Former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ended his six-day trip to Africa last Tuesday, March 19. Continuing the work of encouraging dialogue and cooperation that he began even before he assumed the Presidency, Lula met with presidents and former presidents, ministers, representatives of political parties, businessmen and unionists from Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Benin and Nigeria. The former president returns to Africa in July for a seminar on the fight against hunger that will take place on July 1 – 2 in Addis Ababa (headquarters of the African Union), sponsored by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the African Union and the Lula Institute.
To download high resolution images please visit Picasa do Instituto Lula.
In the view of the Lula Institute, there is enormous potential for the expansion of cooperation in public policies to fight hunger and poverty, to increase the trade in goods and services, and investments in infrastructure on the African continent. Brazil has – and can share – technology in tropical agriculture, energy generation, biofuels and experience in social programs.
Successful policies to combat hunger and poverty, and the change in the posture of Brazil’s relations with the African countries have transformed Lula into a well known and admired figure in Africa. During his travels, the former president received the National Order of Benin – that country’s highest award; joined in a discussion about the fight against in hunger at the side of John Kufuor, former president of Ghana and the winner, along with Lula, of the 2011 World Food Prize, and participated in the Nigeria Summit 2013 seminar organized by the British magazine The Economist. Lula was invited by the governments of Benin and Equatorial Guinea to attend a presentation of their plans for development in infrastructure and the economy for Brazilian businessman. In Nigeria, the last stop on his visit, Lula met with Wole Soyinka, the Nigerian writer and playwright, the first black man to win the Nobel Prize in literature, the presidents of two Nigerian union organizations and was present at the official announcement of the partnership between Nigerian and Brazilian entrepreneurs.
The African Initiative of the Lula Institute is working in harmony with initiatives of the Brazilian government to share experiences in the social area and in the support for Democracy that were successful in Brazil; encouraging investments on the African continent that guarantee the transfer of technology and hiring local labor; disseminating current information about today’s Africa, modern and growing, with all of its potential and opportunities for expanding social, political and cultural exchanges between institutions, foundations, companies and personalities of Brazil and the countries of Africa. In his most recent trip, the former president was active on all these fronts.
Since the start of his public life, as a union leader and candidate of the opposition party, Lulu traveled to Africa and Latin America defending the ideals of solidarity among their peoples, democracy and peace. Consistent with this philosophy, the Lula administration (2003-2010) changed the priorities of Brazil’s foreign policy and worked to increase and intensify the relations between Brazil and African and Latin American countries. During his administration, he made 33 presidential visits to Africa and created 19 new embassies. Today, in the Institute that carries his name, the former president has made Africa and Latin America priorities in its efforts.
To learn more about the African Initiatives of the Lula Institute click here.
Equatorial Guinea – the challenge of Democracy and the search for partners for growth and employment creation – March 14
Lula began his trip in Malabo, capital of Equatorial Guinea, where he met with Vice President Ignácio Milan Tang and attended, together with representatives of Brazilian companies and local government authorities, a presentation of the “National Economic And Social Development Plan – Horizon 2020.” Equatorial Guinea is a country with a small population (720,000 inhabitants) with a Human Development Index (HCI) that is lower than the world average, putting the country in 136th place in the world rankings (alongside India). But the production of oil combined with the small population cause the country to have the highest GDP per capita In Africa (US$14,854), greater even than the per capita GDP of Brazil. In his speech in the country, Lula stressed “the need for continued peace as the best road to development and strengthening of democratic institutions in the entire continent.”
The “Horizon 2020” plan deals with the challenge of the country in avoiding the so-called “Dutch Disease,” an economic term that refers to the phenomenon that occurs when the exploration of natural resources impedes the development of the manufacturing sector. With this in mind, the local government is searching for partnerships in foreign countries to develop industrial sectors as well as those sectors that have the greatest impact on the generation of employment: energy, fishing, agriculture, ecotourism and financial services. The idea is to shift from “inherited prosperity” from the exploration of petroleum – carried out principally by North American companies – to “created prosperity” through the development of infrastructure, social protection, education and economic activities in the country.
In the energy sector, the government of Equatorial Guinea intends to increase the domestic production and refining of derivatives and distribute these products to other countries in Africa, in addition to improving the infrastructure that will supply electric power within the country. In fishing, the goal is to take advantage of the fact that the offshore territory of the country is 10 times the size of its land-based area, to build a strong fishing industry to supply the consumption needs of Equatorial Guinea itself and export to neighboring countries, such as Camaroon and Gabon. And in agriculture, the country wants to increase its farm production by five times through modernization of a model that today is basically limited to subsistence agriculture with little technical support.
Ghana – Food security and cooperation in agricultural technology – March 15-16
On Friday, March 15, Lula arrived in Ghana, where he was met at the airport by the director general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Maria Elena Semedo, followed by an appointment with President John Dramani Mahama, at Flagstaff House, the government headquarters in Accra. This was Lula’s third visit to Ghana; Mahama has also visited Brazil three times. On his most recent visit, he attended the speech given by former president Lula to the Fifth Ministerial Development Forum on the Fight Against Poverty last year in Brasilia.
President Mahama emphasized the importance of Brazil and other countries in the South for the development of Ghana. As an example he cited the Embrapa office in Africa, established during the Lula administration, and located in Ghana. “Ghana is a low income country that is trying to make the transition to becoming a medium income country. To do this an increase in the economic and social infrastructure is required. Today there is a crisis in Europe and the United States and for this reason we are looking for ways to increase the financing and investments coming from the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).”
Read the complete report on the meeting between Lula and Mahama here.
Lula also gave a speech for local authorities and for Brazilian and Ghanaian businessmen. He spoke about his experience in government and his work in foreign policy to expand relations with African and Latin American countries. After the speech, there was a dinner to promote the integration between the businessmen of the two countries.
On Saturday, Lula participated in a ceremony celebrating the partnership discussion organized by the FAO about food security along with former Ghana president John Kufuor, who received the World Food Prize in 2011, along with former president Lula, for his achievements in the modernization of agriculture in Ghana. Lula stressed his belief that the Brazilian experience has much to offer African countries. “I’m convinced that the public policies we implemented in Brazil will work in Africa. They have to be adapted to local realities and cultures, but they can be used in Africa.” Attending the discussion were experts, academics, leaders of social movements and students; among them Aeaah Fred, the Secretary-General of the All-Africa Students Union.
The content of the discussion, with audio recordings of the speech of the two former presidents can be accessed here.
The former president also visited the African offices of Embrapa (the Brazilian Agricultural Research Company) located in Accra and inaugurated by then President Lula in 2008. The office is the point of contact for the development of 21 projects in various African countries to assist in improving agriculture on the continent. Support for the modernization of agriculture is one of the most important African needs for Brazil, as countries like Ghana and Nigeria attempt to increase production of rice, sugarcane in other foodstuffs. But the projects for cooperation and development of products, the dissemination of technologies and technical assistance by Embrapa are still in their infancy and the potential for the unfolding of new projects for the transfer of technology and knowledge, with the exchange of technicians, experts and investors is immense.
At the end of the afternoon, Lula met with leaders of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the Socialist Forum, center-left political parties that are currently in power in Ghana. At the meeting, which lasted for little more than an hour, Lula spoke about the increase in exchanges between progressive parties in Africa and Latin America, especially the Workers Party (PT). Lula cited as an example, the Forum of São Paulo that brought together various political forces in Latin America. Lula made a commitment to talk to the Workers Party upon his return to Brazil.
Lula also spoke with Samia Nkrumah, the leader of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), and the daughter of the hero of the independence and first president of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972). He also met with representatives of the “Tabom” community, the descendants of Brazilian slaves who returned to Africa. The former president invited them to visit Brazil, where they had never been.
http://www.institutolula.org/em-gana-lula-se-encontra-com-descendentes-de-escravos/
Benin – Honors and Partnerships – March 17
On Sunday, March 17, Lula visited Contonou, the capital of Benin, a country of 9 million inhabitants located between Togo and Nigeria. Lula enjoyed a warm reception at the airport from President Boni Yayi and a crowd of approximately 500 citizens who made a great celebration with a demonstration of traditional music and dances. Then the delegation was received by President Yayi and his team. The Brazilians witnessed a presentation about the possibilities of closer ties between the two countries in various areas. At a lunch for approximately 200 people Lula was praised received the highest honor in the country, the National Order of Benin.
http://www.institutolula.org/ex-presidente-lula-recebe-ordem-nacional-do-benin
Lula spoke with representatives of Brazilian companies that are active in the country, responsible among other things, for the implementation of the first fleet of urban buses in Cotonou. In the afternoon at a meeting with approximately 150 businessmen, ministers and other authorities, the government of Benin presented its plan for development, which involves the expansion of infrastructure in the country, principally in the areas of energy and transportation, and the modernization of agriculture. Currently, most of the country’s revenues come from services, as Benin has one of the most heavily used ports in Africa.
Nigeria – paths to development in Nigeria, partnerships and exchanging of public policies – March 18 and 19
The first meeting of President Lula in Nigeria, on Monday (March 18) was with the presidents of the two largest labor unions in the country, Abdulwahed Omar, of the Nigerian Labour Congress, and Peter Esele, of the Trade Union Congress. Lula called it “absurd” that there had not been, so far, any contact between the trade unionists in Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, and Brazilian unions. The former president promised to help them to have more contact with the Brazilian union movement.
Read more about the meeting between Lula and the presidents of the Nigerian Unions here.
Lula met Wole Sooyinka, the Nigerian writer and playwright who was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature, and former president of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo on Monday, March 18.
At night, Lula participated in a ceremony celebrating the partnership for technical exchange between the largest conglomerate in Nigeria and Brazilian companies.
On Tuesday, March 19, in Lagos, Lula participated in the Nigeria Summit 2013, a seminar organized by The Economist. Around 600 people attended the event, including managers of Nigerian and multinational companies with investments in the country, national authorities such as President Goodluck Jonathan and the ministers of his cabinet, and Representatives of the international community, including the ambassador from China for African Affairs Zhong Jianua. At the event, Lula spoke about his experience in government and discussed with President Jonathan the agenda the Nigerian president intends to develop for the most populous country in Africa (170 million inhabitants). One of the themes of the discussion was the need to increase the production of sugar. Lula invited the Nigerian president or a representative of his government to spend some time in Brazil to learn more about sugar and ethanol production technology in Brazil.
Read more about the participation of Lula in the Nigeria Summit 2013 here.
