Foreign Policy Blogs

Southern Africa: 2010 In Review

I agree with the old adage that the more things change, the more they remain the same. Despite  self-congratulatory speeches and political sloganeering, 2010 has not been the best year for Southern Africa in terms of problem solving, innovation, and policy entrepreneurship.

Take for example (as I alluded in one of my previous blog entries):
• The overall goal to promote socio-economic cooperation and integration  among SADC countries still remains unchecked.
• 2010 witnessed an increasing state-sponsored corruption, and self-enrichment schemes by the ruling elites such as SWAPO in Namibia, ZANU-PF in Zimbabwe, ANC in South Africa, MPLA in Angola. It seems that politicians are only interested in fattening their own bellies instead of making sure that the wealth is shared equally.
• Despite the seemingly peace, stability, and democracy being enjoyed by some Southern African countries (like Namibia and South Africa, Zambia), the inaction to address poverty and inequality  is overshadowing those achievements.  The truth is that  people need to experience tangible progress that can improve their economic situation on the ground instead of political symbolism.
• For all the talk about economic development, one common thread running through most of Southern Africa is that southern African leaders have lost the vision and the zeal to solve the many challenges facing their respective countries, and instead are only interested in clinging to power as evidenced right now in Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho.

Hopefully 2011 will be a year of reflections about why things still remain the same despite all the talk, the endless meetings, workshops and conferences. However, having said all these, 2010 for Southern Africa will probably be remembered for South Africa’s hugely successful hosting of the Fifa World Cup, played in Africa for the first time.

Person of the Year: Desmond Tutu for being the moral voice against poverty, inequality, corruption and dictatorship. He spoke against Mugabe, he spoke against the self-enrichment tendencies (through the so-called Black Economic Empowerment schemes) among his ANC comrades. He also urged African governments to do more to address poverty on the continent. More importantly, throughout 2010 Tutu reminded us Africans to reflect about the important of our “ubuntu” values and how we can utilized it to serve the continent and humanity well.

What to watch for 2011:

* Zimbabwe: It does not take a political scientist to figure out that the end is nigh for Zimbabwe’s power-sharing deal, and that that the country is again headed for more political violence as Robert Mugabe and his ruling ZANU-PF party are tightening control over Zimbabwe.

* Namibia’s presidential succession: A heated debate, centering around ethnic, regional and gender lines, about who will replace the current Namibian president has emerged in the ruling party SWAPO with two years to go ahead of the 2012 SWAPO congress that will name President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s successor. According to the Namibian News paper, “the succession debate is said to be so hot that some party insiders have compared the situation in the party to “a cold war” with intense behind-the-scenes lobbying already taking place.” At issue is the Party’s standing rule which suggests that current Swapo vice president and Trade Minister Hage is an automatic choice in succeeding the incumbent president Pohamba. But it turned out that Geingob’s takeover from President Pohamba as State President is not automatic. Warning signs that other aspiring candidates such as Pendukeni Ithana and Nangolo Mbumba and Nahas Angula (Namibia’s prime Minister) might run are also looming.

Lastly, I would like to thank you all for reading, and making this blog possible. I wish you all the best for 2011, and look forward to engaging with you more.

 

Author

Ndumba J. Kamwanyah

Ndumba Jonnah Kamwanyah, a native of Namibia in Southern Africa, is an independent consultant providing trusted advice and capacity building through training, research, and social impact analysis to customers around the world. Mos recently Ndumba returned from a consulting assignment in Liberia in support of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).
In his recent previous life Ndumba taught (as an Adjunct Professor) traditional justice and indigenous African political institutions in sub-Saharan Africa at the Rhode Island College-Anthropology Department.

He is very passionate about democracy development and peace-building, and considers himself as a street researcher interested in the politics of everyday life.
Twitter: NdumbaKamwanyah