Why France wants its African grip back as former colonies push for sovereignty

France's strategy of maintaining influence across Africa, despite challenges from former colonies, stems from the continent's strategic, economic, and geopolitical value. This value encompasses mineral wealth, markets, military positioning, and political influence. These assets were amassed during colonial rule and are now preserved through ongoing relationships.

The importance of the issue became more apparent following France's withdrawal from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, the creation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), and Senegal's decision to end France's permanent military presence. Other African nations have strengthened ties with Russia and sought increased control over resources and economic affairs.

Jean Bwasa, a DRC Pan-African analyst and human rights activist, argues that France's determination to retain influence must be seen through the lens of its historical relationship with Africa. He believes the issue revolves around access to resources, political leverage, strategic positioning, and economic systems that allowed France to exert disproportionate influence long after its colonies gained independence.

Central to this argument is the CFA franc, a monetary arrangement rooted in French colonial rule that continues to tie France and parts of West and Central Africa together. French officials have imposed this currency on ECOWAS and AES nations, which Bwasa claims has helped France maintain political, economic, and strategic superiority.

The AES governments are now challenging this structure, seeking greater monetary sovereignty and the creation of a common currency. This move represents a broader campaign to break away from colonial legacies. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have not formally introduced a new currency, but their leaders have discussed increased monetary independence and the potential for a common currency.

The shift in economic dynamics is significant, as these nations prefer to process resources domestically rather than exporting raw materials and importing finished goods. This demand for local processing can foster employment, industrial capacity, and enhanced national wealth. The Sahel nations view exporting raw minerals and commodities while importing manufactured products as a strategy that leaves their economies overly dependent on external powers.

By processing resources locally, they argue, they can cultivate a more self-sufficient and wealthier economy. Human-rights lawyer and Pan-African political activist Gabriel Shumba acknowledges France's substantial interests in Africa, but approaches the subject from a strategic standpoint rather than a purely anti-colonial perspective.

The Sahel region, which spans the southern edge of the Sahara, is of strategic importance to France due to factors like intelligence gathering, counter-terrorism efforts, military deployment, protection of French nationals and interests, regional trade routes, migration, and access to strategic resources like Niger's uranium. Instability in this region can have far-reaching consequences, impacting migration, terrorism, trade, and European security.

For France, losing influence in the Sahel means more than losing military bases; it also diminishes its ability to project political and strategic power in a region it once wielded significant influence over. However, Shumba emphasizes that France cannot claim a right to permanent military bases in its former colonies. While the departure of French troops does not necessarily mean France is abandoning Africa, it does suggest that the country cannot realistically reinstate the old Françafrique order, a term describing France's close post-colonial political, economic, and security relationships with its former African colonies.

France's influence in the Sahel is now facing unprecedented pressure, with Russia, China, Türkiye, the Gulf states, and other powers expanding their political, economic, and security partnerships across the continent. The AES governments' strengthened ties with Moscow have presented Russia as an alternative partner for France, intensifying the stakes for Paris. As a result, the Sahel's strategic autonomy becomes a critical issue.