Behind all the inspirational words and “Yes we can” sound bites of Barack Obama's first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa, questions are lingering about two key issues that formed a tacit subtext to his visit: oil and military bases.
Mr. Obama's visit on the weekend to Ghana, so early in his presidential term, is the latest sign of Africa's mounting strategic importance to Washington. The continent is a growing source of U.S. oil supplies and a crucial battleground for the U.S. fight against Islamic radicals, who are increasingly powerful in Somalia and North Africa.
Ghana itself is an emerging source of oil and a possible site for “forward operating bases” in the U.S. anti-terrorism campaign. But both subjects have sparked so much controversy and resistance from Africans that Mr. Obama was careful to use diplomatic language when he talked of oil and guns.
In a little-noticed paragraph of his major Africa policy speech in Accra on Saturday, the President offered “technical assistance and logistical support” to help Africa fight against terrorists and war criminals. He made it clear that his new administration would continue to expand the Pentagon's controversial Africa Command – an initiative by his predecessor, George W. Bush, to bolster U.S. military activity in Africa.
“When there is genocide in Darfur or terrorists in Somalia, these are not simply African problems – they are global security challenges, and they demand a global response,” Mr. Obama told a special gathering of Ghana's parliament.
Promising to “strengthen African capacity” to deal with security threats, Mr. Obama defended the growing role of the U.S. Africom military command, despite widespread suspicions that it is aimed at boosting American power on the continent. “Let me be clear: Our Africa Command is focused not on establishing a foothold on the continent, but on confronting these common challenges to advance the security of America, Africa and the world,” he said.
A vendor sits in his street kiosk selling U.S President Barack Obama memorabilia in Ghana's capital Accra this week.
In his budget request for 2010, Mr. Obama has proposed a significant rise in spending on Africom. By some estimates, his plan would double the Africom budget. In addition, the Pentagon is pouring guns and equipment into Somalia – at least 40 tons of arms and munitions so far – to help the beleaguered government in its battle against Islamic militants who have threatened to win control of the country.
The Pentagon is also active in North Africa and West Africa, with counterinsurgency operations and the training of local armies to fight terrorists, along with air raids on alleged terrorists in the Horn of Africa. Total U.S. security assistance to Africa has ballooned from about $100-million annually to $800-million annually over the past decade. The Africa Command, set up under the Bush administration in 2007, is currently based in Germany, but is widely rumoured to be searching for a base in Africa. If not a full-scale base, it could be satisfied with smaller airfields or other sites.
The Africom commander, General William Ward, has hinted that he wants new military sites in Africa, although he called them “infrastructure nodes” to indicate that they would be smaller than a full-scale base.
“Given the lack of infrastructure within Africa and the island nations, our sustainment infrastructure, forward-operating sites and en-route infrastructure are vital,” Gen. Ward told a U.S. Congressional committee this year. “I endorse upgrade projects supporting these key infrastructure nodes.”
A recent report in Ghana said the United States is looking for “rapid airlift facilities” in Africa, including the potential use of an existing airport in northern Ghana. Ghana already has an “exercise reception facility” to help U.S. troops in any “crisis response” in the region.
Oil, meanwhile, is an increasingly crucial U.S. interest in Africa. The country aims to obtain 25 per cent of its oil imports from Africa within the next five years, up from 15 per cent today. Much of this is already coming from Nigeria, but instability and corruption in Nigeria have made it a risky source.
An offshore oil discovery in Ghana has boosted its appeal as a potentially safer source of oil for the United States. Its early production – forecast at 100,000 barrels a day in 2011, and possibly 500,000 barrels a day by 2014 – would not be enough to compete with the bigger African producers. But some estimates suggest that Ghana's total oil reserves could be up to 10 billion barrels.
Mr. Obama briefly mentioned Ghana's oil in his speech on Saturday, saying that the oil discovery “brings great opportunities” for the country. But he urged it to diversify its exports so that its economy is not dominated by a few commodities. “Oil cannot simply become the new cocoa,” he said.
While oil and military bases may not have been central to Mr. Obama's official agenda in Ghana, his visit will help him to build goodwill in Africa, which could prove useful if the United States needs African oil and bases in the future, Ghana-based analyst Kofi Bentil said.
