If we were still wondering if the world remains on a precipice or if the international community is pulling itself together to move on, Donald Trump made sure we doubted no more. Addressing the 75th UN General Assembly on September 22 he made sure his electorate — and the world — heard his message on China and the pandemic: “We must hold accountable the nation which unleashed this plague on to the world — China,” he said.
The international crisis the pandemic has brought continues to fester and poison international politics. What began as a trade war by Trump to force China to amend what his administration sees as unfair trading practices — which Beijing considers a deliberate attempt to curb its rise — has deteriorated to such an extent that UN secretary-general António Guterres warned in his opening address against the threat of a new cold war between the US and China.
Hot war is only one mishap away with Chinese fighter jets circling US-backed Taiwan.
Closer to home, the economic fallout from the pandemic has just claimed its first victim. Zambia has become the first African country to ask bondholders for relief, requesting an interest holiday on its Eurobonds. If Zimbabwe could raise debt on the international markets it probably would be asking the same. SA’s own debt level is also rising alarmingly, with the economy in severe recession. It is clear that our region does not need US-China style recriminations and appeals to nationalism and popularism.
Financial rescue
What SA and Africa need is co-ordinated financial rescue packages from the traditional financial institutions — the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the African Development Bank, and new institutions such as the Brics New Development Bank. The financial packages should aim to bolster the fiscus and steady investors’ nerves in the short term, and boost investment and revitalise African trade and economic growth.
Arguably the most thoughtful and articulate of SA’s ministers, and very nearly deputy president on the Cyril Ramaphosa ticket, international relations and co-operation minister Naledi Pandor delivered a lecture on “SA’s place in the changing global order” last week, hosted by Wit University’s School of Governance. Steering diplomatically away from making specific remarks on the ongoing fight between the US and China, she reaffirmed the message that SA’s place is to provide leadership in Africa, to stand for multilateralism, to provide leadership in Africa, and to champion the interests of the Global South.
The question that needs to be raised now is whether SA has the capacity to provide effective leadership at home and in the region, so that divergent interests can be united to foster economic revitalisation. The debacle two weeks ago when the ANC delegation led by secretary-general Ace Magashule mangled the mission to meet the governing party in Zimbabwe shows that SA is not going to be leading anyone away from this precipice.
Sent by Ramaphosa to speak to its sister organisation across the Limpopo river, the ANC delegation was found wanting on every point. It came back empty handed, without even achieving a face-saving photo opportunity with civil society leaders. Moreover, Magashule had to apologise for abusing state resources and promise to pay back the cost of the ANC delegation using an SA air force plane — against lockdown regulations and while not on government business.
While the debacle may have scored points for Ramaphosa against the ANC’s Magashule faction, it also demonstrates a governing party paralysed by infighting. A divided ANC will be hard pressed to offer leadership at home, never mind uniting African leaders to pull together at this time of crisis.
• Dr Kuo, a former a lecturer at the Shanghai International Studies University in China, is a research associate at the University of Pretoria’s Gordon Institute of Business Science.
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