A new generation breaks through in Paris but the money no longer
flows freely
The last relics of colonialism are at last being swept out of Paris. For decades, French-speaking Africa was regarded as the chasse gardée, the private hunting-ground; now the lead is taken by officials striving for a more ethical, or at least more modern, foreign policy. France's main aid agency, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), gets a central role in devising new approaches to assistance for poor regions, including Africa, where France is still the largest single bilateral donor. The ministries of Finance and Foreign Affairs are drafting its mandate for development strategy, in the shape of a formal lettre de mission to Jean-Michel Severino, AFD's new head.
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