The history of humankind is a tale of crises and disasters and war, interspersed with moments of peace and calm. Each of these elements affect society in significant, if sometimes unexpected, ways. They disrupt and destroy many things and make nonsense of some assumptions on which much of human conduct is based. Which often leads to a re-examination of the premises of many things and restructuring of some of them. We may, for example, take another look at the principles and practices that govern relations of every sort and even state and inter-state organisation. In the last two years we have lived through a global pandemic that upset the way we live. We were coasting along nicely, of course having to deal with localised crises from time to time, when Covid-19 came along and interrupted all that. It killed many and left many others in grief, stretched and overwhelmed healthcare systems of many countries, even those of the more advanced, and devastated world economies. The world scrambled to deal with the pandemic. Scientists tried to understand its nature for it was new. Then, based on what had been learnt, policy makers and public health officials set out preventive measures to stem its spread and impact. Finally, they made vaccines against the virus. Just as crises have the ability to make us look again at many assumptions, they also have a way of uncovering aspects of human behaviour, such as rifts and attitudes between individuals or nations, that we try to keep hidden. Perhaps because of the strain they cause, it may be too much effort to keep some of these attitudes or divisions that may have been papered over hidden. Keeping them covered, however thinly, under such generalities as the equality of human beings becomes too much of a bother. And so all the divisions and prejudices are left to come into the open in all their ugliness. The Covid-19 pandemic revealed some of these strains in the relations between nations. It was Nothing new about that, except that all the talk about the brotherhood of humankind sometimes blurs the picture. It was an existential threat to the whole world, not limited to some territory. And so on the plus side, the response had to be universal and coordinated. Which it was, albeit to a limited degree. But the response also exposed some stark differences. First, the huge gap in wealth and science and technology. Second, it confirmed the tendency among those who have more than others, even the more advanced countries, to take care of their own first. That included hoarding of vaccines that were badly needed elsewhere. Out of this experience and the re=evaluation it triggered came something positive, especially for Africa. Africa confirmed what was already known. It is precarious to rely solely on the goodwill and bounty of others for one’s survival. A new way is needed. President Paul Kagame has, indeed, persistently made the call that the continent must build its own capacity in so many things. Africa has now moved fast to make its own vaccines. Cooperation might have suffered some knocks during the pandemic, but it remains essential and so the manufacture of African vaccine is possible because of collaboration with technology companies. The Covid-19 pandemic is, mercifully, slowing down. But just as the world is set on recovery, war breaks out in Europe and threatens the process. Already there are reports of a rise in the price of imported goods on the Rwandan market. Similar price increases are happening across the world. Like other crises, war has important, sometimes unintended, consequences. In this instance, one of them has been to create a sense of common purpose among previously fractious groups. The European Union has put aside its bickering and adopted a more or less common position against Russia. The Americans have put aside their tribal quarrels for the moment and unified against Russia. The rest of the world may now see their position in the international system more clearly. As in the case of the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine has confirmed some ugly elements in behaviour and attitudes, particularly of Ukranian officials. Stories of their treatment of Africans trying to leave Ukraine reveal open racism. Treatment of people fleeing danger in this manner is more than racism. It is heartless. The war has also exposed the hypocrisy of those who wield power and purport to be guardians of international morality. They decide what is truth, devise a narrative, write it and disseminate it and expect everyone to believe it as the truth. For them the meaning of invasion depends on who is doing it. If they are the ones invading a country and bombing everything in sight, including wedding parties, it is an act of magnanimity meant to correct a wrong or to punish a wrong doer or put an upstart in his place. It should not cause any moral outrage. Rather, we should all be grateful for their act of mercy. If it is done by someone else to assert a right or enforce an international position, it is an evil act and an outrageous war crime that must be condemned. The aggressor can only be the devil himself. As we have noted, crises are bad, but something good can come out of them. They reveal the strength of a nation, but also expose its weaknesses. Those who recognise their shortcomings and work on them come out of them stronger. And so in situations of war and crises, inequality, hypocrisy and falsification of history, Africa should learn a simple lesson: get stronger, have a bigger voice and more power. In short unite and work more closely together.
