UNITED States has no need for oil from Nigeria and other oil-rich African nations, President Barack Obama
during his recently-concluded trip Africa.
The President of United States of America, Barack Obama categorically told Nigeria and other African countries that have oil deposits that his country do not need the oil and energy as they are capable of generating their source of energy.
President Obama’s remarks appear to have confirmed the fears in some quarters that the days of crude oil importation from African oil producing countries, including Nigeria, were numbered Mr. Obama made the remarks at a press conference with South African President, Jacob Zuma, during his visit to that country as part of his three-nation African visit.
“Well, the truth is, the United States, at this point, on issues of energy, for example, frankly, we don’t need energy from Africa. Because of advances that have been made, we’re seeing oil production and natural gas production, as well as clean energy production all growing at a rapid rate in the United States,” Obama said. “So our primary interest when it comes to working with Africa on energy issues has to do with how do we power Africa so that it can be an effective market creating jobs and opportunity in Africa, but then, we also then have somebody to trade with and sell iPods to, and airplanes, and all kinds of good stuff,” he added. .
Obama challenged Africans to insist on equitable deals from the various foreign investors trooping to Africa for one form of investment or the other. He also urged Africans to ask more questions about lopsided deals with some foreign investors, while dismissing talk of a Chinese and US scramble for influence on the continent. Obama said he welcomed renewed interest from larger emerging markets. “I actually welcome the attention that Africa is receiving from countries like China and Brazil and India and Turkey.” But he urged African nations to make sure trade was not a one-way street.
“When we look at what other countries are doing in Africa, I think our only advice is, make sure it’s a good deal for Africa. “Somebody says they want to come build something here: Are they hiring African workers? Somebody says that we want to help you develop your natural resources: How much of the money is staying in Africa?” He regretted that too often foreign investment did not benefit locals and actually encouraged the type of corruption and resource-stripping that guts economies. “I do think that it’s important for Africans to make sure that these interactions are good for Africa.
“There has been a long history of extracting resources from Africa, you take raw materials, you send them to someplace else where they get used processed, sometimes sold back to Africa. “The profits stay there, the jobs stay there and not much stays in Africa,” he said. Chinese investment in Africa was estimated at $218 billion last year, fuelling uncertainty among US businesses, which have expressed concern that Africa is a diplomatic blind spot for their government.
In March, China’s new President Xi Jinping visited Africa, as well as Russia, on his first foreign trip, signing a raft of business and energy deals signalling Beijing’s intent to deepen ties further. Responding to a question on the war against terror from a youth leader from Nigeria, Obama said his administration was making a considerable effort in tackling insecurity and curbing terror with the death of Osama Bin Laden but he was quick to recognise existence of Boko Haram in Nigeria.
“There is no doubt in the progress we have made in dealing with some extremist groups, for example core Al Qaida and Bin Laden” he said stressing that “they have been greatly diminished”. He, however, noted, “What is also true is that in some ways the problem has also metamorphised, we have more regional terrorist organisations like Boko Haram in Nigeria espousing an extremist ideology, showing no regard for human life.”
He admitted that despite not having a transnational capacity like the other organisations “they are doing great harm in Africa and in the Middle East and in South Asia.” Obama blamed the upsurge of terrorist groups on the fact that “countries are not delivering for their people and where there are sources of conflict and underlining frustrations that have not been adequately dealt with.”
To curb such uprisings, Obama said, “we have to build institutions, a lot of what we talked about in terms of responsiveness, governance and democracy. Those things become defence mechanisms against terrorism, they are the most important defence against terrorism,” he said.
He ruled out military solutions in tackling terrorism but said the more governments “give people opportunity, education and resolve conflicts through regular democratic processes, the less likely they are to take root.”
The US president, whose itinerary did not include seeing the hospitalised South African anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, however paid glowing tributes to the man he eulogised as a hero to the world. He also later met with the Mandela family.