THERE IS NO evidence that French president Emmanuel Macron said it was “not the time” for France to allow African countries to “manage on their own”, as claimed in posts shared widely on social media.

A number of posts shared on various social media platforms contain a quote that allegedly comes from Macron.

One such post on Facebook in April was shared over 1,400 times and received over 7,5000 reactions. Another post on Facebook in early May was shared less widely.

The quote incorrectly attributed to Macron reads:

“If we leave African countries to manage on their own, now is not the time. Africa remains the least developed continent, and history shows we have a role to play in supporting its growth.

“A complete withdrawal could halt progress. There is still much work for us to do in Africa, and we believe they are not fully ready to thrive without our involvement.”

Reaction to these posts online was widely negative and critical of Macron. However, there is no evidence that Macron actually said what was claimed. 

A search for the quote on Google, in part and in full, using both English and French terms, returns no credible media sources reporting that Macron said those words.

As well as this, the French Embassy in the UK confirmed with Full Fact that the quote “is completely false”.

An article published by a Zimbabwean news site is the only media that report on the apparent quote from Macron; it states that the French president said the quote at a “policy forum in Paris”.

However, the quote was not reported by any French media in April or May. Macron has drawn criticism from African leaders and commentators for statements he made in the past.

For example, in January he was widely criticised for saying that African countries were ungrateful for France’s role in fighting militant jihadists. In this context, any quote like the above would likely be reported widely.

Macron’s alleged quote is also at odds with the current policy of the French government, which has been recently withdrawing troops from a number of French-speaking African countries. It is clear from the above evidence that the quote attributed to Macron has been fabricated.

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