Washington – African leaders and the United States have agreed to work together to build stronger trade ties between the two continents, said President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday.
Speaking at the closing of the historic two-day US-Africa Leaders’ Summit, President Zuma said investment in Africa by the US will climb in the coming years.
Hailing the summit as a major success, President Zuma touted the inroads made at the summit including the more than 33 billion US dollars in investments in Africa, announced by President Barack Obama.
The summit, a first of its kind to be hosted by a US President, was seen by many as an attempt by Obama, who has African origins, to recalibrate relations between America and Africa. Some say it was also a legacy issue for Obama whose father hails from Kenya.
But President Zuma said if anything, the conference managed to put together almost all African leaders under one roof to discuss common interest with the United States, a crucial market for African goods.
African Growth Opportunity Act
The meeting at the US State Department has also put aside any doubts that may have been there regarding the Obama administration’s support for the renewal of the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA) when the Act’s current term comes to an end next year.
“Given the manner in which this summit has helped to foster our relationship, it’s going to be very difficult for any future American leader to come and ignore that this summit has taken place and what it has achieved,” President Zuma said.
He said much of the summit deliberations centred on boosting US business ties with Africa, the continuation of AGOA, good governance as well as peace and security.
The US also pledged to provide financial support for Africa’s stand by force which is expected to start operating in October.
The good news is that America has changed its earlier stance on conflict resolution on the continent and will not attempt to send any troops to Africa in times of crisis but will instead leave this to the continent’s leaders and the African Union.
Since 2009, the US has committed to provide nearly 892 million US dollars to develop African peacekeeping capacity and strengthen African institutions.
The US has also come out strongly in support of the work done by more than 67 000 African peacekeepers serving with the African Union and United Nations (UN) in Africa.
President Zuma said, after the summit, the question of whether South Africa may or may not be part of AGOA - if congress votes in favour of its renewal - was no longer an issue.
“That to us is very important because before we came here some people were saying South Africa is now developed and doesn’t need AGOA. That is no longer the issue because everyone has realised that South Africa is one of the key players in the integration of the continent and if you pull South Africa out of that (AGOA) you really will be in a sense destabilising that process,” President Zuma said.
Africa welcomes all business relations
As home to six of the world's 10 fastest-growing economies and a rapidly expanding middle class, President Zuma said the summit in Washington was an indication of Africa’s growth and the willingness of America to take Africa on board as the two regions sought to expand their growth.
The President played down suggestions made by some analysts that the US was simply playing catch to China which is increasingly expanding its presence in the continent.
“The view is that anyone who wants to make business in Africa is welcome. Chinese have a role to play. Even he (Obama) says they have a relationship with China. China’s presence in Africa is not an issue that was discussed. What we discussed was that Africa is opening up and whoever wants to come and invest is welcome.
“Africa is saying here we are, we are ready to do business and whoever wants to do business with Africa must come. A relationship should be based on mutual benefit and understanding,” said President Zuma.
US-Africa strengthen ties
There were fears, earlier this week, that the US stance on the Israel/Palestine conflict and the current outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa would overshadow the talks attended by more than 40 Heads of State and Government.
But in his final press conference at the end of the summit, Obama said leaders from both sides emerged more determined to strengthen ties between the US and one of the world’s most dynamic and fastest growing regions.
“The Summit advanced our shared interests in increased US-Africa trade and US investment in Africa and highlighted America’s commitment to Africa’s security, its democratic development, and its people. By enabling discussion of tangible actions that can be taken to deepen the US-Africa partnership, the Summit fostered stronger ties between the United States and Africa,” Obama said.
The Summit theme, “Investing in the Next Generation”, reflected the common ambition that the people and government of the United States share with the people and governments of Africa “to leave our nations better for future generations by making concrete gains in peace and security, good governance, and economic development”.
New financing to promote US exports to Africa
On Wednesday, the US President announced a massive 33 billion US dollars in new financing to promote US exports to and investment in Africa.
He made the announcement at the first US-Africa Business Forum, where he said 7 billion US dollars will go to new financing to promote US exports to and investments in Africa under the Doing Business in Africa Campaign (DBIA).
US companies will also sign deals in clean energy, aviation, banking, and construction worth more than 14 billion US dollars, in addition to 12 billion in new commitments under the President’s Power Africa initiative from private sector partners, the World Bank, and the government of Sweden. – SAnews.gov.za
