In a remarkable turn in Denmark’s international politics, Tanzania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, January Makamba, has called for a radical change in the Nordic countries’ approach to Africa. At the annual Nordic-African Foreign Ministers Meeting in Copenhagen, attended by 26 African and five Nordic countries, there was a significant shift proposed from emergency aid to trade. January Makamba criticized the current model in which emergency aid dominates and argued that this keeps African nations in a passive role. “The problem is not emergency aid itself, but the disproportionate allocation of resources towards emergency aid. We need a balance where trade is prioritized higher,” Makamba stated after the meeting. The Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, has also signaled a new direction with an upcoming Africa strategy that focuses on shifting from ‘aid to trade’. This approach requires a more pragmatic and less idealistic approach to cooperation with African countries, even when these countries may not necessarily share Danish values.
This new strategy comes at a time when China’s influence on the continent is growing, with a focus on trade and infrastructure rather than traditional emergency aid. The question of whether Denmark should emulate the Chinese model has been a subject of debate, but Makamba emphasizes that it is not about copying China, but about necessary pragmatism. This development may mark a new era in the relationship between Denmark and Africa, where trade and economic cooperation will play a greater role than ever before.