More (potentially) good news

FROM TODAY'S WALL STREET JOURNAL ON-LINE EDITION:

"In the first week of August, U.S. President Barack Obama will convene the inauguralU.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington D.C., an unprecedented gathering of African business and political leaders and heads of state.

Considered something of a gamble by some, the summit is intended to foster stronger ties between the U.S. and Africa and to highlight to U.S. businesses the opportunities Africa presents for investment.

All but three of Africa’s 54 heads of state were invited to the summit. To date, more than 40 have agreed to attend. With so many African leaders converging on Washington for the event, the summit will be the largest event any U.S. President has held with African heads of state and government.

The day before the heads of state summit, some 200 African and American businesspeople as well as heads of state and other government officials will gather for the U.S.-Africa Business Forum. Co-hosted by the US Department of Commerce and Bloomberg Philanthropies, the forum will have a specific focus on deepening trade and financial ties."

The gamble referred to above is the President's decision to meet with the heads of state as a group. A United States of Africa has been the subject of many a forum and even poetry, going back to the 1920's. The obstacles confronting such a dream prospect are many and are as diverse as the continent itself.

According to WSJ:

"The obstacles are formidable. Congolese women who trade eggs can’t cross borders without giving away part of their load to officials and facing threats of sexual assault, according to a 2012 World Bank report; South Africa has feuded with Nigeria and Kenya over visa rules for their citizens; and a territorial row between Malawi and Tanzania over a lake separating them has hampered oil exploration."

As I have posted previously, there are several economic blocs within the continent that are becoming more and more effective so, while a politically connected continent may be a poet's dream, an economically connected Africa could very well become a reality, even if several countries remain outside (Zimbabwe anyone?).

Despite the reservations, I would view the summit as a very positive step and it will have some immediate impact.

Again according to WSJ online, US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker stated that over $900 million of new investment will be announced at the summit. There is no indication as to the composition of the investment (Federal vs Commercial, infrastructure vs business) so we may have to wait until August to find out.

A meeting worth following!

the full WSJ article is at: 

http://blogs.wsj.com/frontiers/2014/07/25/qa-pritzker-and-bloomberg-discuss-the-u-s-africa-business-forum/

TW

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