ABSTRACT
From a traditional realist perspective, emphasizing instrumental rationality, one of the enduring mysteries of post-1960 Canadian foreign policy has been the prominence of Africa within it. Through a series of controversies and challenges, ranging from South Africa’s departure/expulsion from the Commonwealth in 1960 through to the G-7/8’s efforts to craft a collective response to African leaders’ New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) initiative at the 2003 Summit in Kananaskis, Canadian politicians and makers of foreign policy have played leading roles. Their engagement with Africa has resonated in the Canadian mass media and among the country’s attentive public, notably including a wide range of non-state actors in civil society.
