Cape Town — Last December's U.S.-African Leaders' Summit, hosted by President Joe Biden in Washington, DC, has helped re-establish ties and strengthen business relationships, according to senior American officials who briefed reporters and offered an assessment of progress made in the six months since the well-attended event took place
The telephonic briefing on June 13 included Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Molly Phee, National Security Council Senior Director for African Affairs Judd Devermont, and Special Presidential Representative for U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit Implementation Ambassador Johnnie Carson. In their remarks, they laid out developments in areas of infrastructure, health and education, and solar system implementation, among others.
Carson said the reactions he has heard from leaders who attended the Summit and from African diplomats in Washington has been "overwhelmingly" positive. And he reported "great progress on the business and economic front." The total of $15.7 billion in agreements for solar, infrastructure and agriculture development projects announced in December has now risen to $16.2 billion, he said. "These represent a commitment by the American business community to work effectively and work progressively with African companies and countries."
Carson also pointed to the U.S./Diaspora Engagement Council whose members will be meeting with and reporting to President Biden through Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The council will include 12 Americans "selected to ensure transparency and open participation" and comprised of individuals of first and second generation diaspora as well as heritage diaspora. They will report on recommendations to strengthen the level of cooperation and understanding between African Americans who are in the U.S. and those who live on the continent.
"The diaspora represents an enormous foreign policy asset for the United States," he said. "No one knows Africa better and is more connected than those who have recently come from there, who have their heritage there," Carson said.
Devermont listed visits to various African countries thus far this year by nine senior-level officials including Vice President Kamala Harris and First Lady Jill Biden, as well as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, U.S Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Education Secretary Miguel A. Cardona, USAID Administrator Samantha Power, who will visit Kenya and Tanzania next week, and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Martha Fudge, who led the U.S. delegation to the Inauguration of President Tinubu in Nigeria. Many of these leaders will take a second trip, he said. The First Lady has already returned to Africa on a trip to North Africa, he noted, and President Biden is planning a visit as well.
Devermont spotlighted the Digital Transformation with Africa - "an $800 million initiative to invest in the continent's digital future" to enable more Africans to get online. Data centres have been built in Ghana with a U.S.$300 million investment, while a rail corridor between Angola and the DR Congo. As part of this effort, the U.S. Export-Import Bank has authorized $1.6 billion for infrastructure investments, he said.
"We've established an African Digital Policy Council to navigate and to coordinate our efforts," said noting that the Vice President during her visit to Zambia issued "a call to action with many entrepreneurs and philanthropists, essentially creating a private sector arm to the Digital Transformation with Africa."
In her opening statement, Phee said "this is a spectacular time to be the Assistant Secretary for African Affairs given the attention and focus of the U.S. Government on seeing what we can do to amplify and expand and rejuvenate our relationship with Africa." And she praised the role of media in Africa in advancing transparency and accountability. "We were delighted that many members of the African press corps were able to participate in the summit in December.
Responding to questions, Carson said no decision has been taken on the scheduling of future Summit, adding "perhaps every three years, perhaps once during the administration of every president."
The American officials were also asked about the letter to Blinken from U.S. legislators calling for this year's Agoa Forum which brings together U.S. and African officials to discuss trade matters be shifted from South Africa because of that country's association with Russia and the alleged weapons given to Russia for its war against Ukraine. "We're not going to get into our private conversations with the South African government," Devermont said, "but we do welcome their commitment to investigate what happened." Regarding South Africa's eligibility to continue to benefit from Agoa trade preferences, he said there is a clear process in the law and "we'll follow and that is - that won't change for South Africa."
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"We acknowledge and respect South Africa's longstanding policy of nonalignment," Phee added, "and it's our expectation that the South African Government will adhere to that policy when dealing with this terrible conflict in Europe."
In closing remarks, Carson said: "Africa's importance is real" and added that the U.S. government recognizes the important of having Africa "at the table" when important global decisions are debated and decided.
"There is no doubt that Africa is a strategic partner to the United States," Phee added, "and the goal of the implementation of the Africa Leaders Summit is to institutionalise the relationship in a way that is commensurate with Africa's strategic importance."
