When the United States Africa Command was created four years ago, it was the military’s first “smart power” command. It has no assigned troops, no headquarters in Africa itself, and one of its two top deputies is a seasoned American diplomat.

As international forces launched attacks against Libya on Saturday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton struck a tone highly unusual in the annals of American military interventions: humility.

The success of yesterday’s Paris summit in securing international backing for the military strikes on Libya marks quite a comeback for French diplomacy. Just two months ago, France was offering another Arab autocrat, in Tunisia, help controlling rebellion.

India cannot match China’s massive investments in Africa, but it is using its information technology capabilities and its affordable university courses to stay relevant on the continent.

An African Union committee is meeting this week to consider a proposal by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to transform the AU bureaucracy into a powerful continental authority. The eccentric Libyan leader still casts a long shadow over African affairs, even as his 42-year rule is under threat at home.

But like other pro-Qaddafi groups that have sprung up here since the rebellion in Libya began, what it lacks in logistics it makes up in loyalty. “We’re all ready to die for him,” Mr. Maiga said. “He’s done so much for us, after all.”

The Kingdom of Swaziland is currently being let down by non- existence of an effective communication strategy and information dissemination machinery. In the majority of cases, the propaganda being sold by subversive local elements in collaboration with their international and regional sympathisers can be easily countered by a factual based public diplomacy strategy.

American ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger would not know servant leadership if it bit him in the left armpit. The diplomatic cables released by whistleblower WikiLeaks this week reveal that the American envoy was unable to appreciate Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka’s well-won reputation as an intellectual heavyweight, a first-order altruist and a man of principle.