Johan Ibrahim Adrián

France’s Neocolonialism: Controlling and Profiting from Africa Did you know that a big part of France’s money comes directly from several African Countries? That’s right, we’re in the twenty-first century and France still receives a staggering amount of money from the black continent, about $500 billion a year coming from a total of fourteen African Countries. Imagine a foreign country having a “right of first refusal” over all the natural resources and production in your nation, meaning they have priority and decision-making capability over anything you want to sell to the outside world. Now, imagine this foreign country sells, prints, and controls your local currency, making you pay for it. Sounds crazy? That’s exactly the kind of control France exercises over Africa. Stay with us until the end if you want to learn how this came to be. The Colonial Currency Scam of the CFA Franc We have to begin by talking about how fourteen African countries are currently in a state of surrendered sovereignty under a nonsensical currency regime implemented and enforced by France. This means that at least 200 million African people are living, working, and producing goods that are ultimately under France’s control. The “CFA franc” is the name given today to two currencies used by the West African Economic and Monetary Union, which includes the West African countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. Additionally, the Central African Economic and Monetary Community groups six Central African nations: Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and Chad. This is a situation that goes beyond naive views of cooperation or close financial ties. What we see in Africa is an absurd relation of dependency in which France effectively forces African countries to trade in an obsolete currency nobody uses anymore, not even the French themselves, who adopted the Euro more than twenty years ago. But how did France accomplish this? We have to understand that, in colonial times, African countries were simple societies. Many of these countries used seashells as a form of money. These seashells were so widely used that by 1800, they had an official exchange rate with the French currency. However, as the French Empire expanded deeper into Africa, it aimed to control the production and trade of these seashells. France imposed taxes and sent armed troops to African markets, pressuring merchants to use French currency. From the 1930s onward, France became the dominant source of money in French-speaking Africa. With this control came benefits for France, including access to cheap African labor and resources at lower prices, while selling finished goods back to Africa at higher prices. This system, often called French neocolonialism, was (and still is) quite intrusive. Why Does Africa Still Use The Franc? One would think Africa would have left the franc behind by now, right? But things aren’t that easy. France went to the extent of influencing an apparent “decolonization” by installing local leaders as collaborators in the first half of the twentieth century, but these leaders maintained the French-controlled monetary system. These arrangements that enforced the use of the franc had some unsettling aspects from the beginning. All member states had to deposit most of their money in the French treasury, leaving them with limited access to their funds. Even today, these African countries are required to have more than half of their national reserves deposited in France’s public treasury without France ever disclosing how it uses this money. It’s a round, evil business for France. They benefit from all sides and don’t even need to use their foreign exchange reserves for African imports. Since its creation in 1945, the CFA franc has been a currency issued by the Bank of France, but this is no longer the case. The Central Banks of the West African Economic and Monetary Union and the Central African Economic and Monetary Community are responsible for governing the monetary policy today. They decide the amount of currency to be issued and the number of bills in circulation. But these two central banks are not entirely independent in their monetary policies, and that’s why some critics label the CFA franc as the "last colonial currency in the world.” The value of the CFA franc is tied to the Euro, which means these institutions must adhere to the European Central Bank's policies regarding inflation and money printing. Finally, these African currencies are printed in France, with two production sites in the southwestern and central regions responsible for manufacturing the currency, which is later transported to Africa. Very convenient… for France. Critics also point out that France historically had a significant presence in the governing bodies of these central banks, allowing Paris to influence these countries' monetary policies. While French representation has diminished since the December 2019 "reform" of the currency, which was incorporated into French law in the spring of 2020, it's worth noting that French representatives still played a role at the Bank of Central African States at the time. The $500 Billion African Goldmine While countries in the Central African Economic and Monetary Community have crude oil exports as their main source of income, the economy is more diversified in the countries belonging to the West African Economic and Monetary Union: Cocoa and cocoa food preparations represent 5% of their exports, precious stones reach 3% and secondarily cotton, edible fruit, rubber, plastics, timber and wood products, fish, and shellfish amount up to about 1% each. These countries combined reach an approximate Gross Domestic Product of $411 billion, which means they amass this enormous amount of money each year if we combine the total sum of all their product exports. But there’s a catch: France claims the “right of first refusal” to acquire natural resources discovered within the territories of its ex-colonies, severely restricting the ability of these African countries to seek alternative commercial partnerships. The French even enjoy exclusive privileges in supplying military equipment and providing training to the armed forces in these African nations, and their companies have preferential treatment in the field of public procurement and public bidding. As we can see, France’s economic interests in Africa are large and wide. The aforementioned fourteen countries are also burdened by a "colonial debt" imposed upon them, meaning they are forced to pay for the country’s infrastructure that France built during colonization. Additionally, their national reserves are held by France in its Central Bank. It’s unbelievable that these African nations lack access to these substantial reserves even today. The arrangement compels CFA countries to deposit 65% of their foreign currency reserves into the French Treasury. An additional 20% is held for financial liabilities, leaving these nations with a mere 15% of their own money under their control. In times of need, they are even required to borrow their own money from France at commercial interest rates. This essentially renders these African states as French taxpayers, even though their citizens are not French and do not receive public goods, benefits, or services funded by their money. But things are starting to change when it comes to France’s right of first refusal and other outrageous obligations. A recent example of this is the nation of Mali, which recently canceled eleven colonial agreements imposed by France since 1960, including this retrograde policy of giving France absolute priority to purchase any kind of natural resources and being allowed to find external commercial partners only in the case France is not interested in buying. France’s Control Over Africa It's important to know that France has a long history with African countries, dating back to when it used to be a colonial ruler. They had a lot of influence over their former colonies in sub-Saharan Africa. This influence covered many things like politics, money, the military, and even culture. People came up with the term "Francafrique" in 1998 to talk about this. People use "Francafrique" to criticize what they see as secretive and not-so-good activities involving French-African connections. Some say it's almost like a new form of colonialism. This special influence has been around for a long time, even during the Cold War. It's like a complicated web of connections, where the French President and their advisors directly got involved in making decisions about African countries. France and its former colonies had different agreements that made their connections even stronger, in areas like politics, money, the military, and culture. France also sent its soldiers to African countries pretty often, almost every year from the 1960s to the mid-1990s. They said they did this to help keep things stable, but some people think they acted like judges and advisors in these countries. These military actions also helped French businesses make money in Africa. When some African countries tried to change this system, France didn't like it. But a few African countries are looking for new ways to control their own money. It's hard because France has been involved for a long time. At the heart of "Francafrique" are personal connections between French and African leaders. Sometimes they do things without anyone else knowing, which leads to accusations of corruption and misuse of power. France keeps this influence to protect its own interests, both strategic and economic. They want to be seen as one of the most powerful countries in the world. Francafrique Today France has had a big impact on some African countries for a long time. They've used their power in many ways, like doing secret things and sending soldiers to help out. One example is Operation Barkhane, where they're trying to stop terrorism in parts of Africa. France also controls important stuff like airports and ports in Africa. They get to decide when a country's government needs help or protection. They did this in Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic. They also had a role in getting involved in Libya to stop a leader named Muammar Gaddafi. He wanted to make a new kind of money for Africa, and France didn't like that. All of this makes us wonder how France's actions affect African countries. France says it wants to help bring stability and progress, but some people think it actually creates problems, makes countries depend on it, and controls the politics. We can look at what happened when Guinea wanted to be independent in 1958 and how France reacted to see why people are concerned about France's influence in Africa. Outro Many Africans contend that France has historically exploited their continent's resources, and they view France's colonial tax as detrimental to Africa's development and something that needs to be left behind. That’s why things are already starting to change, as France’s stranglehold over the continent weakens due to budgetary constraints, greater public scrutiny at home, and the integration of France into the European Union.