UK Agreement With African States Shows It Can Strike Free Trade Deals – Prof

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has pledged to invest four billion euros into various African economies. Speaking to Radio Sputnik, David Collins, professor of international economic law at City, University of London, has explained London's rationale and shared his views on whether Britain is facing competition from China on the African continent.

Sputnik: How important is the opportunity to secure deals with African nations for the UK now?

David Collins: Well, I think this is a fantastic development. Strictly speaking the UK can't formally negotiate and certainly not conclude binding treaties while it is still a member of the EU. But there is nothing to prevent constructive discussions to the point of approaching near-binding commitment and obviously the formal signature on the ratification procedure for these treaties will take place next year after Brexit has been finalized And I think it's a great development. In many ways the development here is a symbolic one because it shows that the UK is in fact as many doubted, but many suspected is able to conclude free trade agreements. And this is the first of many and I'm sure the other ones are coming soon. Most likely Australia and Canada will be the next ones in the line. 

Sputnik: Why do you think UK Prime Minister Theresa May put her bets on Africa? I mean, the UK's goods and services are minimal right now to Africa. China is very much involved in Africa with its Belt and Road Initiative. It's a great competitor on the continent. A lot of Chinese investment has been put into not just developing infrastructure but into lot of, you know, businesses, Chinese-African businesses on the continent. Do you think UK efforts can really amount to much?

David Collins: Oh yes, absolutely. I think there are probably two main reasons why Prime Minister May focused on Africa. And the first is the devotion to the Commonwealth which we have heard so much about. I think, the Commonwealth has been neglected and a majority of Commonwealth countries are in Africa. And we've heard a lot particularly about the Commonwealth. This is Prime Minister May very much putting her money where her mouth was, we weren't just saying this and we're absolutely committed to it. And obviously foreign investment and trade is a massive tool for economic growth and for development and I think this is precisely what Africa needs. And the second main reason is look, Brexit is very much future-oriented. I think we've spent too much time looking on the consequences of Brexit in the months after April 1st or even the years. Let's look into the rest of the 21st century and a large portion of the world's economic growth in the second half of the 21st century is going to be in Africa. So, this is ground work that's being laid now for benefits that won't be possibly received for a generation. 

Sputnik: What about China? China could be a big partner for the UK and one that certainly could increase its influence out of the European Union. Can you comment on China and do you think it's more wise for Theresa May to pursue being a competitor to China on the African continent or actually just, you know, having closer relations with China?  

David Collins: I don't know that the frame here, in terms of competition is the right thing, maybe that's one way of looking at it. The UK is not going to compete with China in terms of the size of the magnitude of capital that could be invested. What the UK can do is to take advantage of the infrastructure that Chinese companies have built in Africa like the ports, like the railways, like the schools and hospitals. China is in many ways doing the world a favor by getting Africa investment-ready.

Views and opinions expressed in this article are those the speaker and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.