Abstract:
Since his election in 2017, President Emmanuel Macron has tried to distance himself from established and widely criticised patterns of France's Africa policy. He diversified relations with Africa in regional and substantive terms, integrated non-state actors and cultivated a comparatively open approach to France's problematic past on the continent. However, Macron's efforts to craft a narrative of change was overshadowed by path dependencies, above all the continuation of the military engagement in the Sahel and incoherent relations with autocratic governments. The involuntary military withdrawal first from Mali (2022), from Burkina Faso (2023) and finally from Niger (announced for late 2023) marks a historic turning point in Franco-African relations. The question is no longer whether relations between France and its former colonies will change; the real question is whether Paris will be able to shape this change or if it will be a mere bystander to a transformation that is largely driven by African actors.
Subjects:
Frankreich
Emmanuel Macron
Burkina Faso
Côte d’
Ivoire
Dschi­
buti
Mali
Senegal
Tschad
Afrikapolitik
entwicklungs­
politische Zusammenarbeit
Agence française de développement
AFD
Frankophonie
Françafrique
Pré-carré
Public Diplomacy
Opérations extérieures
OPEX
Opération Barkhane
Opération Serval
Franc CFA
Union économique et moné­
taire ouest-africaine
UEMOA
Economic Community of West African States
ECOWAS
Banque Centrale des États de l’
Afrique de l’
Ouest
BCEAO
France’
s Africa policy
Franco-African relations
Emmanuel Macron
Sahel
Mali
Burkina Faso
Niger
Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine (UEMOA)
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
official development assistance (ODA)
Operation Barkhane