Promotion of Democracy as a Goal of US Foreign Policy in Africa
P. Anyang’ Nyong’o

US foreign policy in Africa in the post-communism period is evidently driven more by her economic and strategic interests than the altruistic pursuit of democracy and good governance. While these two values are obviously regarded by the White House and Congress as important, they definitely do not dictate where the dollars and cents are spent either in terms of development aid or support for particular governments.
When Africa was facing the Congo crisis in the sixties, we would hardly talk of the US promoting democracy in Africa. The same case applied to the situation in South Africa in the seventies. In both cases, the US government insisted that its policy was in furtherance of the interests of the “free world”. Let us consider some of the highlights of US policy in Africa.

Communism or US Imperialism?

President Richard Nixon was heavily involved in defending Portuguese colonialism in Angola, Mozambique andPath. He is currently the Secretary-General of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and serves as a Cabinet Minister in Kenya’s Grand Coalition Government.