Economic and Security Assistance in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is a vast and diverse region encompassing a population of about 600 million (Strategy Committee, 1993, p. 56). U.S. national security interests in the region include maintaining access to the vital mineral resources located there. Another U.S. interest in Sub-Saharan Africa is that of keeping shipping lines open. Regarding this point, a Report of the Secretary of Defense (1993) has indicated that many of the nation's allies in the region "are vulnerable to indirect intervention or subversion by more powerful neighbors and by Libya, Iraq, and Iran" (p. 129). U.S. interests in Sub-Saharan Africa also include economic development and the creation of new markets (Strategy Committee, 1993, p. 57). U.S. policy-makers are further concerned with the attainment of political stability and the promotion of democracy and human rights. These factors are considered relevant to U.S. interests because of the heritage of African Americans, and also because human rights and democracy are seen as contributing "to stability and to the general betterment of Africans" (Strategy Committee, 1993, p. 58).
Related to these security interests, the United States has certain national strategic objectives in Sub-Saharan Africa. As noted by Schraeder (1993), the highest priority is placed on "the promotion of multiparty democracy and adherence to internationally accepted standards of human rights" (p. 26). Another strategic goal in the region is that of economic reform and the development of free market systems. As in the case of democratic reform, economic reform is valued for its contribution to increased political stability (Sub-Saharan Africa and the United States, 1992, p. 570). U.S. objectives in Sub-Saharan Africa are dependent upon the maintenance of peace and stability in the region. As such, the United States must be prepared to deal with potential conflicts when t...