MIDRAND, JOHANNESBURG – The Pan-African Parliament (PAP) debate on the Africa-EU Partnership turned into a sharp critique of existing economic models, with two Gambian legislators demanding an end to exploitative deals and debt-fueled aid.
Speaking during the debate session on Friday, PAP Members (MP) made it clear that future partnerships must prioritize African investment and mutual benefit.
MP Suwaibou Touray of Gambia immediately focused on the financial paradox, arguing that without a proper investment framework, agreements will inevitably favor the European side.
“Money will come from EU and goes back to EU,” he warned, highlighting the pattern where development funds often circulate back to the donor nations via contracts and consultants.
His core demand was to break the cycle of dependency: “We don’t want to get loans in order to pay loans.” Africa must achieve a genuine “win-win situation” in all partnerships.
His colleague, MP Hon. Sulayman Saho, concurred, asserting that “Economic exploitation… brought Africa down.”
He stressed that any new relationship must be non-exploitative and urged the continent to conduct a rigorous self-assessment.
Saho argued that African nations must clearly define their own interests before entering into agreements and critically review whether the aid received is truly “progressive and sustainable.”
Saho also extended the debate beyond economics to humanitarian concerns, bringing up the fraught issue of migration. He called for a “balanced view,” demanding that the treatment of African migrants in EU countries be a central issue of the partnership.
The legislators’ unified message underscores a growing continental resolve: the Africa-EU relationship must fundamentally shift from an aid and loan model to one of strategic, equitable investment that benefits African citizens and drives sustainable development.
