Macron Begins Tour of East Africa

French President Emmanuel Macron has begun a three-country tour of East Africa aimed at rebuilding ties and redefining France’s role on the continent after setbacks in its former West African colonies. The tour started in Egypt on Saturday and will continue to Kenya, where Macron will cohost the first “Africa Forward” summit in an English-speaking country since he took office in 2017.

It concludes in Ethiopia with meetings at the African Union headquarters. Several agreements between French and Kenyan companies are expected to be signed to boost economic and commercial cooperation.

Paris is attempting to move away from its traditional postcolonial influence toward what officials describe as closer, win-win cooperation focused on entrepreneurship, climate and youth engagement. The tour is viewed as an effort to repair economic and security ties while addressing rising anti-French sentiment across parts of Africa.

France once maintained extensive political and economic sway in its former colonies in West and Central Africa. That dominance has eroded amid growing demands by African states for more equal partnerships, tighter control over natural resources and alliances with a wider range of international partners.

Anti-French sentiment has intensified alongside political instability and military coups in the Sahel. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger expelled French forces after years of operations against armed groups that many locals viewed as ineffective. In the resulting security vacuum, the new military rulers turned toward other partners, including Russia.

Russian influence in the region expanded in part by capitalizing on existing anti-French feeling. The French leader’s East Africa visit follows these losses in West Africa and represents an attempt to reset relations in new regions. Officials hope deeper cultural, educational and business engagement can help compete with the expanding presence of China and Russia.

“Such efforts are seen as France’s attempt to reinvent its postcolonial relationship with African states and compete with powers like China and Russia.”

Questions remain about whether the policy shift will restore meaningful influence. Observers note that broader changes across Africa, including stronger assertions of sovereignty, continue to reshape external relationships on the continent. Separately, Liberia’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament faced criticism this week after omitting key national issues from its report.

Nigerian parliamentarian Awaji-Inombek Dagomie Abiante highlighted the absence of the Guinea-Liberia border dispute and the alleged expulsion of Representative Yekeh Kolubah. The border tensions escalated after reports that Guinean soldiers raised their flag on contested territory in Liberia’s Lofa County.

The omission was described by Liberian economist George Gyude Wisner as disappointing and embarrassing, arguing it undermined the regional body’s role in promoting peace and accountability. Wisner rejected claims that sensitive matters could be withheld as standard practice, stating that issues involving international peace and security must be disclosed.

The episode illustrates broader concerns within ECOWAS about member states downplaying domestic challenges in regional forums.

Africa, traditional Western partnerships are being reassessed. Many governments are seeking diversified alliances and greater leverage over their resources. The French tour coincides with these trends. Macron is scheduled to hold talks on peace and security in Addis Ababa on Wednesday before concluding the visit.