France in particular has always refused to consider de-localising certain industries as Germany did, massively, to eastern Europe after 1992. Denouncing such grey money is easier than helping North African countries escape the pitfalls of youth unemployment and the informal economy. The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded Europe just how dependent it is on China, where 80% of the active ingredients in the medicines it manufactures are made. Africa is, to a greater degree than most observers in Europe care to acknowledge, lost to Europe. Do France and its European partners wish to lose Tunisia and its neighbours to an expanded Silk Road?

Source: The North Africa Journal April 11, 2020 17:37 UTC