (gabonais). Ce document établit qu’Omar Bongo est devenu client de la Citibank de New York en 1970 et qu’il a ouvert de multiples comptes auprès de ses différents bureaux, à Bahreïn, à Jersey, à Londres, au Luxembourg, à New York, à Paris et en Suisse. …. Au total, le montant des avoirs du chef d’Etat, qui ont été placés sur ses différents comptes bancaires à la Citibank, à New York, de 1985 à 1997, serait d’environ 130 millions de dollars. La City Bank aurait expliqué « que l’argent provenait d’une allocation budgétaire, 8,5 % du budget gabonais - soit 111 millions de dollars - étant chaque année réservés au président ».

The report goes further.  survie.org adds [fr] that:

« C’est dans son hôtel particulier qu’il a ainsi accueilli pendant la campagne présidentielle française les candidats Nicolas Sarkozy et François Bayrou ainsi que la moitié du gouvernement Fillon lors de sa première visite officielle sous la présidence de N. Sarkozy. »

Another site, asso-sherpa.org revealed [fr] more proof of the abuses of the OBO clan:

“Edith Bongo, alors épouse du Président gabonais, aurait ainsi fait l’acquisition d’une Daimler Chrysler au moyen d’un chèque tiré sur un compte ouvert auprès de la Banque de France par le Trésor Public Gabonais.

Copy of the check for Chrysler purchase. Source: Asso-sherpa.org

Police services have also exposed the role played by various intermediaires (bankers, lawyers) in carrying out these various operations.

According to the report [fr] by CCFD-Terre solidaire, the fortune of Congolese President Denis Sassou NGesso and his entourage allegedly consists  of 18 properties; 112 bank accounts; and a fleet of automobiles, including  at least une vehicle worth 172,321 euros.

Nor is that everything.  The Congolese President and his clan's embezzlements

«  auraient commencé dès sa première période au pouvoir, de 1979 à 1992, en négociant la vente du pétrole en dessous du prix du marché en contrepartie de versements à son profit. A ce jour, la fortune de Denis Sassou Nguesso est estimée à plus d’un milliard de dollars. »

As for President Teodoro Obiang, who had closer relations with the United States than with France, the article titled “Biens mail acquis à qui profite le crime?” [”Gains ill-gotten: who profits from this crime?”] by Antoine Dulin and Jean Merckaert and found at ccfd-terresolidaire.org explains the extent of their illegal self-enrichment:

80% du revenu national serait monopolisé par l’oligarchie alors que 65% de la population vit toujours dans l’extrême pauvreté. ….. En 2003, ces comptes représentaient la relation la plus importante de la Rigg’s Bank, avec des versements totaux allant de 400 millions à 700 millions de dollars en une fois ! »

Furthermore, after the November 2009 elections in Equatorial Guinea, President Obiang formed a new government of 69 members, ousting practically all of the preceding ministers.  According to the site [fr] Africatime.com:

« En effet, dans le Gouvernement, il y a trois fils du Général, un frère, trois neveux, deux beaux-frères et trois cousins. »

In Cameroon, the authors of the CCFD-Terre solidaire investigation write that:

À peine devenu chef d’État (en novembre 1982), Paul Biya faisait parler de lui à propos de son patrimoine. Le 16 mars 1983, Le Canard enchaîné dévoilait deux acquisitions présidentielles en France : l’une avenue Foch à Paris, l’autre sur la Côte d’Azur, à Cagnes-sur-Mer. …. En mai 1997, L’Événement du jeudi estime que la fortune du président camerounais et de sa famille approche les 70 millions d’euros, dont des châteaux en France et en Allemagne, à Baden-Baden.

Despite all the evidence assembled by these investigations, it took until November 9, 2010 for the Supreme Court of Appeals to reach its decision.

In these times of troubling governance in Africa, the Ill-Gotten Gains affair can only reinforce the perception that government leaders are enriching themselves while their people live in misery.

Written by Abdoulaye Bah · Translated by Lynn Palermo · View original post [fr] · comments (7)
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Written by Lova Rakotomalala · comments (0)
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