Biden Administration Looking to Expand US-Africa Business Ties to Counter China

 

Biden is reviving a Trump-era business initiative in Africa

by Dave DeCamp 

Posted onJuly 27, 2021CategoriesNewsTagsChina

Feeling threatened by China’s infrastructure projects in Africa, the Biden administration is pursuing an initiative to boost business ties between US companies and African nations. The idea is to put more resources behind a Trump-era investment project, known as Prosper Africa.

Dana Banks, the top Africa official on the National Security Council, said Tuesday that the Biden administration’s goal is to “reinvigorate Prosper Africa as the centerpiece of US economic and commercial engagement with Africa.”

The Biden administration’s push will focus on clean energy, health, agriculture, and transportation infrastructure on the African continent. President Biden requested $80 million for the initiative in his budget proposal in May.

As Washington is increasingly focused on Beijing, the US is looking to counter China’s global infrastructure project, known as the Belt and Road Initiative. The Trump administration started discouraging allies from participating in economic projects with China, and the Biden officials have continued the trend.

In April, Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Africa against doing business in China in talks with leaders from Nigeria and Kenya. Blinken has also said that the US and its allies must be “very careful” when it comes to Chinese investments in Western economies.

https://news.antiwar.com/2021/07/27/biden-administration-looking-to-expand-us-africa-business-ties-to-counter-china/