No room for the world’s poorest in Merkel’s plan
The G20 only discusses/addresses Africa when troubles arise.
Now Africa’s most successful countries are being considered for economic aid.
It’s a plan that disregards those who would most need it.
There has to be a real problem for Africa to be a topic at
the G20 summit.
At the beginning of this decade, there was danger of the world’s
richest countries not reaching their modest UN targets for combating poverty. And
so there was talk of help for Africa in Toronto in 2010.
In 2014, the world’s most powerful countries feared a global
outbreak of Ebola, of which at least 11,000 people fell victim in West Africa. Subsequently
an official summit statement was given in Brisbane.
And in 2017? The German G20 presidency’s announcement of the
summit topic, delivered by the German Chancellery, initially sounds extremely
positive: with the cooperation of African nations, a better climate for
investment will be established. (It's) a new deal for Africa’s wealth and prosperity,
so to speak.
But question arises: why now? Ugly images immediately call
to mind: Central and Northern Europe predominantly walled themselves off to African
refugees last year. And thousands drown in the Mediterranean every year when
their non-seaworthy vessels sink.
Those who have perished remind us that, among the over 50
countries that make up the African continent, only South Africa belongs to the
G20. And that tens of thousands – driven out by war, poverty, and a lack of
opportunities – wish to emigrate. For this reason, the unspoken/unuttered motto
with regard to policies about Africa has been to border people in and prevent
their mobility.
Since Africa is a topic for the summit, it is also now the stage for the usually low-profile German minister for economic cooperation
and development Gerd Müller, whose proposal is entitled the Marshall Plan with
Africa. According to Müller, economic growth is Africa’s key to prosperity,
progress that is in Germany’s interest. Investors will bring in lucrative
business, causing fewer people make the precarious journey to Europe.
Data from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
show how hesitant German investors have been to date: German investment and
trading volume with sub-Saharan countries is negligible. Fewer than 1% of all
global direct investments from Germany are made there.
The fantastic four
Nobody expected a musical revelation, but 4:44, Jay-Z’s newest album, is a
resounding success all the same. He even makes a profound apology for his infidelity
towards wife Beyoncé.
Let’s talk about money. Raw quantity thereof is the reason
why Jay-Z’s newest album has been greatly anticipated by media outlets that
could not be more removed from the world of hip hop since the announcement of
its release several weeks ago.
And now he’s released it –first exclusively on his own
streaming service Tidal, of course. It’s called 4:44, which according to Jay-Z was the time when the song washed
over him in his sleep. He claims it’s his career best, which began 20 years ago
with the release of Reasonable Doubt.
In 4:44, the
47-year-old is coming from a decidedly mature place when he apologizes to wife
Beyoncé for his affair, which she had already hinted at/alluded to on her outstanding
latest album Lemonade and for which her
sister Solange also famously slapped him. And while Jay-Z is now portraying
himself as family man and responsible spouse, one hardly misses the second
layer, perhaps the meta-level, when one types in the album’s title while
pressing the shift key and three dollar signs appear.
There isn’t a rapper alive who doesn’t claim to be the
richest and the best, Jay-Z included. But in his case, it just happens to be
true. So many of his albums successfully defend this superlative in addition to
his 21 Grammies, particularly those early ones from 2003 when he took some time
off to become CEO of the storied Def Jam Records. Financially speaking, he
lives up to the namesake of his company Roc-a-Fella, which, in addition to
producing music, sells clothing and champagne and manages athletes.
A rapper in the billionaires’ circle
Shawn Carter, Jay-Z’s given name, will soon be rubbing
shoulders with Scrooge McDuck and Donald Trump in the billionaires’ club. But don’t expect him to
warm up to the latter: the Carters are known for being friends with the Obamas
and for having supported Hillary Clinton. Jay-Z comes from a disadvantaged
inner-city background and places much importance on where he came from in his
13th album.
At least topically-speaking, he’s raised the stakes this time
and appears to be trying to match the critical and enraged tone of Beyoncé. But
in fact his artistic shift in focusing on black inner city life to addressing
his African heritage has been underway for some time now. In his last album Magna Carta, he invoked Africa in the song
“Ocean” and in “Picasso, Baby”, he accused haters from the rap elite of being
tone-deaf when he bragged about purchasing high art à la Leonardo, Warhol and
Basquiat, all whilst proclaiming himself the new Picasso. He was in the right
place when he rapped tracks from his album for six hours straight in MoMA
visitors’ faces (including performance artist Marina Abramovic’s).
