Alliance of Sahel States: A model for Africa?

This is the question.  Is this a model for Africa?  I would enthusiastically say, YES!  Is it perfect?  Of course not.  Is it hard? Of course yes.  Are these countries being pressurised?  Of course.  Are they withstanding the pressure?  Yes, and they even have an international Solidarity Conference to spread the word.

This is how it is supposed to be done in Africa.  They need to break ties with the hegemonic forces and there has to be a plan and a political will to support the tie-breaking.  They need to be ready to protect themselves.

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The Alliance of Sahel States’ revolutionary posture and its transformative impact on Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger has captured the imaginations of Pan-Africanists across the continent. But it’s also clear that the anti-neo-colonial project needs defending, being at risk from the very forces it rejects. To highlight the issue – and take stock of the AES’s achievements so far – a special three-day conference is being held in Niamey, titled “In Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel.”

(A young and outstanding Pan-African news organization, African Stream is under severe western attack.  So severe that even Anthony Blinken had to make a speech against them – *see below.  This thread is on X as well and easier to handle, but let’s just be patient and follow it on Telegram which is still streaks better than X, not technologically, but in terms of openness. The videos and speeches are on the telegram channel.)

https://t.me/AfricanStream/7772

African Stream’s Inemesit Richardson is on the ground in Niamey, Niger, at the Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel taking place 19-21 November.

Government officials and civil society groups met for three days to discuss strengthening the revolution in Africa’s Sahel region. Hundreds of Nigeriens represented women’s organisations, student organisations, trade unions and other groups.

International delegates arrived from Kenya, Zambia, Guinea-Bissau, South Africa, Venezuela, Cuba, Ghana, Benin, Ivory Coast, the United States and China, making it perhaps the most international Alliance of Sahel States (AES) conference.

The conference’s organisers—West African People’s Organisation and Pan-Africanism Today— gave rousing opening speeches. The Governor of Niamey Region and Niger Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine (@A_Mahamanezeine on X) also spoke.

https://t.me/AfricanStream/7776

In the first photo, Richardson spoke with Abdourahamane Elhadj Oumarou (@abder2810 on X), Niger section leader of grassroots political group Urgences Panafricanistes (@UrgencesPanaf on X) and the official spokesperson for Nigerien civil society during the opening ceremony. He is one of Niger’s well-respected anti-imperialist voices, with decades of experience organising against French and U.S. neo-colonialism.

A panel on the global fight against imperialism featured speakers, such as Venezuelan Vice-Minister for North America Carlos Ron (@CarlosJRonVE on X) and Socialist Party of Zambia (@SPZambia on X) founder and President Fred M’membe (@drfredmmembe on X). They shared their experiences and that of their respective countries. M’membe emphatically declared that the time has come to dispel all imperialist propaganda regarding military coups d’état and lend support to the AES. Progressive forces worldwide heeded the call by coming together in Niamey.

https://t.me/AfricanStream/7779

We spoke to M’membe after the panel. His clarity about the primacy of the AES countries within the contemporary Pan-African struggle was a breath of fresh air. For decades, regionalist blocs and frameworks have defined Africa, so it was refreshing to see the revolutionaries of Southern Africa and West Africa reuniting like this.

On day 2, a women-led panel discussed their essential role in shaping the Pan-African struggle within the AES, across Africa and worldwide. Niger’s mass women’s organisations consist of thousands of members working tirelessly to defend and protect the AES. Following the panel, members of Nigerien grassroots organisations flocked to the podium to express support and appreciation for the role women have played in liberating Niger from French and U.S. neo-colonialism

Following that panel, we met and spoke with two organisers in Niger. Madame Abdou Mariatou is the founder and president of Femmes Engagee pour le Sauvegarde de la Patrie (Women Engaged to Safeguard the Homeland), one of the mass women’s organisations shaping the contours of the Nigerien struggle. Ibrahim Hamidou is a prominent socialist trade unionist who also organises in solidarity with Cuba.

Day 2’s final panel on youths’ role within the Pan-African struggle featured Booker Ngesa Omole (@bookerbiro on X), the General Secretary of the Communist Party Marxist Kenya (CPM-K) (@communistske on X). He clarified that it’s not just about uplifting youth but also understanding their class reality. For example, Omole pointed out that young people in the family of now-overthrown Nigerien former President Mohamed Bazoum will not have the same class interests as the majority of AES youth.

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African Stream is under attack! 🧵 pic.twitter.com/6JZNxF3dA6

— African Stream (@african_stream) September 19, 2024