President Barack Obama‘s last and only other visit to Africa was seen as a milestone. It raised expectations that the first African-American president would build relationships across the continent that would boost trade and investment.
Now, the president will start his first extended trip to Africa amid a sense of disappointment. Some trade unions have called for a mass “NObama” protest in the South African capital on Friday.
Richard Downie, deputy director of the African Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, explained they feel he has neglected them, leaving investment opportunities to other countries.
“I think in that four-year period the United States has lost ground in Africa. Other countries, China leading the way, have become much more engaged. And I think the U.S. has lost influence to a degree in the meantime.
“The U.S. tends to see Africa as a place of problems, a place that needs help. But I think times have changed now and Africans are looking and wanting the United States to update its view of Africa as a place of opportunity, a place where money can be made and investments made and business can be done,” he said.
The president is under pressure from Congress, which is urging his administration to step up engagement with the continent. On Tuesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a bill which, if it becomes law, will boost trade with Africa. It will, said one senator, “put Africa at the forefront of the U.S. business and development goals.”
Source: Euronews
