The United States has committed $55 billion (52.2 billion euros) to Africa over the next three years as a way to address the major challenges facing countries on the African continent.
In collaboration with the U.S. Congress, the endowment — which is part of «longstanding U.S. leadership and partnership in development» — will be used to carry out new projects and initiatives by providing funding, according to U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
«In the coming days you will hear a number of announcements: concrete results in a number of areas, new projects and initiatives, new sources of funding. But our commitment to Africa goes far beyond that. It is reflected in our decades of meaningful engagement, people-to-people ties, and high-quality investments in our common future,» Sullivan said after announcing the $55 million endowment.
Asked why Africans should have confidence that the U.S. will act differently than other times it has helped African states, the White House advisor listed three points that he said demonstrate confidence that a positive outcome will be achieved.
«The first is that we are providing a significant number of resources. And if you compare what the United States is committing over the next three years to what any other country is committing, I think our position is very favorable,» Sullivan has asserted during a press conference at the White House as part of a summit of U.S. and African leaders.
«Secondly, how have we designed the agenda for this summit? It’s not a Washington diktat. It’s not a Washington sermon. We are addressing the African nations themselves and the African Union and saying, ‘What are your priorities? What is your vision?'» he added, stressing that the summit will be about Agenda 2063, a document drafted by the African Union on the continent’s future prospects.
As for the third reason, Sullivan stressed that the United States has placed emphasis on implementing the summit outcomes «like no one has seen at previous summits,» which would mean that «we will put forward someone who is well known to Africans, respected, someone who has a track record of delivering on the major issues that matter to Africans around the world. That is Johnnie Carson.
Meanwhile, he reiterated that «it’s not about what we say, it’s about what we do,» which is why the United States would be mobilizing the resources, the people and the process necessary to get it done.
