DOTS AND LINES CONNECTING France and francophone Africa are so obvious. What is not so obvious to many is the parasitic nature of the connection. Of all other European countries that once directly colonised Africa (Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Portugal and Spain), France stands out as one that still holds its former colonies in leash till date. The relationship remains disproportionately beneficial to France at the expense of those African countries. The economy of France is largely dependent on those countries and it appears France is on its wit’s end on what to do next as it has not brought about any innovative idea that could be a win-win for France and Africa ever since. It has only therefore got stuck with old ideas on how to install, sustain and use the puppet leaders to keep those African countries under perpetual control. All the 14 francophone African countries, West and Central, have been subjected to this experience for decades.
But now, some are fighting hard to extricate themselves while France is putting up strong resistance by various means – subtle and overt – to frustrate such efforts. Incidentally, it is within those 14 francophone countries that the prevalence of poverty appears uniformly high among African countries. Details elicited from comparative studies such as the Cross-Comparative Analysis of Child Poverty show that the Francophone African states frequently experience wider socioeconomic inequalities and lower access to health and education services than their Anglophone counterparts. From research highlights, children in Francophone African countries face higher relative risks of lacking formal education, complete vaccination schedules or medical access compared to non-Francophone regions, specifically the Anglophone.
The perverse interest of France in Africa is better explained by the pervasive and persistent poverty, poor economy and the continued centralisation of command in many areas of Francophone Africa. Name the military influence. The failure of France in the military operations in Francophone Africa is just a symptom of deeper and wider troubles for France in those countries which have lately embarked on the purge of French soldiers stationed within their territories. In Mali, operation Barkhane was deemed a failure and what looked like a surreptitious espionage rather than a protective arrangement for Mali, whereupon Mali terminated its military cooperation with France and asked the soldiers to leave.
It was beginning to look like the insecurity in the Sahel was a deliberate project aimed at keeping France relevant with boots on the ground. Operation Barkhane was seen as a subterfuge, with the real insurgency appearing to be orchestrated to keep distracting Africans while plundering continues. The three military leaders who took over power saw through the deception and the failure of civilian presidents masquerading as democratic leaders. Assimi Goita could no longer tolerate it in Mali. The same applied to Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso and Abdourahamane Tchiani of Niger. After they forced French soldiers out, countries like Senegal and Chad have followed suit, with Cote d’Ivoire under pressure to do the same. This is not working in France’s interest. The petty response to AES by France and the coup issues tears apart any pretension about genuine concerns for African former colonies. If anything, the apparent double standard on democracy in Africa betrays France’s true intentions. What about the coincidence between the French aircraft flights on the northern border of Benin and the August 28 and 29, 2026 coup in Niger? Timing matters. And what was the business of French aircraft in opposition operations against the December 2025 coup in Benin?
Now to economics. France is in trouble. It appears like its period of ease is gradually ending. It has had to change prime ministers four times in two years. It is in the middle of a financial crisis prompting drastic measures to slash spending, freeze welfare payments and cut two public holidays. This is bad for a country that fought hard through street protests to ensure a reduction in working hours per week. The country’s economy is genuinely screwed.
BBC calls France “the new sick man of Europe.” It is facing problems as the worst economy of the G7 and maybe of the EU or all developed countries as a whole. France is facing troubles on all sides, political, economic and structural.
Yet, France still remains stuck with the old playbook, trying tooth and nail to retain its influence on those Francophone countries. It wants to retain its hold on minerals such as gold and uranium. The latter being the energy and economic lifeline of France is slipping out of its hands as it loses Niger, the main source of its uranium. It was having a field day with Mohamed Bazoum, the French ally, just as the puppet leaders of the past were bowing down to France. Niger has taken back its uranium, Burkina Faso has taken back its land and Mali has taken back its gold. The Sahel thought it better to stop relying on paper wealth and depend henceforth on wealth right under their feet.
Now, the AES defiance against France will tend to reshape international diplomacy and geopolitics, especially those relating to the plundering of Africa by former colonists who still have stranglehold over them by way of international laws, military cooperation and global financial system. The reverberation will go beyond France that is currently undergoing a financial crisis and will extend to a wider EU. The AES leaders see the French control of their wealth as just paper wealth and regard whatever is with France already as insignificant compared with what is currently in the Sahel region. As a countermeasure, they have sought a shield in Russia where they believe they are not as vulnerable to France’s influence as earlier thought. The financial architecture that has bound Francophone countries to France for 80 years is about to be destroyed. Traoré is at the forefront of this initiative. This bold financial rebellion might end the reign of CFA as discussions are underway to launch a physical currency that is backed by gold.
In retaliation, France has threatened to seize all Sahel reserves in the French treasury, seize their embassy buildings, all state-owned offices and all their investments in France. Unfazed, the AES gave France four weeks ultimatum to sell all its properties in their territories, including NGO buildings and all infrastructure of France in all Sahel countries, failing which the Sahel countries’ governments will take them over. The involvement of France in the recent coup d’état in Niger could be better understood from the desperate threat from France earlier. Sahel took umbrage at the threat from EU and France to strike Niger if Mohamed Bazoum is not released.
Burkina Faso is already negotiating to lease all France properties to Russia, a country that is already discussing with AES on nuclear power project construction in the region. France will not go down without a fight with Francophone Africa, particularly the AES. Banque de France will be part of the war against the recalcitrant Sahel in this looming political and economic war that is revealing the EU hypocrisy on AES and Africa.
France’s $4 trillion national debt is tied to Africa’s future. It is beginning to make sense that Europe developed on the back of Africa. And so, the economic quagmire of France and the desperation to continue to keep Francophone African countries on the leash is beginning to make more sense.
Just as Tiken Jah Fakoly, a musician in Cote d’Ivoire, sang in a song, “Ils ont partagé le monde. Plus rien ne m’étonne,” literally meaning, “they have shared the world, nothing surprises me anymore,” it is hardly surprising that France still wants to keep its foothold on its shared territories in Africa. But the leaders of various African countries are not helping matters. How did the reactions of ECOWAS and Nigeria’s President Tinubu help Niger after July 26, 2023, for instance? Was their interest more in democracy as a concept or freedom of the people of Niger in reality?
Why are political actors seeing an expensive system of government that fails to deliver security and economic prosperity as more acceptable than the military leadership that is more pragmatic and patriotic? Let us assume that the AES is doing what other African leaders must do to free Africa from the stranglehold of outside forces, colonists and gold diggers, should that not be considered better than mere political jamborees and emphasis on a politically correct system that fails to uplift the poor or deliver the public goods? What can African Union (AU), the continental body, do differently? If China could secretly embark on five years’ wiretapping of the building it constructed for the AU in Addis Ababa after receiving the donated building, should African leaders not be alarmed and worried? Can a puppet president like Cameroonian Paul Biya suddenly turn patriotic? These are relevant questions for the continent of Africa vis-a-vis the enduring presence of European countries that depend solely on Africa for survival.
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Dr. Olukayode Oyeleye, Business a.m.’s Editorial Advisor, who graduated in veterinary medicine from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, before establishing himself in science and public policy journalism and communication, also has a postgraduate diploma in public administration, and is a former special adviser to two former Nigerian ministers of agriculture. He specialises in development and policy issues in the areas of food, trade and competition, security, governance, environment and innovation, politics and emerging economies.
The coup in Niger and Africa’s vulnerability to foreign interest (2)