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For copyright matters, takedown, or complaint please contact: historicalafrika@ Two European nations are at war of words with each other over the resources of Africa. You'd be familiar with these two leaders, one a nationalist prime minister Giorgia Meloni and the other the President of France Emmanuel Macron. Of all the former colonial empires France appears to notably retain significant influence over its former colonies. Currently the citizens of African nations once ruled by France are protesting against their former colonizers seeking complete independence, from Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and now Niger Republic. Giorgia Meloni accused France President, Emmanuel Macron, of impoverishing some African states and creating the conditions for immigration flows towards Italy. Giorgia Meloni has consistently expressed her concerns regarding the mistreatment of Africans by France, she has consistently criticized France for its perceived exploitation of the resources within African nations. According to her assertions France benefits disproportionately from African resources compared to the local populations. Meloni said it is disgusting that France continues to exploit Africa by printing money to 14 African countries, charging them for mint fees and by children labour in the mines and extracting raw materials as it’s happening in Niger Republic. The French presence in Africa dates back to the late 16th century, the main period of colonial expansion began with the occupation of Algeria in the 19th century. French North Africa, which formed most of the Maghreb region at the height of French colonial control, and the French invasion of Algeria in 1830 marked the turning point of a colonial period that would last more than a century in North Africa. France established forms of governments to keep these African countries under its direct control, and implemented assimilation policies by dictating its own system. In the new order established after the Second World War, France had to accept the “formal independence” of its colonies – but upon conditions. All African countries have accepted this condition-based independence, except Guinea. While France was handing over its administrations on paper, it stipulated conditions with its colonization agreements with African countries. France imposed the obligation to use the African Franc as the neo-colonial currency, and moreover, it made the new “independent” countries pay for the infrastructures built by France during the colonial period. 14 African countries, which are former French colonies, continued to pay the “colonial tax” to France since their so-called independence. By establishing the “Commonwealth of French-Speaking Countries”, France prevented its former colonies from breaking their ties with Paris. France also holds the national reserves of 14 African countries including: Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. African countries also have to deposit their national currency reserves with the Bank of France. The French treasury receives about $500 billion in earnings and returns from Africa annually. France’s big problem, however, is that Nigeriens – like so many Africans – are rejecting Franç-afrique with as much fervour as their forebears came to reject the official French Empire. In this sense, France’s traditional dominance is disintegrating. Niger is only the latest country in the region to undergo a coup, after Mali in 2020 and 2021 and Burkina Faso (twice) in 2022 – both former colonies that also gained independence from France in 1960. All express increasing resentment towards the French, and indeed the west, while rival powers including Russia, Turkey and China are ready to exploit the situation. Juntas in Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali have already warned that any attempt to restore Bazoum in Niger via military intervention will be viewed as a declaration of war. Troops working for Wagner, the Russian mercenary group, are meanwhile operating within Niger’s neighbours, and have offered their support to the Nigeriens. This presentation contains images that were used under the Fair Use Policy and Creative Commons License. For copyright matters relating to this video or channel, please contact us directly, and we'll remove any video on request: (historicalafrika@) #italy #france #Africa #nigerrepublic
