Babatunde Oyateru, Head of Communication and External Affairs at Shelter Afrique.
It would appear an odd moment to make a case for multilateralism, at a time of Covid vaccine nationalism and Brexit unilateralism, but Africa, on the other hand, is embracing it.
On 1 January, 2021, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) went into effect. Historically, this is nothing new; cooperation has always been at the normative heart of African nations’ foreign policy; it is often philosophised as pan-Africanism.
In many areas, such as security, immigration and education, African countries have often been keen to cooperate, rooted in the in-group feelings created by a shared colonial legacy. Beyond the much-touted benefits of the AfCFTA, it offers a new opportunity to reconsider a pan-African approach to development on the continent – especially in response to the predictions of some.