Judd Devermont and Jon Temin142 μ£¥³¤ ¬μμ¬
should go to the latter set o tasks, and most aid should be tied more
closely to tangible progress. The Millennium Challenge Corpora-
tion, a U.S. aid agency established in 2004, oers a promising model.
The « negotiates “compacts” worth several hundred million dol-
lars with countries that meet certain governance criteria. Although
Ethiopia is the only one o the Ãve countries currently in the «
program, the United States can and
should apply the principles behind it
to assistance to all Ãve, making support
conditional on reforms. It should use
this approach at the subnational level,
too. In Nigeria, for example, the United
States should consider striking deals with the most dynamic o the
country’s 36 states, some o which boast economies larger than entire
African countries.
But support cannot be limited to governments. As encouraging as
some o the reformers may be, equally important are the civil society
leaders, human rights defenders, and journalists who provide an es-
sential check on government authority. In Angola, Congo, and Ethi-
opia, such Ãgures have suered from decades o repression and would
beneÃt immensely from more outside help. South Africa shows just
how eective such elements can be: it was the media, civil society,
and the judiciary that shone a light on the massive corruption o
Zuma and his cronies, building pressure for his removal. Political
leaders get the headlines, but civil society leaders often deserve just
as much credit for reform.
Finally, i the United States wants to reinforce new openings un-
der new leaders, it needs to stop treating Africa as an afterthought.
Washington tends to relegate the region to one-o engagements and
staid forums, i not ignore it entirely. Congo last had an Oval Oce
visit in 2007, South Africa in 2006, Angola in 2004, and Ethiopia in- The Trump administration has devoted even fewer resources
and less attention than its predecessors to sub-Saharan Africa: the
current secretary o state has yet to visit the region, and unlike the
George W. Bush and Obama administrations, the Trump administra-
tion has no signature initiatives centering on it. (The White House’s
Prosper Africa initiative has yet to get o the ground.) Optics and
invitations matter. The Trump administration should work with
France to invite Africa’s new leaders to the G-7 summit in Biarritz in
U.S. policy toward Africa
has long been decidedly
risk averse.