Many countries in Africa are being driven to swallow their national pride due to needs ranging from dwindling foreign exchange receipts, rising security threats, economic diplomacy and worrying economic outlook to allow competing global military powers to build bases in their countries. As at the last count, no other continent has the number of foreign military bases, and presence as Africa.

These military presence are not necessarily deployed by the United Nations, thus they are not on a UN sanctioned peace keeping operations, rather they are in Africa to protect their individual country’s interests. This development got to its head in the last two years when under the guise of fighting terrorist activities, these foreign powers are fast becoming occupying forces across the length and breadth of the African continent. Their presence however, is without attendant controversies as there have been recorded clashes with local communities and regional governments.

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Of recent, there have been discontents within the population in several Sahel countries including Mali, Niger and even in DRC has expressed their growing frustration with the presence of foreign troops. These growing protestations put to question, the real and perceived gains from these military bases for the host communities. In the last three days, there have been local demonstrations against France’s military presence in Mali while a cross section of the civil society organisations in Nigeria have previously organised protests, chanting ‘French, American and German armies, go away’

From protecting interests in resource-rich African countries, to fighting terrorism and piracy, controlling immigration and securing optimal bases to influence geopolitics, different countries advance different reasons for maintaining a military presence on the continent. In a country like Djibouti, there are about seven foreign military bases in the country. Aside from Djibouti in the horn of Africa, most of these troops and bases can be found at the other hotspot of Sahel.

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Djibouti which lies on the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait is a waypoint between Africa, India, and the Middle East. Its strategic position is the reason it hosts a record seven armies and most of the Horn of Africa’s 11 military bases. The United States, China, France, Japan and Saudi Arabia have military bases which account for more than $300m annual revenue for the former French colony.

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The United States with about 7,000 Special Forces on rotation in Africa has the highest number of foreign troops in Africa, mostly engaged in carrying out joint operations with national forces against jihadists in the Horn of Africa and the Sahel region. They also have another 2,000 soldiers who conduct training missions in about 40 African countries. The United States base in Djibouti has been used for drone operations in Somalia and Yemen, while the United Arab Emirates has used its Assab base in Eritrea for operations in Yemen.

While Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti is the United States’ only permanent military base in Africa, it has over 30 known outposts across the continent including in Uganda, South Sudan, Senegal, Niger, Gabon, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). But of recent, the United States have stated its plan to scale down its troops involvement in Africa, making way for other medium powers like Turkey cashing in on the expected vacuum from this withdrawal, a move that has drawn the criticisms of both the United States and Egypt notably.

Aside the United States, another country with huge military presence is France, who incidentally has had a longer engagement with Africa by virtue of his colonial past in the continent. France has at least 7,550 military personnel spread across the continent engaged in various missions, notably the 4,500-strong military presence in the Sahel region.

France also has bases in Chad, Ivory Coast and Gabon, while Indian’s has operational bases in Madagascar and Seychelles as it seeks to protect its commercial interests in the Indian Ocean. Turkey established its first overseas military base in Somalia, while the United Kingdom maintains one in Kenya. China’s first and only foreign military base in located in the strategic Djibouti Free Trade Zone which is equally being funded by China. It is seen as a move by China to gain the right foothold, and protect her growing economic interests across Africa.

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Many African governments are open to the idea of hosting foreign military bases for several reasons including the support many need to fill security gaps. Economic gains also play a significant role, as well as bilateral military agreements signed after independence. Foreign troops also play a significant role in securing friendly regimes. The African Union through its Peace and Security Council has tasked member countries to proceed with caution as they enter into agreements with foreign powers over military presence. But the question remains whether these military bases are not causing more problems than they are providing solutions in Africa.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry