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During his final overseas trip in office, President Biden will be visiting Angola with a focus on highlighting both historical aspects and economic opportunities. He plans to visit a slavery museum and showcase a rail corridor, which is a key part of his administration’s regional strategy.
Written by Zolan Kanno-Youngs
Zolan Kanno-Youngs reports on White House news and is scheduled to accompany President Biden on Air Force One for a trip to Angola.
President Biden is set to embark on his long-awaited trip to Africa starting Sunday night with a visit to Angola. The purpose of the visit is to recognize the difficult past between the two countries and pledge to work towards a future of economic growth through investment.
President Biden is currently on his first trip to Africa, which is the first time an American president has visited the continent since Barack Obama’s visit to Kenya and Ethiopia in 2015.
Mr. Biden is currently on his final trip abroad as President, following his promise in 2022 to visit Africa to show America’s commitment to the continent’s future. Despite some setbacks, he is now on a three-day diplomatic visit to Angola, where he plans to tour a slavery museum and highlight a rail corridor that symbolizes his administration’s economic focus in the region.
A project called the Lobito Corridor, costing $1 billion, aims to connect Angola with Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. These countries have abundant critical minerals needed for making batteries for smartphones and electric vehicles. President Biden is promoting this project to increase American access to these important resources in Africa and to counter China’s increasing influence in the region.
Foreign policy experts believe that despite the Biden administration’s efforts to establish friendly relations, the United States is still falling behind China and Russia in terms of competing for economic and security influence in Africa.
Tibor P. Nagy Jr., a former ambassador to Africa appointed by both President Bill Clinton and the Trump administration, pointed out that since our disengagement with post-colonial Africa, it has been given very little attention. He mentioned that some administrations have presented ambitious African strategies, but often lack substance or tangible results, similar to the phrase "Where is the beef?" from an old advertisement.
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