1

Comparative Analysis of strategies in the Asian-Pacific Region and East African Region

Student’s names
Title of the Unit
 2

Abstract
The primary objective aim of the study was to identify unique policy issues within

intergovernmental organizations that play a role in strategic competition in the Asia-Pacific and

East-African region. It consisted of the policies and strategies of the United Nations and the

African Union as the main regional actors in response to the grand scheme and economic

activities of China and Japan in the East African and Horn of Africa Regions. The bitter rivalry

among the superpowers has called for a struggle in the balance of power, calling for alliances all

over the globe. However, the strategic competition among the regions has led to differences in

the frameworks and policies of intergovernmental organizations. The results indicated that

diplomacy trust and geopolitical dominance are the key motives for strategic competition within

the regions.

Key Words: Alliance, Power, Strategic competition, Policies, strategies

 3

Introduction
The rift between developing nations and developed nations has remained in existence

despite various attempts by International and National humanitarian organizations to bridge the

gap. However, studies show there has been a significant improvement in the general living

standards of developing nations, though it is not at par with global standards. The development is

attributed to various efforts by the African Union, which came into existence in 2002 alongside

the United Nations African charter, which has been in fact since 1986. The ultimate goal of this

research is to provide an overview of the current strategies and power distribution in the regions

mentioned above. Its main goal is to define unique policy issues that can help with strategic

competitions between trans-regional and regional forces in Africa and the West. Specifically, this

research was conducted with academics, policymakers, security agencies, and research students

in mind. It aims to enhance understanding and awareness of the defence, economic, foreign

systems, and other strategies implemented by these organizations by relying on relevant

integration theories.

Background and Significance of Research

African Union
The African Union referred to as AU from herein, is an intergovernmental organization

of fifty-five African member states. The Union was formed after the Organization of African

Union formed in the 20th Century era of decolonization was disbanded in 2002. Following the

decolonization of most African Countries, it became apparent there was a need for the

organization of the region to coordinate growth, security, and unity. Thus, the Organization of

African Union, OAU, was formed in 1963, comprising thirty-two African Member states. The

primary objectives of the organizations included:

 Unifying African nations to raise their patriots living standards

 4

 Defending the independence and Sovereignty of African States

 Enforcing decolonization by joining forces with the states under

the colonial reign

While the OAU brought African nations together, it failed to protect African human

rights in Uganda, earning great criticism (Murray, 2004). Owing to the division in camp on

integration, the organization was disbanded on 9th July 2002, when the Sirte Declaration was

signed in Libya (Murray, 2004). In place, the African Union was born. The main objective of the

AU was to cover the gaps exposed by the OAU, especially on protecting African Human rights

against their dictatorial leaders. The Union comprises of fifty-five African states, which is all the

states on the African Continent apart from Cueta,  Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, and Melilla

territories held by Spain, and Somaliland -a region of Somali occupied by rebels who are part of

the notorious Al-Shabaab,-, which is recognized as part of Somali. The total population of the

AU is estimated at slightly above One billion, two hundred and fifty million persons, with a

growth rate of two per cent per annum. The Union's official languages are English, French,

Kiswahili, Arabic, Portuguese, and “any other African dialect" (Welz, 2012). However, the

working languages of the Union are French and English. Below is an overview of the African

Union as of 30th April 2021.

Politics of the African Union

Institutions  African Unification Front

 Casablanca Group
Executive
 Union of African States Assembly - Chairperson

 Organization of African Unity Commission -Chairperson

 African Economic Community Conference and Events

 Peace & Sec.
 5

 Pol. Affairs o Transport, Industry,

 Infra. & Energy Communications,

 Soc. Affairs o Energy, Science, &

 HR, Sci., & Tech. Tech.

o Health, Labor, &

Trade and Industry
 Rural Econ. & Agri. Social

 Economic o Educ., Culture,

Legal Counsel Tourism, & HR

Executive Council
o Gender, Family,
Rep. Committee
Legislature Youth, Disabilities
Pan-African Parliament
 President o Justice & Rights

 Bureau o Rules, Privileges, &

 Secretariat Discipline

 List of members Judiciary

 Site Declaration
 Permanent Committees
 Constitutive Act of the AU
o Rural Econ., Agri.,
 Law
Resources, Environ.
 Charter on Rights
o Monetary & Financial
 Commission on Human and Peoples'
o Trade, Customs, &
Rights
Immigration
 Justice and Human Rights
o Cooperation, IR, &
 Court of Justice
Conflict
 The court on Human and Peoples'

Rights
 6

 List of judges vi. CEMAC

Advisory bodies vii. ECOWAS/CEDEAO

1. Peace and Security Council
viii. UEMOA
2. Economic, Social and Cultural
ix. WAMZ
Council
x. IGAD
Specialized Technical Committees
xi. SADC
1. Rural Econ., Agri.
xii. SACU
2. Monetary & Financial
xiii. AMU/UMA
3. Trade, Customs, and Immigration
xiv. African Central Bank
4. Industry, Sci. & Tech., Energy,
xv. African Monetary Union
Natural Resources, & Environment
xvi. African Investment Bank
5. Transport, Comm., Tourism
xvii. New Partnership for
6. Health, Labor, Social
Africa's Development
7. Edu., Culture, & Human Resources
xviii. African Peer Review
Financial bodies
i. AEC Pillars (Abuja Mechanism

Treaty) xix. New Partnership for

ii. CEN-SAD Africa's Development E-

iii. COMESA School Program

iv. EAC Decentralized bodies

a) Agencies of the AU
v. ECCLES/CEEAC
b) Africa CDC
 7

United Nations
The United Nations, from herein referred to as UN, is an intergovernmental organization

headquartered at International territory, New York (Gareis, 2012). It was formed with the

primary objective of maintaining peace across nations and bringing said nations together. After

the First world war, the first Intergovernmental Organization was created to preserve peace and

security across countries. It was founded at the Paris Peace Conference on 10th January 1920 and

was christened the League of Nations (LON) (Getchell, 2021). It had fifty-eight member nations

that excluded America. Some countries, such as the Soviet, were disqualified after invading

Finland, while other nations withdrew in the 1930s. These nations include but are not limited to

Spain and Japan.

Following the eruption of World War Ⅱ, it was evident the League of Nations had failed

in its vital mission of peacekeeping (Getchell, 2021). As a result, it was disbanded on 20th April

1946, about a year after the United Nations charter was drafted to keep world peace after the

war. Fifty member states drew the alliance in 1945 at a conference in San Francisco. Today, the

United Nations comprises two observer member states and a hundred and ninety-three sovereign

states as members, essentially almost all the sovereign states in the world (Getchell, 2021).

The main objectives of the UN are:

 Maintaining world peace

 Raising the living standards of all people

 Delivering humanitarian aid

 Promoting Sustainable development

 Protecting Human rights and,

 Upholding International law

 8

The UN has six principal Organs;

1. General Assembly

Set out in Chapter Ⅳ of the United Nations Charter, the General Assembly top deals with

policy-making and representation of the UN. The primary responsibilities include compiling and

creating the UN budget, making resolutions, appointing non-permanent members to the Security

Council, establishing subsidiary organs, and appointing the UN Secretary-General, among other

mandates (Williams, Paul D., and Arthur Boutellis, 2014). Moreover, it is the only United

Nations principal organ that Member states that have equal representation.

2. Security Council

The SC is an organ tasked with ensuring international peace and security, approving changes

suggested to the UN Charter, and recommending new Member states for approval into the

General Assembly. It consists of the victors of World war Ⅱ as permanent members and ten more

flexible members. The primary responsibilities of this organ are authorizing military intervention

when necessary, enacting international sanctions, and establishing peacekeeping operations. In

addition, it is the only United Nations principal organ that can give a member state a binding

resolution.

3. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)

The third Principal organ is responsible for commissions and specialized agencies' economic and

social coordination under the United Nations jurisdiction. The organ has a three-year rating

membership of fifty-four countries (Williams et al., 2014). The rotations are based on

geographical location, with eastern Europe given six slots, Africa given fourteen places, Asia-

Pacific given eleven slots, Latin America and other Caribbean regions offered ten slots, and

western Europe and other states thirteen slots in the current rotation year 2019 through to 2023.
 9

4. Trustee Council 

Trust territories are regions that were left as part of a greater region-based mainly on their

colonizers. These regions were leftover primarily after the first World War. They were part of

the LON's mandates that are no longer in existence since the UN Trustee Council helped the last

territory, a part of the Pacific Territories, become the Republic of Palau and a UN member.

5. International Court of Justice and,

Sometimes referred to as the World Court, the International Criminal Court of Law settles

disputes between states and leaders accused of overstepping the human rights of Member states.

The court serves as the backbone for International Law, with judges from fifteen nations serving

nine years at Hague, Netherlands. It is one of the institutions initially part of the Leagues of

Nations and was adopted after a few modifications.

6.  UN Secretariat

The UN secretariat is the United Nations executive arm mandated with providing data on

member nations' political and economic welfare to both the General Assembly and the Security

Council. Furthermore, the organ is responsible for communication with governments, non-

government bodies, and non-state actors by publishing all the agreements and treaties signed and

upheld. In addition, the organ is responsible for creating, implementing, and evaluating

peacekeeping and other humanitarian operations run by the various organs of the UN.

Other than these organs, the UN comprises specialized funds and programs to help

achieve its mission and objectives (Gareis, 2012). Some of these programs include the World

Health Organization, the World Bank Group, the World Food Program, UNICEF, and UNESCO.
 10

Significance of the Research

Given that neither of the organizations is effectively delivering on all their objectives and

mandates, there is cause for a comparative analysis of the policies and framework of both unions.

The African Union adopted its long-term policy framework dubbed the Agenda 2063 in 2015 as

a fifty-year-long-term plan. The United Nations, on the other hand, adopted the Sustainable

Development Goals in 2015 as a fifteen-year-old-term plan that should be achieved by 2030. The

primary objective of this paper is to conduct comparative research of Agenda 2063 and

Sustainable Development Goals, formulation and implementation, to shine the spotlight on their

parent Unions.

Literature review
The grand strategy is an emblem of intentional use of all tools available to a security

country or community. The modern means of grand strategy available to nations for economic

integration are free to trade areas (FTAs), a common market, customs and duties, among other

tools (Qureshi, Muhammad, Shazia, Abdel, Mohsen, et al., 2019). In addition, the theory of

balancing power comes into play by influencing nations to come together to avoid the issue of

losing control to another state. Usually, the approach makes countries collaborate in security,

with economics recently joining the list of reasons (Qureshi et al., 2019). While the theory was

initially developed to ensure a balance of military power, today, the view is applied in

international relations to balance various nations' political, economic, and resource distribution

blocks. After the first World War, both the Central Powers and the Allied Powers struggled in

debt and a political crisis (Amadeo, 2020). As a result, nations resorted to implementing various

policies, such as increased taxations, which led to a restriction on capital and cash flow,

triggering the Great Depression.

 11

The United States of America benefited greatly from this war after they harnessed their

production abilities and pooled natural resources, giving them an advantage of mass production.

As a result, the exports to Europe and Latin America increased, eventually facilitating the cost of

thirty-two billion dollars spent in the war (Amadeo, 2020). The money was recovered from:

 22% from higher taxes.

 58% from war bonds and Treasury notes.

 20% addition to the money supply. 

On top of that, unemployment in the country was reduced from eight per cent to two per cent.

However, once the Great Depression hit, America was hit by twenty-five per cent unemployment

("The balance" 2020). To deal with the system, the New Deal Economic policy authored by

Franklin. D. Roosevelt was introduced in the US. 

The New Deal was rolled out and implemented in three phases between 1933 and 1936.

The first phase implemented by Franklin Roosevelt in his first hundred days in office saw

America create capitalism with safety nets (Amadeo, 2020). The second phase was implemented

in 1935 by scrapping programs like the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) and adopting

programs that focused on providing services to the farmers, unemployed, poor, and general

under-privileged population (Amadeo, 2020). Finally, in 1937, the third phase was rolled out but

budget cuts triggering the great depression. But, again, the United States was one of the allies.
 12

In 1941, during the Second World War, the Soviet Union, an Axis power, switched

alliances and joined the global partnership of China, Britain, and the United States (Amadeo

2020). The war saw the USA's beginning as a military powerhouse and economic superpower

(Amadeo 2020). The US adopted a foreign policy that saw it provide relief to Europe and West

Berlin. The Marshall Plan was reenacted in 1948 by spending twelve million US dollars to revive

Europe's economy after the war (Steil, 2018). The four-year plan proposed by the US Secretary

of State targeted the abolition of communism in Europe while rebuilding their cities, industries,

and infrastructure. The program provided the US with an ally and a market for their exports and

cheap imports (Steil, 2018). They were eventually curtailing the influence of the Soviet Union

across Europe. The end of the second world war marked the birth of the United Nations.

The second war ended with a bipolar balance of power between the Soviet Union and the

United States. These two superpowers were offered permanent seats in the UN alongside other

allies, which saw the UN operate under dualism. During the Cold war, the UN was used as a

platform for the US and the Soviet Union to attack each other while swaying other nations for

their gains. The stalemate between these two organizations led to a decline in the efficiency of

the dual UN peacekeeping model. The UN was having trouble consolidating a balance between

the bipolar balance of power between the United States and the Soviet Union. The "Third World"

countries which included newly independent states of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, started a

revolution that focused the UN's efforts towards aiding countries in the transition process of

decolonization.

  The effects of the second war were felt by the African countries, too; they -African

countries- gained their independence once their European Colonizers failed to manage enough

resources to keep their power over the colonies. Once most of these countries gained
 13

sovereignty, they joined the United Nations, leading to the Economic Commission for Africa in

1958. The need for Unity in Africa saw the creation of the Organization of African Unity, OAU,

which established the African Economic Community, AEC as an African organization mandated

to stabilize the economies of African states and enhance economic integration. The AU adopted

the AEC once OAU was abolished. To date, the AEC and the UN work jointly to coordinate

international trade, the flow of natural resources, regional and sub-regional economic integration,

and the protection of consumer rights.

The balance of power theory came into play among individual nations during the wars

and eventually trickled down to alliances in the following centuries. The developing countries

were not left behind as they joined forces in their own Union to balance political, economic, and

social power within the region. The need for a neutral party to regulate the political turmoil and

financial exploitation saw the birth of the United Nations after the Second World War.

Methodology

The overall goals of this study are to provide an overview of the existing strategies and

power distribution in the East-African and Asian Pacific regions. This comparative policy

analysis aims to contrast various types of organization policies, interests, and goals at regional

and global levels. It explained different strategies between the formulation, adoption,

implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of policies and the framework of the organizations.

The specific objective of this analysis is to identify key policy issues that facilitate a balance of

power in economic growth and military personnel.

The study was mainly conducted to pinpoint unique policy issues that lead to strategic

competition among the regional, sub-regional, and trans-regional power in the said organizations.

The scope of the study was the reactions of Somaliland as the main regional players in response
 14

to the US military presence in the Federal government of Somali and East Africa regions. The

technique employed to determine data set support for the research is qualitative comparative

analysis. The sections below studies the regional policy objectives and strategic interests of the

trans-regional players in the Federal government of Somali, Somaliland, and Kenya.

Strategic Competition in East Africa

East Africa has been a benefactor of the Indo-pacific grand strategy pushed by the

Japanese and Indian countries. The Indo-pacific great strategy aims to grow the Asian-Pacific

region to include territories that neighbour the Indian Ocean, including those along the East

African shoreline (Panda, 2017). The grand strategy is supported by the US and Australia, who

were part of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue in Manila, 2017. The main outcome of the talks

was to unite two oceans into one safe space that includes Japan and India with Australia as the

viaduct, supported and protected by the United States maritime (Panda, 2017).

The ultimate reason for this strategy is to balance the rising Chinese influence in the

Western Pacific by uniting two separate oceans. While the underlying repercussion of this

alliance is curtailing the economic growth of the Chinese superpower, the US gains an advantage

by alienating Japan and India from the US African Command (AFRICOM) operation areas

(Barton, Benjamin, Men, 2013). The AFRICOM comprises fifty-three African states and the US

Central Command (CENTCOM) with operations ranging from the Middle East to Pakistan's

border with the United States.

The strategic competition between China and the Indo-Pacific regions in both economic

and military presence proves how vital geopolitics is to a balance of power in the military

(Barton et al., 2013). For example, the weakness of the federal government of Somalia has seen

at least ten superpowers have a controlling stake in the political and economic decisions of the
 15

nation. However, the independence of seven sovereign states surrounding the Horn of Africa has

called for improvisations in Japan and China in wooing the East African states.

  The Chinese strategy in East African has been infrastructure development within the

region, and the Chinese built the Standard gauge Railway connecting Djibouti and Addis Ababa

and another in Kenya. The Chinese tested for Oil in Ethiopia and built an Oil pipeline in

Tanzania to access the Ugandan Oil fields. The initial blueprint of the plan included the Japanese

government in the construction of a northern pipeline, and the project was thrown out the

window once France oil distributor Total backed the southern Chinese pipeline, leaving Japan on

the curb. The Chinese have built various roads in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Ethiopia to

develop their infrastructure. However, these alliances between the Chinese and the East African

regions have been marred with controversies about the enormous debts owed to China by these

countries.

The Japanese strategy in East Africa has been different in the previous leaders' tenures as

opposed to former prime minister Abe's term. Abe's administration targeted specific countries in

the region destination investment zones. Kenya and Tanzania were the greatest beneficiaries of

this regime which saw Japan overhaul the Mombasa port in Kenya. In addition, the Dingo Kundu

Port Area saw Japan develop special economic zones (SEZs), bypasses, berths, and ports in the

region.
 16

Discussion
The difference between the Chinese and Japanese strategies in East Africa is mainly

based on the former's aggressiveness and humility. The Chinese government seems to be more

interested in infrastructure development to expand its influence over the region by securing

support from the African governments. They -Chinese- develop this rapport to guarantee easy

access to the nation's resources that will support their rapid growth and alienate their competition

from the region. The Chinese grand strategy is developing crucial infrastructure initiatives

neglected since colonial times, which is seeing countries develop airports, roads, railroads, ports,

and the overall logistics system of the nation (Anthony, 2013).

The no-strings-attached principle of the Chinese government is enticing more nations

towards their development plan as they emphasize little involvement in the political affairs and

governance of the country. The Japanese and other Western nations offer humanitarian aid to

these nations while stressing the need for proper governance, protection of human rights, and

transparency. Naturally, the East African countries resort to easy Chinese aid, which comes with

high interest rates and significant collateral damages and price tags (Anthony, 2013). For

instance, China took over a Sri Lankan Port in 2018 after the government failed to pay for a loan

taken out to build a port. Thus, the Chinese government gained control of a vital part along the

essential commercial and critical isle close to India. Unlike China, Japan which has a contract of

renovating the Kenyan port in Mombasa for at least forty years since 2016, has no ownership

rights or intention of taking over the harbour.

The African Union fifty-year Agenda 63 key objectives included flagship programs such

as African Union Financial Institutions, creation of Africa Free Trade Areas, adoption of the

African currency, among other operations that are key in raising the region's economic growth

and transformation (Au, 2021). To achieve these goals, the AU was keen on conducting trade
 17

with the super powers. Unfortunately, nations such as China took advantage of the eagerness and

marketed expensive treaties to the naïve nations. The AU flagship programs have amassed

support from superpowers and the UN who have partnered with the organization. On the other

hand, the UN Sustainable development goals referred to as SDG from herein, strive to promote

economic growth through technological innovation and boost productivity (Bebbington, Jan, and

Jeffrey Underman, 2018). The UN eighth SDG, "Decent Work and Economic growth, " is keen

on creating jobs to eradicate unemployment and encourage entrepreneurship to abolish slavery,

forced labor, and human trafficking. The 2030 goal aims to achieve full productive employment

by providing decent jobs to every working person. The AU has facilitated industrial development

by enabling structural changes to the organization's framework to promote this growth. The

structural changes within the AU, incorporate a joint AU-UN effort which is hellbent on

reinforcing the interorganizational mandates amidst the interference by Asian-Pacific

superpowers.

Conclusion 
The Chinese government has gained diplomatic trust with most African sovereigns by

enticing them to expensive loans with no strings attached, unlike the Japanese government,

which is in line with consumer protection. Despite the existence of the AU, African consumers

are exploited by the Chinese superpower in an attempt to gain a balance of power over the indo-

pacific Union. It is evident, the UN and the AU have common ground in their frameworks as

they are intent on eradicating poverty, achieving full employment, achieving economic

integration and protecting consumer rights.

Implications and Findings Policy and Managerial

The AU has failed in ensuring the African rights are protected from both dictatorial

leaders such as Mugabe and Museveni and economic superpowers such as China. The balance of
 18

power in the geopolitical region is not evenly distributed as most nations struggle with internal

political conflicts. The explosive nature of the natives of the area has seen various skirmish and

wars as witnessed in the Somali and South Sudan regions of East Africa. Technological

neutralization by the UN and AU joint forces will be an efficient way of ensuring the area

understands the implications of interest rates vis-a-vis high principal rates.

 19

References
"4 Surprising Ways the New Deal Affects You Today". The Balance. Dotdash Publishing, Ltd.,

2020

Anthony, R. (2013). Infrastructure and influence: China's presence on the coast of East Africa.

Journal of the Indian Ocean Region, 9(2), 134-149.

Amadeo, Kimberly. "How World War II Changed America's Economy". The Balance. Dotdash

Publishing, Ltd., 2020.

Barton, Benjamin, and Jing Men, eds. China and the European Union in Africa: partners or

competitors? Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2013.

Bebbington, Jan, and Jeffrey Underman. "Achieving the United Nations sustainable development

goals." Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal (2018).

Gareis, Sven Bernhard. The united nations. Macmillan International Higher Education, 2012.

Getchell., Michelle. 2021. "The United Nations". Khan Academy.

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/rise-to-world-power/us-wwii/a/the-

united-nations#:~:text=The%20United%20Nations%20(UN)%20was,of%20the

%20Second%20World%20War.

"Linking Agenda 2063 And the SDGs | African Union". 2021. Au.Int.

https://au.int/en/agenda2063/sdgs.

Meisler, Stanley. United Nations: A History. Grove Press, 2011.

Murray, Rachel. Human rights in Africa: From the OAU to the African Union. Cambridge

University Press, 2004.

Panda, Jagannath. "The Asia-Africa Growth Corridor: An India-Japan Arch in the Making."

Focus Asia: Perspective & Analysis 21, no. 11 (2017).

 20

Steil, Benn. " The Marshall Plan"| Dawn of the Cold War. HISTORY.

Qureshi, Muhammad Imran, Shazia Qayyum, Abdel Mohsen A. Nassani, Abdullah Mohammed

Aldakhil, Muhammad Moinuddin Qazi Abro, and Khalid Zaman. "Management of

various socio-economic factors under the United Nations sustainable development

agenda." Resources Policy 64 (2019): 101515.

Union, African. "Study on an African union government towards the United States of Africa."

(2019).

Welz, Martin. Integrating Africa: decolonization's legacies, sovereignty and the African Union.

Routledge, 2012.

Williams, Paul D., and Arthur Boutellis. "Partnership peacekeeping: challenges and

opportunities in the United Nations–African Union Relationship." African Affairs 113,

no. 451 (2014): 254-278.