ABSTRACT
The political inspiration that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cartel gave to other commodity-producing and exporting countries, particularly those in Africa, has become a critical dimension in Arab-African relations since 1973. In May 1974, at the conclusion of the Sixth Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly, the African non-oil developing countries (NODCs) joined in with the other "Group of 77" members in proclaiming the need for a new international economic order. The Lome Convention, negotiated during 1974 and signed in February 1975, provided the African countries with their first opportunity to test the OPEC thesis on the commodity "trade weapon." The NODCs continued to vote with the Arab OPEC states to maintain political solidarity, but many Africans began openly and pointedly to make complaints about the Arabs' intentions and actions. The African NODCs backed the OPEC states' call for technology transfers, increased participation in institutions like the IMF, and more industrial investment in the nonindustrialized world.
