France Soft-Power Pivot in Africa Has Begun

Macron’s announcement of MansA, a new African cultural center near the Eiffel Tower, may sound like recognition. But in today’s geopolitical climate, it is hard to separate this kind of cultural diplomacy from France’s desperate attempt to rebuild influence after its humiliating fallout with several postcolonial West African countries.

The real question is simple: who will this center actually serve?

Will it give real space to African artists, thinkers, and independent cultural institutions, or will it become another soft-power corridor where African elites, diplomats, ministers, business leaders, and foreign interests gather under the convenient language of “partnership”?