Imperialism

br Africa is the world 's second largest and also second most populated continent after Asia . Although it has plentiful natural resources Africa is the world 's poorest and most underdeveloped continent , due to the effects of tropical diseases , corrupt governments , failed central planning , and military conflict just to name a few . Between April and June 1994 , 800 ,000 citizens of the African country of Rwanda were killed in the space of 100 days . Africa is also the region most affected by the HIV /AIDS epidemic . Notably , The United State 's involvement in

br Africa most recently can be attributed to two very important reasons terrorism and the desire to secure the oil reserves from the area

The United States is doing various things in the African region , most of which are unknown to the American public . They have constructed full military bases and also access points . Access points which are technically called secure co-operation locations are areas where the United States can do things such as refuel planes , store weaponry , house soldiers for short periods of time , and do intelligence work . The United State 's government has also established special programs in Africa like training local police in anti-terrorism . Sandra Barnes notes in her article Global Flows : Terror , Oil , and Strategic Philanthropy ' that very often the results of all this involvement can be the increase of regional conflicts rather than the diminishing intended of the efforts . She argues that it is a very tricky balance and herein lies the paradox of the issue

The United States consumes one quarter of the world 's oil supply (twenty million of the eighty million barrels ) every day . A significant portion of it (13 to 18 percent ) comes from West and Central Africa Currently , due to warfare in the Middle East , Nigeria produces more oil than Iraq . A significant number of U .S . jobs are tied into the oil industry in Africa and the U .S . government exports a substantial amount of oil and gas equipment to the continent . Consequently , just as the situation with Iraq , is that with the volatility of the oil industry , it can easily be disrupted

The United States officially launched a new military command for Africa in early October 2007 . Several countries reacted positively to the new post . But other countries , particularly in southern Africa , positioned themselves against the United States presence there . They elaborated that they viewed the involvement as unnecessary and intrusive . In my opinion , the United States involvement has been beneficial at times But more often than not , the involvement has been harmful . In 1994 , the Clinton administration avoided steps that might have curbed the Rwanda genocide which killed over half a million people . Their support for the West African troops has been both tepid and inconsistent . Also , they weren 't willing to help separate combatants nor shield civilians from tragedy in the most recent civil war in Africa

The lasting impact of the United States involvement in Africa is the steady increase in military and major...