Trump wants to do business with Africa, but ignores important countries

Trump wants to do business with Africa, but ignores important countries

The White House is organizing an unofficial summit of the "African leaders" this week. However, only five of the 55 countries of the continent have been invited.

The invited African delegation

The President of Liberia announced that he is one of the five African heads of state, which of US President Donald Trump for a "high-ranking summit" in Washington, D.C. were invited. The aim of the meeting is to deepen the diplomatic relationships, to promote common economic goals and to strengthen the security policy cooperation between Washington and "selected African nations". The other invited heads of state include the presidents of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Senegal.

Missing important players

It is exciting that none of Africa's great economic actors, such as South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt or Ethiopia, was invited to the summit. These countries are part of the BRICS group, which consists of emerging economies such as Brazil, India and the USA opposite Russia and China. Analysts agree that the selection of Trump's guests is a mystery and the shift in US policy in relation to the continent is described as a "high-risk game of gambling".

Was Trump looking for results?

Christopher Afoke Isike, professor of African politics and international relations at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, described Trump's hand -picked guests as "easy to have" in his endeavor to push the influence of China and Russia back in Africa. Will this summit serve to find a diplomatic solution that promotes American interests in Africa?

The interests of the invited countries

Despite their smaller economies, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal and Liberia are rich in mineral raw materials such as oil, gas, gold, iron ore and rare earths. These nations are also often the starting point for migrants who want to go to the USA. Ousmane Sene, head of the West Africa Research Centers (Warc), argues that the talks at the summit will not only affect trade, but also include migration flows and security questions.

The geopolitical landscape of Africa

china is considered the largest bilateral trading partner of Africa, while Russia is expanding its presence on the continent and appears as the main supplier of military technology. The relationship between these small economic actors and the big powers is not new. The five invited countries had already maintained close relationships with China in the past.

What can the five countries expect?

According to journalists and political analysts Mamadou Thior, the heads of state of the five African countries must be clever in their negotiations. The USA, which was once an important partner for countries like Senegal, no longer exists. The responsibility now lies with the leading personalities of these countries to negotiate new cooperation opportunities.

Analysts like Isike believe that this meeting could introduce a new, transactional diplomatic model of the US engagement. The American government might be interested in private sector partnerships, investments, infrastructure development and security cooperations.

FAZIT