«Мягкая сила» США в странах Африки после окончания Холодной войны

Africa is the second largest continent after Asia that covers about one-fifth of the total land surface of Earth. Problems of Africa’s integration in the sustainability track is no longer a matter of choice. The region is a home to the world’s largest free market and a 1.2 billion population. Today the continent is standing on the verge of creating a completely new development path engaging potential of its resources and people. The integration of Africa into industrialisation and economic development has a groundbreaking potential not only for promoting equitable economic growth through markets but also for reducing conflicts, social disparity and poverty.
Challenges that meets Africa today are long-standing barriers with which the region have been struggling many decades starting from post-colonization time. The first problem is connected with the difficult process of governance liberation in African countries. After receiving an independence from the colonial rule African countries faced with dictatorships that merged from independence. Today many African countries are still facing a struggle of getting proper democratic governance. By manipulating the electoral process, limited access of civil society to the political system and abuse of civil rights the current governments are restating the liberalizations and destabilize the development of African region.
The problem of liberalization process is accompanied by the high level of corruption on all levels. Corruption penetrates all life facets starting from simple things like access to medical care, schools and jobs, to the grand scale of it all like award of contracts and use of public resources. Inequalities in access to services from government offices, the lack of opportunities for investment, move local and foreign companies to close business. In addition, the misappropriation of public funds and the inability to use public services for citizens without paying a bribe makes the stability if Africa region far away from the realization. As a result, there is a big gap between social groups in African countries. In spite of successful reforms made by respective governments the situation with corruption in Africa is still far away from ideal. Corruption penetrated in key sectors like healthcare, education, security and infrastructure leads results in the poor living conditions of African society.
The next problem that is a great threat to Africa’s future is a gender inequality. According to McKinsey’s Power of Parity Report: Advancing Women’s Equality in Africa, Africa’s gender parity stands at 0.58 (1 would be full parity). For the continent to achieve full parity could be 140 years without drastic action. The necessity of women empowerment in Africa lays economic
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interests. African women represent a crucial part of labor force. However today they are engaged in domestic, low paid work or even unemployed that hinder the economic potential and contribution to economy. Due to the lack of education, limited access to politics and social disparities women are keeping lower positions in African countries. There is a vital need in women empowerment in Africa. According to estimations by advancing women’s equality the African economy could add 10% to GDP, or US$316 billion by 2025. Closing the gender gap for women and girls in all spheres of life is urgent for African sustainability and development.
The African youthful population is also represent a powerful opportunity for accelerated economic growth and innovation. More than 50 % of African population represent young people behind whom the future of Africa. The region is facing a surge of unemployment especially among young people. The reason lays in the insufficient investment in youth’s education and empowerment. There is a huge gap between the older generation that is keeping struggling for being in the center of the of the policy and decision-making organs and the expanding youth population that should be educated in order to replace the petrified power. By contributions in education, employment opportunities, leadership and entrepreneurship plans and assistance, Africa is expected an economic boom and decrease in the number of internal problems such as poverty, crime due to joblessness and a host of other social issues.
African countries need to build up policies that spur democracy, creating the enabling environment to build prosperity in Africa through concrete tasks
such as job creation, regional integration and economic engagement.
Since Africa has received an independence country have become recipients of international aid and assistance. African countries are supported by international governmental organization (the United Nation), Non-governmental organizational and national organizations founded to afford assistance for low-developed countries. In is undeniable that the U.S. has numerous people- and country-centered. programs in Africa. During the Cold War, the U.S. aid were focuses mostly on security because Africa was a stumbling rock between the U.S. and Soviet Union. After the Cold War ended security assistance for Africa began to decline. However, in the panel session of the 104th Congress the discourse was turned from security to humanitarian interest of the U.S. in Africa. Congressional reports and bills emphasized U.S. humanitarian, economic, and other
The continent is really rich in natural resources, human capital and diverse socioeconomic
background however the challenges that Africa is meeting today are hampering its development
and requiring multifunctional approach.
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interests in Africa that gradually were increasing in post-war era. Today the U.S. is one of the leading donors of humanitarian assistance to Africa.
The U.S. assistance reaches Africa through a variety of channels, including Unites States Agency for International Development (the USAID), the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the Africa Development Foundation (ADF) etc. that are showing good results in programs that stimulate local economies, reduce poverty and gender inequalities and improve access to power. The flourishing period of the U.S. aid is attributed to the Obama administration (2009-2017). Total U.S. foreign assistance to Africa for FY2009 was $8.2 billion. Sub-Saharan Africa received an estimated $8.09 billion in FY2010 and $6.9 billion in FY2011. The Obama Administration has requested an estimated $7.7 billion for FY2012.
The U.S. assistance to Africa derived from national interest such as security, economic opportunities and political influence. Hence, the research goal (research question) of this thesis is to define particular qualities of the US soft power in African countries after the Cold war.
The political relevance of research is shaped by the fact that today Africa is an important subject of world politics that needs to be studied in order to improve the economic, social-political situation of countries located on this continent. In addition, the U.S. Soft power as a strong instrument of influence may become the most important and crucial in the development of African countries. The scientific relevance of research is determined by the lack of literature devoted to the analysis of the U.S. aid to Africa. The existing literature has mostly a historical focus covering the evolution of relations between both sides.
The research covers period from the end of the Cold war till the presence due to several reasons. The first reason is shaped by considerable changes in the nature of the US foreign policy in Africa. After the end of the Cold war there has been a dramatical shift from military assistance to humanitarian aid of African countries. The second reason lies in the numerous documents published in social science. The documents reflect the content and results of the U.S. humanitarian programs in African countries that allowed to figure out the special aspects of the U.S. soft power in Africa.
The research has the following objectives:
1. To analyze the situation in African countries after the Cold War;
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2. To analyze the U.S. initiatives directed to increase the political development of African countries;
3. To find out peculiarities if the U.S. influence on African countries through the prism of humanitarian programs in the sphere of political development, women empowerment, education and youth leadership;
The object of the research is the U.S. foreign policy in Africa, the subject – programs initiated by the U.S. government and national institutions in the sphere of political development, gender equality and youth leadership in Africa.
Theoretical Frameworks for the research are the theory of realism and more narrowly, the concept of soft power. The realism opens the opportunity to evaluate the public diplomacy as an instrument of national security and foreign policy of the United States. The concept of soft power is referred to understanding of the governmental policy aimed at attracting the democratic and liberal values of the U.S.
The research methods include historical analysis, documentary analysis, system analysis, comparative analysis and case study. We mainly used a historical analysis for understanding the historical background of African countries. The documentary analysis and comparative analysis were used to focus on the variety of activities conducted by the U.S. support on African countries. Case study was used mainly to show results of the U.S. activity in African countries. All those methods contributed to our understanding special aspects of the U.S. soft power and its current role in the system of international relations.
Review of the literature (Historiography). As it was mentioned before the relevance of research is determined by the lack of literature regarding the U.S. soft power in Africa. In the article of Oluwaseum Tella, A declining or stable image? An assessment of the United States’ soft power in Africa he explores and examines the sources of US soft power in Africa. He analyzes two influential programs initiated by the U.S. – the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) – as examples of economic and humanitarian diplomacy. The second part of the article contributed to the analysis of cultural export in Africa. He believes that the US soft power has a huge presence across the globe and particularly in Africa. The reason for it he sees in the growing global importance of Africa that is rich by resources and human capital. He considers that the U.S. interests in Africa are determined
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by the U.S. foreign policy and rather than mobilizing its hard power, the U.S. has made a shift towards soft power. By analyzing the results of programs conducted by the U.S. the author makes a positive conclusion because programs led to corruption decline, rebuild the rule of. Law, poverty reduction and save life for thousands with deadly HIV/AIDS.
Primary sources/Documents. The research has applied the documents of the government of the United States and African countries which where takes as a case studies, USAID, UNESCO, African Development Bank Group, McKinsey Global Institute, World Economic Forum, their evaluations, reports and strategies. The statistics was taken from data published by the Transparency International, World Bank, UN and Afrobarometer.
Structure of the dissertation. The MA thesis consists of three chapters. The first chapter introduction dedicated to the anticorruption programs initiated in Liberia, Burundi and Uganda, what was the situation with corruption in these countries, goals and tasks that were set and their results. The second chapter is “Women empowerment and gender equality in Africa” which gives a brief outline of the U.S. programs in Kenya, Malawi and Ghana and their result in achieving the gender equality in these countries and opening more opportunities for girls and women to be full members of society. The third chapter is illustration of youth empowerment in African countries that outline an effective approach to leadership development.