Africa-Press – South-Africa. The US moved an inch closer to appointing ambassadors for South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Sudan, and South Sudan, with President Joe Biden’s nominees appearing before the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy.
Reuben E Brigety II, 48, the ambassadorial nominee for South Africa said if confirmed he would practice “Ubuntu diplomacy” which some academics refer to as an African philosophical worldview that increasingly gained prominence since South Africa’s independence transition in 1994.
“In practising Ubuntu diplomacy, I will ensure that official US engagement with the government and people of South Africa is firmly rooted in the principles of common cause and mutual recognition,” he said.
He also noted that South Africa was experiencing shifting electoral politics, rising corruption, and economic inequality.
But once confirmed in the role, his key areas of interest would be climate change, the environment, education, and employment creation for the youth in South Africa.
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Brigety is an academic who was the vice-chancellor and president of the University of the South, in Sewanee, Tennessee.
For Zambia, there’s Michael C Gonzales, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service who is set to leave his position as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of African Affairs.
He said that if confirmed, he would work towards helping Zambians achieve the “Zambian dream” through economic partnerships both in the private and public sectors, notwithstanding a continued relationship with humanitarian agencies providing assistance in education, health, and nutrition.
“The Zambian people have spoken. Like us, they too demand a more perfect union. They too dare to envision the Zambian Dream. And, if confirmed, I would be honoured to shepherd American support for its realisation, to our mutual benefit,” he said.
One of the most interesting foreign services jobs on offer was in Kenya, a strategic partner of the US in the fight against terrorism.
Kenya will see a transition of power as President Uhuru Kenyatta leaves office in August.
Margaret “Meg” Whitman, a billionaire businesswoman famously known for taking eBay from $5.7 million to $8 billion in sales as CEO from 1998 to 2008, could be heading to Nairobi.
“Should I be confirmed, I will continue the current US focus on supporting democracy and democratic institutions in a vibrant Kenyan society, particularly in advance of the elections in August. We want Kenya to remain a strong, reliable, and capable partner of the United States in addressing common challenges in East Africa and beyond,” she said.
Michael Anthony Battle, who, in 2009, was US ambassador to the African Union, might be returning to Africa, this time as ambassador to Tanzania.
Appearing before the committee, he emphasised the importance of Tanzania in the peace and security of East, Central, and Southern Africa which he said would be part of his agenda.
“Tanzania is also an important stabilising force in the region, and it contributes to peacekeeping in Central Africa, Sudan, and South Sudan. With the threat of terrorism and conflict in northern Mozambique on Tanzania’s southern border, maintaining a productive security relationship is now even more important,” he said.
Biden nominated John Godfrey to take up the mission in Sudan, a country where the US has not had an ambassador in 25 years, but had, instead, operated with a deputy ambassador.
Godfrey is no stranger to the region – during his time in Libya before the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, he worked on humanitarian and political issues related to Darfur; in the Counterterrorism Bureau.
With that background, he sees the nomination as a chance to continue the fight against terrorism – a key problem in the region.
“In important ways, this nomination represents a continuation of those efforts [terrorism fight]. If confirmed, I will draw on that broad experience to advance US interests in Sudan,” he said.
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The US was set to send an ambassador just under a year after the 25 October 2021 coup which had affected humanitarian work.
“Doing so [arrival in Sudan] is urgently important in light of Sudan’s economic and humanitarian crises.
“Economic reforms that would have led to debt relief and international support were paused due to the military takeover, sparking a fiscal crisis and hyperinflation,” Godfrey said.
The last nominee, Michael Adler, if confirmed, would be faced with monumental challenges, including protracted violence, extreme poverty, and famine conditions in South Sudan.
In his speech, he voiced concern about the failure of democracy in the young nation.
“This new nation, already weakened by a transitional government failing to live up to commitments made first in 2015 and then again in the 2018 peace agreement,” he said.
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