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During his final overseas trip in office, President Biden will visit Angola with a focus on exploring the country’s history, particularly its connection to slavery. He will also emphasize the importance of a rail corridor as part of his administration’s economic strategy in the region.
Written by Zolan Kanno-Youngs
Zolan Kanno-Youngs reports on White House news and will be accompanying President Biden on Air Force One for a trip to Angola.
On Sunday night, President Biden will start his long-anticipated trip to Africa by visiting Angola. The purpose of his visit is to recognize the difficult past between the two countries and to pledge to a future of economic development through investment.
President Biden’s visit to Africa is the first time an American president has visited the continent since Barack Obama’s trip to Kenya and Ethiopia in 2015.
This trip is expected to be President Biden’s final visit abroad before his term ends. He had promised to visit Africa in 2022 to show the United States’ support for the continent’s future. Despite several delays, President Biden is now on a three-day diplomatic tour of Angola. During his visit, he will tour a slavery museum and highlight a rail corridor that his team sees as a key part of his administration’s economic plans for the region.
A project called the Lobito Corridor, which is worth $1 billion, aims to connect Angola with Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. These countries are abundant in critical minerals needed for making batteries for smartphones and electric vehicles. President Biden is emphasizing this project to enhance American access to these crucial resources in Africa and to counter China’s increasing presence on the continent.
Even though the Biden administration has made efforts to strengthen relationships, experts in foreign policy believe that the United States is still falling behind China and Russia in terms of competing for economic and security power in Africa.
Tibor P. Nagy Jr., a former ambassador to Africa appointed by both President Bill Clinton and the Trump administration, stated that since disengaging with post-colonial Africa, it has been given very little importance. He criticized administrations for creating ambitious African strategies that lack substance, comparing it to the concept of "Where is the beef?" in an old advertisement.
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