Nairobi The smell of waste is loose. More than 150 students have been cramped in one classroom in Wangu Elementary School, which is known to rise one of Africa’s largest open -air locations.
Teacher Linus Peter introduces the 8th grade students in the programming language. He divides his presentation on the wall on the wall.
The network connection is slow and unreliable, but it exists.
The school became part of an EU project established in 2023, which will connect schools to the network across Kenya. The EU support has now been brought to the Internet for 80 schools, with the goal of still having 700 schools.
The area is poor, and Peter estimates that only a few students will have access to the Internet at home.
The project is an example of what the EU is doing in Africa. The project is part of the EU’s Global Gateway program, through which the EU is trying to get investments, especially in developing countries such as Kenya, with hundreds of billions of euros.
One of the architects of the program was Jutta Urpilainenwho was responsible for international partnerships in 2019-2024 as the EU Commissioner.
Urpilainen was called Africa Commissioner. This story tells what Urpilainen did as a commissioner and how the EU Africa policy developed in his commission years.
Prestigious EU affairs Politico Gave grades to commissioners 2019-2024. Urpilainen received a rating on the C scale A (best) – f (worst). Only a few commissioners got the same or weaker rating.
Urpilainen commented on Politico’s grade later in this story.
Crises messed up ambitious plans
Ursula von der Leyenin The first Commission (2019-2024) had high expectations of cooperation with Africa. The EU was looking for partners to solve global problems.
The Africa strategy emphasizes the cooperation between the EU and Africa in green transition, digitalisation and increasing sustainable investment.
Objectives were difficult to achieve, especially when considering the crises that sold the world, says the researcher Christine Hackenesch from German Idos Research Institute specializing in development and sustainability. Russia soon attacked Ukraine after an important EU and African Union summit.
– The ambition was waning, says the researcher in turn Maddalena Procopio A think tank from the European Council of Foreign Relations (ECFR).
EU counterpart to Chinese Belt and Road strategy
According to Hackenesch, the EU launched two major operating models in Urpilainen’s Commissioner years: Team Europe and Global Gateway.
Team Europe means that EU institutions, Member States and financial institutions joined forces and coordinated their work better. Urpilainen himself considers the model one of his most significant achievements as Commissioners.
The Global Gateway is thus an investment strategy through which the EU intends to get EUR 300 billion investments in energy, digitalisation and traffic by 2027. Half of the amount of the EU intends to head to Africa.
By the end of 2023, a total of 179 billion projects were on the move.
The whole pot consists of grants, loans, guarantees and private investments.
According to Urpilainen, Global Gateway has new financial instruments, such as guarantees that are to attract investments in the private sector.
The strategy has been described as the EU in return for the Chinese Giant Belt and Road project, through which China has funded ports, railways and wind power around the world -and at the same time increased its influence.
According to Urpilainen, Global Gateway gives the EU to be able to succeed in the global competition.
“In this situation where the United States is curling inwards, the EU will have a tremendous opportunity to strengthen its global role,” he says.
From the donor to a partner, private money included
What does Urpilainen himself estimated to have left his successor as a legacy?
– I think the bar is raised high. The EU changed from a traditional development cooperation to build an equal partnership, says Urpilainen.
According to him, member states and companies also got a bigger role in the EU’s Africa work.
According to researcher Procopion, the idea of Global Gateway is good because it seeks more private money in Africa. However, the operating environment often does not attract companies.
According to Procopio, the EU has not succeeded in implementing its good ideas.
Hackenesch, on the other hand, is good that the program responds to the wishes of Africa.
“There are shortcomings in the infrastructure of many African countries,” he says.
He criticizes the EU for its expectations it creates by talking about 150 billion investments in African countries. The Union when it attracts investors with only a little on their own money.
“It may be difficult to leverage investments with quite a bit of money the EU uses its auxiliary budget,” says Hackenesch.
“The situation is largely unchanged”
Kenyan’s AcePis Impact House Director Kenneth Okwaroh According to the EU and African cooperation, there has been no change, even though rhetoric is.
“When you look at the amount of help, investments or trade, the situation is largely unchanged,” Okwaroh says in Nairobi.
The participation of young people is also highlighted by the EU’s Kenyan Ambassador Henriette Geiger.
Urpilainen started a group of 25 young people from around the world. The group offers young people’s perspectives to support EU work. Now the model has been copied around the world.
Competition for influence
The Politico magazine justified the poor grade of Urpilainen with suspicions that Urpilainen did not have enough influence to defend Europe in geopolitical competition. Urpilainen interprets the magazine that the EU was not able to meet the challenge of China.
– I agree very much about this. I moved the job, but there is work left, he says.
He recalls that China started the Belt and Tie project more than ten years ago.
– EUR 179 billion investments have been set up and over 200 projects are underway around the world. Yes, there are little muscles to start them, he says.
Procopio is not surprised by the Urpilainen grade. The Commission had trouble getting projects that would benefit Europe and not just Africa.
He points out that the Urpilainen ward was not used to working with the private sector.
“It really requires a change in dynamics,” says Procopio.
The EU cannot replace the hole left by the US
Now the United States is drastically cutting its help. Geiger, an EU ambassador to Kenya, says the EU cannot replace the hole left by the United States. He predicts that the EU’s auxiliary budget can shrink in the future.
Geiger points out that international donors have replaced vital services in Kenya. The EU wants to take more responsibility for basic services. The EU, on the other hand, could strengthen work against corruption.
– [Kenian] The government could better provide basic services if corruption were to be controlled, he says.
In the video below, Geiger commented on whether the US auxiliary surgery will provide space for China and Russia.