- The US president’s international travel has so far focused on Asia and Europe; his predecessor Trump did not visit Africa during his term
- Biden is emphasising US attention on the region as he wraps up a three-day summit with African leaders
US President Joe Biden on Thursday said he will soon make a visit to sub-Saharan Africa, announcing bare details of his travel plans as he wrapped up a US-Africa Leaders Summit stressing that he is serious about increasing US attention on the growing continent.
Biden said he will also be dispatching many of his top advisers to Africa including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellinand Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
“I’m looking forward to seeing you in your home countries,” Biden said.
The visit will be Biden’s first to sub-Saharan Africa of his presidency. He made a brief stop in November in Egypt – which spans across the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia – for an international climate summit. The president did not detail which countries he will visit or exactly when the trip will happen.
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US President Joe Biden on Thursday said he will soon make a visit to sub-Saharan Africa, announcing bare details of his travel plans as he wrapped up a US-Africa Leaders Summit stressing that he is serious about increasing US attention on the growing continent.
Biden said he will also be dispatching many of his top advisers to Africa including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellinand Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
“I’m looking forward to seeing you in your home countries,” Biden said.
The visit will be Biden’s first to sub-Saharan Africa of his presidency. He made a brief stop in November in Egypt – which spans across the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia – for an international climate summit. The president did not detail which countries he will visit or exactly when the trip will happen.
In the first two years of his presidency, Biden’s international travel has focused on Asia and Europe, as he sought to recalibrate his foreign policy to put greater focus on the Indo-Pacific. He has also had to deal with the fallout of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Biden’s Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, did not make it to Africa during his Covid-19 shadowed presidency in which he made no foreign visits during his final 11 months. Trump was the first since Ronald Reagan not to visit the continent during his presidency
Biden on Thursday pledged US$165 million in US funding to support peaceful, credible elections in Africa next year as his administration looked to underscore the importance of fair voting in countries where it sometimes has been blighted by violence.
The pledge was announced as Biden and leaders from 49 nations wrapped up their three-day summit in Washington.
Thursday’s talks were dedicated to high-level discussions on US partnering with the African Union’s strategic vision for the continent – including food security. Africa has disproportionately felt the impact of rising global food prices spurred by Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The White House announced the elections-funding plan after Biden met on Wednesday with Democratic Republic of the Congo President Felix Tshisekedi, Gabon President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Liberia President George Manneh Weah, Madagascar President Andry Nirina Rajoelina, Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari and Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio to discuss their countries’ voting in 2023.
The White House said in a statement that Biden, in his meeting with the leaders, reflected on the state of democracy in his own country after last year’s January 6 attack on the US Capitol. That was when supporters of then-President Trump violently sought to stop Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 election, which Trump lost to Biden.
“Together the leaders discussed the challenges of holding elections and exercising the right to vote, including foreign interference and political violence, and shared best practices for how to manage these risks and ensure transparency and public confidence in the electoral process,” the White House statement said. “The elections in Africa in 2023 will be consequential.”
Biden on Twitter added that the leaders spoke about “the importance of holding free, fair, and transparent elections, and of working together to strengthen democracy globally”.
The coming elections in African nations are seen as important indicators of the strength of democracy across the continent.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with more than 210 million people, is already confronted with violent attacks relating to its election, to be held in February.
Congo is battling an upsurge of rebel violence in its east, which will complicate its efforts to hold elections. Tshisekedi won power in tumultuous elections in that country in 2019, and the coming elections, scheduled for Decing 2023, will be crucial to solidify his rule.
West Africa has had several coups in recent years and Burkina Faso and Mali are currently ruled by military juntas. With this in mind, the elections in Gabon and Sierra Leone will be key markers. Sierra Leone had anti-government demonstrations this year over high inflation and displeasure with President Bio, who was elected in 2018.
In Madagascar, with a history marked by coups and disputed elections. President Rajoelina was elected in 2019, replacing rule by a military-backed junta. Rajoelina will be striving to consolidate his rule and the country’s democracy in the elections.
The United States has already provided nearly US$50 million in support of civil society and the electoral commissions in Nigeria and Congo.
The White House announced last week Biden’s support for the African Union to become part of the G20, which is composed of the world’s major industrial and emerging economies and represents more than 80 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product.
Source | South China Morning Post