John F. Kennedy’s Legacy: Development and Democracy

University of Buea | June 8, 2011

Remarks by H.E. Mr. Robert P. Jackson,
Ambassador of the United States of America

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon.

Fifty years ago, when Cameroon was preparing to reunify and take the final steps toward independence from the United Kingdom, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) offered a unique vision.  His legacy is substantial, including the launching of the space program that took man to the moon and the creation of the Peace Corps and of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).  His vision subsequently contributed to the creation of the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), which rewards countries that are reforming and investing in their people.  Boldness, partnership, and independence are all hallmarks of Kennedy’s complex, international legacy.

Kennedy believed in self-reliance, but he also believed that Americans should partner with those who may not have the same blessings Americans enjoy.  Most people know and remember one famous sentence from Kennedy’s inaugural address, “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.”

Peace Corps

Many people believe that President Kennedy translated that sentence into the Peace Corps.  Created in March 1961 to promote world peace and friendship, it pursues the same goals today:

• Helping people of interested countries to meet their need for trained men and women.
• Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
• Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

The Peace Corps is a people-to-people organization, focused on developing people, not things.  Emphasizing capacity building and sustainability, it helps people identify what is important, utilizing their own strengths, and adding new skills to improve their lives.

Here in Cameroon, more than 3,600 Peace Corps volunteers have served since the first group arrived on September 13, 1962.  Today, approximately 180 volunteers are working in all 10 regions in four sectors:  Education, Community Health, Agro-Forestry, and Small Enterprise Development.  We will shortly be adding a fifth sector:  Youth Development.

The same spirit has led other Americans to volunteer to serve their communities and their country.  Community service is part of the curriculum of virtually every school and university in the United States.  Activities range from tutoring and mentoring to cleaning up communities and assisting the poor and the elderly.

USAID

The idea of partnership also inspired President Kennedy to create USAID, which will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary on November 3.  USAID’s mission is to administer long-range economic and social development assistance.  In 2010, USAID and partner agencies provided over $30 billion in assistance worldwide, including $7.7 billion for Sub-Saharan Africa and $26 million for Cameroon.  Today, USAID’s six priorities are:  Food Security and the Feed the Future Initiative; Global Health; Democracy and Governance; Economic Growth; Humanitarian Assistance; and Climate Change.  In Cameroon, we are particularly focused on health, food security, governance, education, and climate change, and our assistance is increasing.

Clearly, some countries need more support than others, but many African nations are poor today because they have squandered or mismanaged their resources.  When Botswana became independent, many people assumed that it would have to rely upon external assistance indefinitely.  Fortunately, diamonds were discovered and made the country relatively wealthy, but it is the continued judicious management of that resource that is helping Batswana to improve their standard of living and quality of life.

The Millennium Challenge Account

Donors have a responsibility to support good and wise governance.  In 2002, the Monterrey consensus was forged, and President Bush launched the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) to reward those nations that rule justly, foster economic freedom, and invest in their people.  This approach to development assistance rewards past performance rather than promises of reform that may or may not be fulfilled.  The MCA utilizes 17 clear, transparent and objective eligibility criteria.  The MCA embodies the principle of recipient-country ownership.  Activities to be financed are proposed by the countries themselves, must accelerate economic growth and must reduce poverty.  Implementation/execution is entirely the recipient country’s responsibility, and the speed with which compacts and projects advance is determined by the eligible countries.  To date, the Millennium Challenge Corporation has approved over $7 billion in compacts in 23 countries, supporting country-determined projects.

President Obama embraces country ownership and understands President Kennedy’s vision very well.  In his first address in Sub-Saharan Africa as President in July 2009, President Obama told his audience in Ghana and across Africa:

“We must start from the simple premise that Africa's future is up to Africans. … Development depends on good governance.  That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long.  That's the change that can unlock Africa's potential.  And that is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans.  As for America and the West, our commitment must be measured by more than just the dollars we spend. …. Four areas … are critical to the future of Africa and the entire developing world:  democracy, opportunity, health, and the peaceful resolution of conflict. …  Aid is not an end in itself.  The purpose of foreign assistance must be creating the conditions where it's no longer needed.” 

Democracy and Human Rights

In that spirit, I want to highlight another famous sentence in President Kennedy’s inaugural address, “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

Nelson Mandela, perhaps one of the greatest leaders in our day, once said, “There is no such thing as part(ial) freedom.”  Indeed, either one is free, or one is not.  Freedom must be practiced most where it exists least.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell said,

“Freedom fights … instability and conflict. … Those countries which demonstrate high degrees of respect for human rights are the most secure and most successful.  Indeed,  respect for human rights is essential to a lasting peace and sustained economic growth.”

In the 1980s, many Africans used to tell me that democracy could not work on this continent, I want to hold up Botswana, as well as Benin, Cape Verde, Ghana, Mali, and Tanzania as proof that those skeptics were and remain wrong.

Democratic governments are more likely to

• secure peace and deter aggression,
• uphold human rights,
• expand open markets,
• promote economic development,
• combat international terrorism and crime,
• avoid humanitarian crises, and
• protect the environment and human health.

I do not think it is an accident that when one looks around today’s world, the 120 members of the Community of Democracies (CD) are generally more prosperous than the 75 partly-free and not-free states.  Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Brunei are the only prosperous authoritarian states that come to mind.  Yet, there are many models of democracy and each must incorporate a country’s history and culture.

Democracy is very important for every country and for all people.  It is a fundamental step necessary to fulfill the aspirations of communities of people.  However, elections alone cannot guarantee accountability or good governance.  Nigeria and Guinea-Bissau have had free and fair elections in years past that brought leaders into office who were subsequently ousted by the military due to perceived corruption and mismanagement.  Other African countries moved too quickly in the 1990s to have elections with disastrous results.  Burundi may be the best example of that, but I wonder if sustained international support for Burundian democracy could have avoided the ensuing years of civil war.  We have no way of knowing, but Nigeria has just had good elections, and Tunisia and Egypt which have just shaken off corrupt, authoritarian regimes, are preparing for democratic elections.  Others can do the same, but that is when the real challenges of governing wisely and justly emerge.

Adopting President Kennedy’s basic approach and optimism, President Obama concluded his Accra speech saying,

“The world will be what you make of it.  You have the power to hold your leaders accountable, and to build institutions that serve the people.  You can serve in your communities, and harness your energy and education to create new wealth and build new connections to the world.  You can conquer disease, and end conflicts, and make change from the bottom up.  You can do that.”

Conclusion

So, how should we summarize President Kennedy’s international legacy?  I believe it can best be summarized as promoting understanding, meeting fundamental needs, and supporting development, democracy, and in-dependence.

Thank you very much.

John F. Kennedy’s Legacy: Development and Democracy

Remarks by H.E. Mr. Robert P. Jackson,
Ambassador of the United States of America,
University of Buea, June 8, 2011

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon.

Fifty years ago, when Cameroon was preparing to reunify and take the final steps toward independence from the United Kingdom, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) offered a unique vision.  His legacy is substantial, including the launching of the space program that took man to the moon and the creation of the Peace Corps and of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).  His vision subsequently contributed to the creation of the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), which rewards countries that are reforming and investing in their people.  Boldness, partnership, and independence are all hallmarks of Kennedy’s complex, international legacy.

Kennedy believed in self-reliance, but he also believed that Americans should partner with those who may not have the same blessings Americans enjoy.  Most people know and remember one famous sentence from Kennedy’s inaugural address, “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.”

Peace Corps

Many people believe that President Kennedy translated that sentence into the Peace Corps.  Created in March 1961 to promote world peace and friendship, it pursues the same goals today:

• Helping people of interested countries to meet their need for trained men and women.
• Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
• Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

The Peace Corps is a people-to-people organization, focused on developing people, not things.  Emphasizing capacity building and sustainability, it helps people identify what is important, utilizing their own strengths, and adding new skills to improve their lives.

Here in Cameroon, more than 3,600 Peace Corps volunteers have served since the first group arrived on September 13, 1962.  Today, approximately 180 volunteers are working in all 10 regions in four sectors:  Education, Community Health, Agro-Forestry, and Small Enterprise Development.  We will shortly be adding a fifth sector:  Youth Development.

The same spirit has led other Americans to volunteer to serve their communities and their country.  Community service is part of the curriculum of virtually every school and university in the United States.  Activities range from tutoring and mentoring to cleaning up communities and assisting the poor and the elderly.

USAID

The idea of partnership also inspired President Kennedy to create USAID, which will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary on November 3.  USAID’s mission is to administer long-range economic and social development assistance.  In 2010, USAID and partner agencies provided over $30 billion in assistance worldwide, including $7.7 billion for Sub-Saharan Africa and $26 million for Cameroon.  Today, USAID’s six priorities are:  Food Security and the Feed the Future Initiative; Global Health; Democracy and Governance; Economic Growth; Humanitarian Assistance; and Climate Change.  In Cameroon, we are particularly focused on health, food security, governance, education, and climate change, and our assistance is increasing.

Clearly, some countries need more support than others, but many African nations are poor today because they have squandered or mismanaged their resources.  When Botswana became independent, many people assumed that it would have to rely upon external assistance indefinitely.  Fortunately, diamonds were discovered and made the country relatively wealthy, but it is the continued judicious management of that resource that is helping Batswana to improve their standard of living and quality of life.

The Millennium Challenge Account

Donors have a responsibility to support good and wise governance.  In 2002, the Monterrey consensus was forged, and President Bush launched the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) to reward those nations that rule justly, foster economic freedom, and invest in their people.  This approach to development assistance rewards past performance rather than promises of reform that may or may not be fulfilled.  The MCA utilizes 17 clear, transparent and objective eligibility criteria.  The MCA embodies the principle of recipient-country ownership.  Activities to be financed are proposed by the countries themselves, must accelerate economic growth and must reduce poverty.  Implementation/execution is entirely the recipient country’s responsibility, and the speed with which compacts and projects advance is determined by the eligible countries.  To date, the Millennium Challenge Corporation has approved over $7 billion in compacts in 23 countries, supporting country-determined projects.

President Obama embraces country ownership and understands President Kennedy’s vision very well.  In his first address in Sub-Saharan Africa as President in July 2009, President Obama told his audience in Ghana and across Africa:

“We must start from the simple premise that Africa's future is up to Africans. … Development depends on good governance.  That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long.  That's the change that can unlock Africa's potential.  And that is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans.  As for America and the West, our commitment must be measured by more than just the dollars we spend. …. Four areas … are critical to the future of Africa and the entire developing world:  democracy, opportunity, health, and the peaceful resolution of conflict. …  Aid is not an end in itself.  The purpose of foreign assistance must be creating the conditions where it's no longer needed.” 

Democracy and Human Rights

In that spirit, I want to highlight another famous sentence in President Kennedy’s inaugural address, “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

Nelson Mandela, perhaps one of the greatest leaders in our day, once said, “There is no such thing as part(ial) freedom.”  Indeed, either one is free, or one is not.  Freedom must be practiced most where it exists least.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell said,

“Freedom fights … instability and conflict. … Those countries which demonstrate high degrees of respect for human rights are the most secure and most successful.  Indeed,  respect for human rights is essential to a lasting peace and sustained economic growth.”

In the 1980s, many Africans used to tell me that democracy could not work on this continent, I want to hold up Botswana, as well as Benin, Cape Verde, Ghana, Mali, and Tanzania as proof that those skeptics were and remain wrong.

Democratic governments are more likely to

• secure peace and deter aggression,
• uphold human rights,
• expand open markets,
• promote economic development,
• combat international terrorism and crime,
• avoid humanitarian crises, and
• protect the environment and human health.

I do not think it is an accident that when one looks around today’s world, the 120 members of the Community of Democracies (CD) are generally more prosperous than the 75 partly-free and not-free states.  Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Brunei are the only prosperous authoritarian states that come to mind.  Yet, there are many models of democracy and each must incorporate a country’s history and culture.

Democracy is very important for every country and for all people.  It is a fundamental step necessary to fulfill the aspirations of communities of people.  However, elections alone cannot guarantee accountability or good governance.  Nigeria and Guinea-Bissau have had free and fair elections in years past that brought leaders into office who were subsequently ousted by the military due to perceived corruption and mismanagement.  Other African countries moved too quickly in the 1990s to have elections with disastrous results.  Burundi may be the best example of that, but I wonder if sustained international support for Burundian democracy could have avoided the ensuing years of civil war.  We have no way of knowing, but Nigeria has just had good elections, and Tunisia and Egypt which have just shaken off corrupt, authoritarian regimes, are preparing for democratic elections.  Others can do the same, but that is when the real challenges of governing wisely and justly emerge.

Adopting President Kennedy’s basic approach and optimism, President Obama concluded his Accra speech saying,

“The world will be what you make of it.  You have the power to hold your leaders accountable, and to build institutions that serve the people.  You can serve in your communities, and harness your energy and education to create new wealth and build new connections to the world.  You can conquer disease, and end conflicts, and make change from the bottom up.  You can do that.”

Conclusion

So, how should we summarize President Kennedy’s international legacy?  I believe it can best be summarized as promoting understanding, meeting fundamental needs, and supporting development, democracy, and in-dependence.

Thank you very much.