By Africa Links 24
Published on 2024-01-29 08:22:07
Former US President Donald Trump is making a comeback in the Republican primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire. He has easily outstripped his rivals and is on the path to securing his party’s nomination, potentially setting up a rematch with President Joe Biden. The only obstacle in his way is Nikki Haley, the former US ambassador to the UN, who is not predicted to resist for long. Trump’s momentum in the primaries is giving him every chance of capturing the White House once again.
However, for Africa, this news is disheartening. Trump’s past dismissal of some African nations as “sh*thole countries” is well known. His disengagement with the continent went beyond just tactless comments. He failed to visit Africa and left key diplomatic posts unfilled. Additionally, Trump’s attempts to limit Muslim immigration to the US discriminated against several African nations.
Despite Trump’s shortcomings, the outgoing president’s transactional instincts shaped the outlines of an African commercial strategy that Biden has continued to build upon. In 2018, Trump signed the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development (BUILD) Act into law. This established the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) as a new development bank with a lending capacity of $60 billion.
The Biden administration has followed Trump’s plans, including the hosting of the US-Africa Leaders Summit, which aimed to strengthen trade ties and increase two-way trade and investment between the US and African countries. The US has since supported and closed 547 new deals worth an estimated $14.2 billion in new trade and investment.
Despite some strained relations, the tone with Biden’s administration has generally been warm and constructive. Secretary of State Antony Blinken acknowledged the importance of partnerships and collaboration with African nations to solve global problems.
As Trump seems to be regaining momentum with a potential reprise of his “America First” rhetoric, there are concerns that African policymakers should brace themselves for a return to a purely transactional relationship.
