A reconstruction plan and massive aid for Africa

The one-time US presidential candidate and civil right leader Rev. Jesse Jackson was in Nigeria and called for African version of the Marshall plan, a reconstruction plan and aid given to Europe at the end of Second World War. Rev. Jackson said that Africa deserves a massive assistance as a result of damage done by colonialism and naked aggression that has left the continent poor and downgraded.

Jackson was in Nigeria to address Kuramo biennial conference, a dialogue on law and developmen in lagos state, Nigeria. His words, “In order for countries to overcome disparities, they need to get fair trade and favored-nation trade status to cover the ravages of war and occupation and colonization. The formula was good for European reconstruction - it should apply to Africa."

“The Marshall Plan, put forward by the U.S. to rebuild Europe after the war with the Axis Powers, cost roughly $13 billion at the time. Jackson offered no estimate on what a similar program aimed at road, sewer and building construction would cost across the continent, but said Western nations had an obligation to the countries they once occupied.”

Associated Press reported that,“Jackson acknowledged that he once benefited from Nigeria's largesse: he toured South Africa to protest apartheid in the 1980s with the financial backing of then-military dictator and current presidential aspirant Ibrahim Babangida. Babangida left power in 1993 as a reported $12 billion in oil revenues went missing.”

Rev. Jesse Jackson is not a stranger to issues affecting Africa and he has been a vocal supporter of Africa. In the era of his presidential candidacy he did call for debt cancellation and lower interest rates on the loans given to African nations.