Washington - Several African leaders started arriving in Washington DC on Sunday ahead of the first US-Africa Leaders’ Summit to be convened by US President, Barack Obama, here on 5 and 6 August.
President Jacob Zuma, who is accompanied by first lady Nompumelelo Zuma, arrived in Washington in the early hours of Sunday.
Also in President Zuma’s delegation are International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, State Security’s David Mahlobo, Transport Minister Dipuo Peters and as well as Trade and Industry Minister, Rob Davies.
The unprecedented summit is expected to be a major event, bringing together more than 50 Heads of State and Government from Africa for talks with Obama.
The presidents of Liberia and Sierra Leone — two of three countries that have experienced an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus - have cancelled their plans to attend the summit.
The summit’s three-day formal programme includes one day devoted to business issues and events focusing on food security, health and women’s empowerment. There are close to 100 events that will take place on the sidelines of the summit.
According to a draft programme released by the US government this week, events on Tuesday will include a Business Forum which is expected to bring together about 50 CEOs from across the US and Africa.
There are more than 600 US companies operating in South Africa and the US is South Africa’s third largest trading partner.
South Africa is eager to increase its exposure to the US and Pretoria is also pushing to extend the African Growth Opportunities Act (AGOA) programme - the US legislation that provides duty-free market access to the US for qualifying Sub-Saharan African countries by extending preferences on more than 4 600 products.
It also provides duty-free access to all clothing (as well as certain textile) exports from countries that qualify. Through the AGOA, South Africa has reportedly exported significant quantities of manufactured goods - most notably about 60 000 automobiles a year.
It’s expected that all eyes will be on US Trade Representative, Michael Froman, who will host the AGOA Forum on Monday. African and US trade officials will discuss the future of the AGOA program and US plans to pursue a renewal of AGOA legislation.
As signaled during a press conference in Pretoria on Friday, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies is expected to argue South Africa’s inclusion in any possible extension of AGOA for another 15 years.
A White House statement said the summit will also build on the progress made since President Obama's trip to Africa in 2013, advance the focus on trade and investment in Africa, and highlight America's commitment to Africa's security, its democratic development, and its people.
Some observers have suggested that the conference was aimed at ensuring that Obama leaves a stronger relationship with Africa when his term in office comes to an end in 2016.
Speaking to SAnews, head of the Centre for African Renaissance at Unisa, Professor Shadrack Gutto, said the summit will have historical significance because Obama would be the first US president to bring African leaders together.
US policy on Africa has changed over the years, said Gutto, adding that America was increasingly recognising Africa as the fastest growing economy in the world. He said it was significant that Obama had decided to call the summit in his last term in office.
“It is my view that Obama, as a person of African descent, wants to say he cares about Africa and wants to show that in practice. I think he will use this opportunity to begin to invest more in Africa, it will be both political and diplomacy,” Gutto said.
But, he said, the directions of discussions at Wednesday’s summit also depended on the agenda of the African leaders who have been invited to be part of the meeting.
“The question will be whether these leaders are going there as school children who are called to the headmaster’s office, or will they actually set the agenda. We will see. Africa’s agenda ought to be clear, the leaders need to come to the summit with a clear message that the continent needs to industrialise and the US can play a role in that.
“It is a question of whether the US can prove itself as a good partner in the development of Africa and the quest to industrialise. Already NEPAD demands that the donor –recipient relationship must come to an end. I therefore think it will therefore be important that this does not come across as just another talk shop,” said Gutto. –SAnews.gov.za
