What is the African Manifesto

African Manifesto

The word African specifically relates to the indigenous people of the African continent and their descents in the Diaspora ( Caribbean , Americas , Arabia , etc). The race-nationality model such as that currently employed by African-American, African-Brazilian and African-Caribbean communities more accurately describes the identity whilst fully articulating the history and geopolitical reality.

The miscellaneous usage of the label 'Black' within this site reflects its contemporary use as a means to denote a specific

sociocultural and political context. It is recognized as a colloquial term that was fashioned as a reactionary concept to derogatory racial epithets in the 1960's. It is offensive when used as a racial classification code word to denote African people. Other such denigrating terminology when made in reference to African culture, heritage or identity are 'Tribe', 'Sub-Saharan Africa', or 'black Africa '.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

The Emperor Gets a New Wardrobe

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently had 40 African leaders donned in his signature raw silk kurtas (aka Modi jackets) and safas at the closing gala of the India-Africa Forum Summit in late October. The gesture symbolized “stitching together the fabric of new partnerships with Africa,” wrote author Vikas Swarup (of Slumdog Millionaire fame), on Twitter. As India tightens its grip on economic powerhouse status, the Summit is part of a broader strategy for India to gain greater access to growing economies in Africa.

India also announced at the Summit a commitment to offer billions in credit, build infrastructure for health, agriculture, start a development fund of $100 million and provide 50,000 scholarships for African students (to mention a few). India has clearly taken note of China’s success in a $200+ billion courting of the continent. On a purely business level, it makes sense for India to leverage the popularity of development discourse to infiltrate Africa. This way, the subcontinent positions itself both as generous cousin and friendly proprietor.

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