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President William Ruto and French President Emmanuel Macron during the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi. [File, Standard]
France’s search for a new foothold in Africa is increasingly leading it eastward. Having been pushed out of large parts of the Sahel, Paris is determinedly looking to Kenya and East African region as the launch pad for a renewed African strategy.
But the disquiet — violent local reaction and muted diplomatic anxiety - beneath its surface, the French may discover that East Africa will not offer the easy landing they seek. The protests that greeted French President Emmanuel Macron’s participation in the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi were more than a passing demonstration. They were an early warning that anti-French sentiment, once largely confined to Francophone Africa, is finding resonance in a region traditionally viewed as outside France’s sphere of influence. As protesters marched toward the Kenyatta International Convention Centre carrying placards denouncing French imperialism and neo-colonialism, Kenyan police responded with tear gas, arrests, and warning shots. The images quickly circulated across social media and activist networks, turning what was intended to showcase a new France-Africa partnership into a debate about France’s troubled legacy on the continent. For Paris, the timing could not be worse. For a decade now, France has suffered a dramatic erosion of influence across the Sahel. Military-led governments in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have expelled French troops, terminated defence arrangements, and openly challenged Paris’ political and economic presence.
