Between December 13 and 15, the US will host 49 African heads of state as well as the representative of the African Union in Washington for a three-day US-Africa Summit.
The US sees this as a chance to improve relations with Africa.
Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan, and Guinea are the only four nations that have not received invitations.
There will be additional activities and gatherings where African business and civil society leaders can interact with Americans.
This is the second summit of its kind to be held under US President Joe Biden’s watch; the first was held around the same time last year.
Due to the failure of the Russia-Africa version, the summit begins with a benefit.
In their approaches to Africa, the US and Russia saw one another as adversaries, and the conflict in Ukraine made things tense.
Robert Scott, the deputy assistant secretary of the US Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs, and Dana Banks, the president’s special assistant and senior adviser for the US-Africa Leaders Meeting, spoke to a group of African journalists about the impending summit.
“Banks” said
The summit reflects US policy toward Sub-Saharan Africa, which emphasizes the crucial role of the area in addressing this era’s defining issues.
She noted that voting patterns in Africa at the UN General Assembly regarding the conflict in Ukraine were a good indication of the interests of the continent.
Because the continent had not vehemently denounced Russia, it had served as a wake-up call for the US.
Therefore, according to Banks, the summit will take into account that “Africa is a crucial geopolitical player, one that is shaping our present and will determine our future.”
In order to “act in a manner that really highlights and deepens our shared priorities,” the US would like to see reciprocal respect.
Only Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan, and Guinea were not granted invitations to the meeting.
But representatives from those countries’ civil society organizations will be there.
Members of their civil societies and communities will be included in the discourse and discussion at the civil society forum, as well as possibly in some additional engagements that are scheduled, according to Banks.
Due to the illegitimate transfer of power through coups, Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan, and Guinea are currently on suspension.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe, which was passed over for the meeting last year, is unable to go because of travel restrictions.
Instead, the journey will be made by Foreign Affairs Minister Fredrick Shava, a former representative to the UN in Washington.
On the first day, there will be a number of forums, including one for African and Diaspora Young Leaders, one for civil society, and one for peace, security, and governance.
There will be conversations about both health and the environment.
The US-Africa Business Forum would take place on the second day, which would be a full day of opportunity for US and African businesses to network with delegates from the continent.
Biden would be in charge of the third day, which was for heads of state and governments. This specific gathering, according to Scott, would be centered on democracy, human rights, and governance.
“Again, the goal is to examine how democratic institutions and governance are related to long-term peace and prosperity.
The administrator of the US Agency for International Development, our secretaries of state and defense, and a group of African leaders will meet to discuss these connections, he said.
