Macron faces backlash after interrupting Africa summit panel in Kenya

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective. First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming. Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day. Science For All The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in! Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers THEdge At the cutting edge of education and careers Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there Gender Agenda Stories from beyond the binary. The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features. Published - May 13, 2026 04:18 pm IST - Dakar (Senegal) French President Emmanuel Macron speaks next to Kenya's President William Ruto (not pictured) during the closing of the "Africa Forward" Summit 2026 at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC), in Nairobi, Kenya, May 12, 2026. | Photo Credit: Reuters French President Emmanuel Macron is facing backlash after he interrupted a panel at the Africa Forward Summit in Kenya to demand silence from the audience. Mr. Macron stormed the stage to rebuke audience members for what he called a “total lack of respect”, accusing them of disrupting speakers during a presentation by artists and young entrepreneurs. He had earlier described himself as a “Pan-Africanist” during a news conference. The summit is meant to showcase France’s new policy for the continent — a shift from a former colonial power seen as dominating to what Paris describes as a partnership of equals. On Tuesday (May 12, 2026) Mr. Macron announced a $27 billion investment into various sectors in Africa, including energy, artificial intelligence and agriculture. Videos of Mr. Macron’s heated intervention on Monday (May 11, 2026) quickly spread across social media, drawing a mix of mockery, praise and criticism. Appearing visibly frustrated by the noise in the room, Mr. Macron abruptly walked onto the stage and asked the speaker to hand him the microphone, saying he would “restore order”. Addressing the audience in English, he criticized attendees for talking over the speakers and creating disruptions during the session. Some audience members applauded the intervention, but Mr. Macron also drew criticism over his response. “Just imagine what would happen if an African leader did the same thing in America or Europe,” said Mr. Thierno Mbaye, a history student at a university in Senegal’s capital, Dakar. “He acted like a schoolteacher scolding children,” Mr. Mbaye told The Associated Press (AP). The intervention also drew criticism in France. “It’s stronger than him: as soon as he sets foot on the African continent, he can’t help but behave like a coloniser,” Mr. Danièle Obono, a lawmaker for the hard-left party France Unbowed, said in a post on X. The Africa Forward Summit, which is set to close on Tuesday (May 12, 2026) with a declaration that is expected to be signed by all 30 heads of state, comes amid a fallout between France and its former colonies, mostly in West Africa. France has long maintained a colonial policy of economic, political and military sway dubbed Françafrique, which included keeping thousands of troops in the region it controlled. After years of criticism from leaders and opposition parties in many West African countries over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed approach, France has withdrawn most of its troops from the region. It completed the withdrawal of troops from Senegal in July. Mr. Macron had already faced a backlash ahead of the summit for claiming Sunday (May 10, 2026) at news conference alongside Kenyan President William Ruto that “we are the true Pan-Africanists”. “We believe that Africa is a continent, and that this continent has an enormous amount to build,” Mr. Macron said. Pan-Africanism refers to an ideology seeking the unity of Africans and the elimination of colonialism. Given France’s colonial history across the continent, the remark went viral on social media and drew swift backlash. “Pan Africanism is not a brand, Mr. Macron, neither is it a diplomatic posture,” Farida Nabourema, a Togolese human rights activist, said in an open letter on Monday (May 11, 2026). “It is a political philosophy that said no to everything France spent three centuries saying yes to: slavery, colonialism and neocolonialism,” she added. Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst at geopolitical risk consultancy Control Risks, said Mr. Macron is trying to distance France from its diplomatic and military setbacks in West Africa by turning to the east of the continent, signalling that its strategic priorities now follow where it finds goodwill. She said Mr. Macron’s remarks were raising questions about

Macron faces backlash after interrupting Africa summit panel in Kenya

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Macron faces backlash after interrupting Africa summit panel in Kenya

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