Gotcha loud and clear. So Obama should be sending food, agriculture equipment, insect spray and equipment, and promoting investment in Africa.It seems simple but somehow so complicated by graft and theft of resources. The joke here is thet the US Marines are the best delivery method of such aid, anyone touching it before delivery to the people who need it, gets it? I have always hoped that someone would come up with a method of delivery that would keep help from being stolen.It would be like magic. What would you suggest could be done in the areas of food, bugs and work?
The Chinese have a saying - “if you want prosperity, build a road”. Trade and infrastructure, not aid is the key to future prosperity. The West has been so programmed to give humanitarian aid that there is little hope that the West can ever be really useful to Africa.
All said, it is better to lift tariffs and barriers against US / European agricultural products than provide food aid. Africa is largely agricultural based and our products are closed to the US markets.
Talking about corruption - when the social and national security costs for corruption become too high for the ruling elite to bear, corruption will fall. This process is occurring slowly in some African nations (corruption and collusion with the Chinese cost Banda the last election in Zambia).
It is enlightened self-interest, not altruism that drives development. Ask yourself, why did Singapore develop? Because it was threatened, had few natural resources and foreign aid was not an option. If you look at Africa, a combination of rampant population growth, Western donor fatigue and the scarcity of “bleeding heart liberals” in either India or China will speed up that process.
Eventually your children or your children’s children will stop giving aid to Africa (I suspect that will happen in the next few decades). Africa will either have to sink or swim because the Chinese and Indians are not going to be doing any “Live Aid” style rock concerts.