CONFLICT GABON-BENIN, WHAT ABOUT THE FREE MARKET?

 

Across the globe, youth unemployment poses a significant challenge to communities and governments. Local political parties are blaming the influx of immigrant workers. Blame games are being played between some of the most powerful governments. In central Africa, the richest soil in Africa and the world, the concept of youth unemployment should be a myth. When we know about the diamonds in the Congo Kinshasa, the cocoa in Cameroon, the wood in Gabon, oil in Equatorial Guinea. The endless equatorial forest, the vast rivers and the lakes. 

                                                Adobe stock picture

One of the main issues within central Africa youth unemployment is a mindset. From being little children, the youth is only praise for having good academic scores. Entrepreneurship ventures or the arts are demonized. In Gabon, families do not encourage or invest in such when administrative blue-collar jobs are worshipped and respected. Ever since the African independences, the Gabonese youth has been molded to work in the administration. Cultivating the ground through agriculture or mining was never a subject on family dinner. Agriculture was more an activity for retired grandmothers living in the villages. This culture is so deeply rooted that if a Gabonese child would like to start a business, like selling fruits in the marketplace, they would be mocked, humiliated and called names. The names of immigrants who are occupying these particular markets.  So, then, when neighboring countries immigrant such as Benin have invaded this small business, they were being looked down by the locals. 

Still, how is it possible that a country with so many resources be valorised only by foreigners and locals would prefer remaining unemployed than going back to the forest to start a farm? Even though, for the past ten years, many young Gabonese have started getting involved in the informal sector, uprooting the immigrants would take time. They have built a system between Gabon, their home countries and overseas clients which makes them masters in the area. 

Gabon is not the only African country trying to nationalize its informal sector and mineral resources. They have announced the local transformation of manganese, just like Zimbabwe has announced the same for their lithium. The issue comes from the immigrants who have ingrained themselves so deeply in benefiting from Gabonese resources. Losing this market would cause a ripple effect, affecting even their assets in their home countries. 

Though it would be detrimental for these immigrants' communities, Pan-Africanism has always pushed the nationalisation of African resources. Competition should be healthy, and there will always be immigrants. The nationalization of resources should still leave the door open for the free market and globalisation to dictate the rules of trade. 

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