President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced an agreement aimed at bolstering trade ties between the United States and Africa after years in which the continent took a back seat to other U.S. priorities as China made inroads with investments and trade.
“The United States is ‘all in’ on Africa’s future,” Biden told African leaders from 49 countries and the African Union at a three-day summit in Washington that began on Tuesday.
Biden’s remarks, and the summit, aim to position the United States as a partner to African countries amid competition with China, which has sought to expand its influence by funding infrastructure projects on the continent and elsewhere.
Chinese trade with Africa is about four times that of the United States, and Beijing has become an important creditor by offering cheaper loans – often with opaque terms and collateral requirements – than Western lenders.
Biden said a new agreement with the African Continental Free Trade Area will give American companies access to 1.3 billion people and a market valued at $3.4 trillion. He listed companies that had made deals at the summit, including General Electric Co GE.N and Cisco Systems Inc CSCO.O.
“When Africa succeeds, the United States succeeds. Quite frankly, the whole world succeeds as well,” the president said.
During a White House dinner honoring African leaders and their spouses, Biden addressed what he called America’s “original sin” – the enslavement of millions of people – and honored their descendants and the broader African diaspora community in the United States.
