President Ali Bongo by Chatham House @flickr
Announcements that the small West African nation Gabon
topped the list for the most promising retail markets in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to US consultancy A.T. Kearneyâs African Retail Development Index, took its neighbors and the retail world by surprise. Rarely spoken about in the international media, Gabon is set for grow by 5.5% in 2016 and its steady middle class and urbanized population means it is about to see a great influx of international investment.
Achieving independence from France in 1960, the 1.5 million nation is Africa’s fifth largest oil producer, with exports of crude accounting for approximately 80% of export revenues. But while El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba, Ali Bongo’s father and the country’s President for over four decades, largely relied on relations with France to stymie the economy along with oil revenues, President Ali Bongo has sought to move away from its former colonial master and diversify oil dependent Gabon. In order to achieve its goal of becoming an emerging economic market by 2025, Ali Bongo has tried to lure investors into the manufacturing, mining and tourism sectors, and hopes that the country can become a regional investment hub by extending road infrastructure. In light of these ambitions, the President and his team have been working closely with the World Bank to “reduce poverty by improving the business environment and fostering the development of small and medium size enterprises” as well as ensuring that women can benefit from the new jobs created.
But despite efforts by the country to break away from its former colonial master, French authorities have been largely invested is undermining Gabon and President Ali Bongo’s reputation since relations soured after he took over after his father’s death in 2009. It is alleged that Omar Bongo, at the helm of the country for over four decades, used the country’s oil revenues to amass a large fortune including several properties in France, secret bank accounts in Monaco, and a never-ending list of luxury vehicles and art.
In light of a lawsuit filed by Transparency International, France’s prosecutors have been amassing information about the Bongo family’s assets in attempts to shed some light on the allegations of money laundering and fraud, while the family slowly battles out who gets what. While Ali Bongo’s sister Pascaline Bongo, dubbed the token “African princess”, has been pushing to ensure she is the sole beneficiary of any lush inheritance, President Ali Bongo has already stated that he was keen to give away two properties in Paris, his father’s residence in the country’s capital, Libreville, and all the funds from his part of the inheritance in order to assist in the development of education for Gabon’s youth. Despite accusations that President Bongo is seeking to curry favor from the population ahead of next year’s elections, his aide, Igor Nyambie Simard, cited that the recent “catastrophic” results of nationwide school tests had spurred the leader to dedicate his funds to ensuring the development of Gabon’s youth and the country as a whole.
While France has been keen to get involved in the investigations of the origin of some of Africa’s leaders assets, it has seldom applied the same policies to its own companies who have benefited from favorable circumstances in countries like Gabon. French corporations such as BNP Paris and oil giant Total have long been known to have taken advantage of a previously unstable Gabon, and certain French businesses are still said to control over 30% of certain market sectors. Ali Bongo’s Chief of Staff, Maixent Accrombessi, recently declared that “Gabon has been like a drinking trough for the biggest French companies, who under Omar Bongo, have been behind unprecedented crimes, illicit agreements, abuse of public goods and abuse of their dominant position,” lashing out at the French justice system for failing to take notice of such abuses.
As Gabon celebrates 55 years of independence from France this year, President Ali Bongo has made clear that as he seeks to diversity and strengthen Gabon’s economy and put the country on the world map, French investors were still welcome, but they “would receive no special treatment”, in a strong indication that the country is ready to part ways with its formally questionable relationship with France. Becoming a top retail market is just a first step, and Gabon can look forward to limiting its dependence on oil while strengthening manufacturing, mining and tourism opportunities to become an emerging power by 2025. By reducing the influence that France has on its economy, President Ali Bongo and his team can ensure that the former status quo of a creeping Françafrique is finally put to bed.