Politics
Obama trip to Africa seeking to increase American investments on an increasingly important continent
China in particular has poured significant resources into the region in recent years. Official figures from Beijing put China’s trade with Africa at nearly US$200 billion last year, up from US$10 billion in 2000. The rapid increase has been driven largely by Chinese demand for oil and investments in infrastructure, including telecommunications grids.
According to the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. trade with sub-Saharan Africa totaled about US$95 billion in 2011.
Despite China’s robust investments on the African continent, Obama is likely to try to make the case that the U.S. will not only be looking out for its own interests in Africa, but also those of the African people.
‘‘China has a mixed record in Africa but gets criticized for kind of lack of transparency, bringing its own workers, bringing its own materials, not engaging with the communities around them,’’ said Jennifer Cooke, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. ‘‘And I think the president will want to make that distinction of why the U.S. is a good partner in this regard.’’
American business executives and top Obama economic advisers, including newly confirmed U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman, will also participate in the trip. Among the president’s events will be a CEO and business leader forum in Tanzania.
The president will also spend a significant portion of his trip reaching out to African youth, including a speech at the University of Cape Town.
One in three Africans is between the ages of 10 and 24, according to the White House.
