Top10 Things You Need to Know about the U.S.- Africa Leaders Summit

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SPECIAL EDITION   Top10 Things You Need to Know about the U.S.- Africa Leaders Summit       FACT SHEET: U.S.-Africa Partnership in Elevating Diaspora Engagement   The African immigrant community makes significant contributions to America’s growth and prosperity.  The African Diaspora—i.e., people of native African origin living outside the continent—has been described as the sixth region of African Union. During the Forum, Vice President Kamala Harris announced the creation of the President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement in the United States (PAC-ADE).  Today, President Biden issued an executive order (EO) directing the Secretary of State to establish PAC-ADE, which will enhance the dialogue between United States officials and the African Diaspora.  The EO encourages efforts to advance equity and opportunity for the African Diaspora in the United States and strengthen cultural, social, political, and economic ties between African communities, the global African Diaspora, and the United States. PAC-ADE will consist of diverse representatives from African-American and African immigrant communities who have distinguished themselves in government, sports, creative industries, business, academia, social work, and faith-based activities.   SOURCE: AFRICA.COM       Ghana President Doesn't Mince his Words   Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo has urged African countries to stop "begging" from the West in order to earn global respect and change poor perceptions about the continent. "If we stop being beggars and spend African money inside the continent, Africa will not need to ask for respect from anyone, we will get the respect we deserve. If we make it prosperous as it should be, respect will follow," Mr Akufo-Addo made the remarks during the opening of the US-Africa Leaders' Summit in Washington DC on Tuesday. Mr Akufo-Addo urged greater solidarity among Africans to address shared aspirations. Nana Akufo-Addo's remarks came on the day that the International Monetary Fund agreed to give Ghana a $3bn loan to alleviate an unprecedented economic downturn in the West African country. SOURCE: AFRICA NEWS       The Africa.com Virtual Deal Room, in Collaboration with Prosper Africa   As President Biden hosts 49 African presidents this week in Washington D.C. for the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, Africa.com invites you into the Africa.com Virtual Deal Room today, Wednesday, December 14, from 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM (Washington DC/Eastern Time) - the space where major business deals between African nations and the U.S. are being announced in real time. Come watch the announcements as they are being made and read the fact sheets and press releases about each deal. Prosper Africa, the U.S. government initiative to increase trade and investment between African Nations and the U.S, is hosting the Live Deal Room. Africa.com thanks Prosper Africa for your invitation to be in Washington and to provide this real time experience for our visitors. SOURCE: AFRICA.COM       Human Rights Watch’s Side Event Fills Gap Missing from Official Agenda   The day before the official event, Human Rights Watch hosted the African Human Rights Leaders Summit, alongside Amnesty International USA, Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED), and Humanity United. Rights leaders from across Africa gathered to talk about safeguarding human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, as well as how the US is engaging on these issues. The Honorable Graça Machel, a leading voice on democracy in Africa, a renowned humanitarian, and the event’s keynote speaker, discussed how African rights defenders are bringing a “face and voice to human rights in a context that is very limiting and oppressive.” Human rights leaders from Cameroon, Egypt, Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, and Zimbabwe emphasized the power of those who stand up to that oppression and demand greater rights and freedoms. Several said that diaspora communities can also play a powerful role by speaking out to protect and promote human rights in their home countries. The message of these frontline defenders is clear: Human rights are under attack in Africa and the US government can do more to stand up to abusive regimes through its foreign policy engagement. SOURCE: HRW       Innovating Finance for Climate Change as Policymakers Gather for the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit   Africa.com, Bank of America and Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) are convening a high-level curated event to discuss innovating finance for climate change in Washington D.C. on December 15, during the U.S.- Africa Leaders Summit. The event will bring together a focus group of senior leaders to contribute to framing financial innovations that are needed to advance the partnership between the United States and Africa on tackling global climate change. Leading the conversation are Samaila Zubairu, President & CEO, Africa Finance Corporation, and Yvonne Ike, Managing Director, sub-Saharan Africa (ex-RSA), Bank of America. The event is unique in featuring an interactive conversation among experts moderated by Teresa Clarke, Chair of Africa.com. “The goal of the evening is to end with new ideas, new and stronger relationships, and specific action items that will lead to creative financing solutions as Africa moves forward in addressing global climate change,” said Clarke. SOURCE: AFRICA.COM     PODCAST: U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit- What’s in It for African Nations?   Onyekachi Wambu – Columnist at New African magazine, David Shinn – Former U.S. ambassador and professor at George Washington University and Einar Tangen – Senior fellow at the Taihe Institute and founder of Asia Narratives sit down with Al Jazeera’s Laura Kyle to discuss what role African nations play in the U.S. hosted summit.  The summit comes as China is investing heavily in the continent and Russia has become more involved in regional conflicts. SOURCE: AL JAZEERA     How Institutional Funds and Banks can Accelerate Investment in Firms Owned by African Women   A roundtable on investing in African women entrepreneurs took place in Washington DC’s Hay Adams hotel on Tuesday. The discussions, held on the sidelines of the three-day US-Africa Leaders Summit, made the business case for investing in women-led asset managers and businesses across the continent. Firms owned by women and minorities manage just 1.3% of a $73 trillion investment industry. The first finance facility of its kind, the Women Entrepreneurs Opportunity Facility (WEOF), started by a partnership between the Goldman Sachs Foundation and the World Bank’s IFC, has delivered $1.45bn in investments over the past five years for local financial institutions to lend to women-owned businesses. SOURCE: AFRICAN BUSINESS     Expectations from the US-Africa Space Forum   Africa’s overarching goal is to meet the developmental needs of the continent while still being a responsible and peaceful user of space. Its core priorities include socioeconomic development; access to space-derived data, products and services; development of the local space industry; corporate governance and management; continental space coordination; and beneficial partnerships. The agendas of the US and Africa for space are not divergent; they are only internally focused. Efforts are therefore needed to align their respective policies and actions for mutual benefit. Discussions on African countries signing up to the US-led Artemis Accords are likely to come up at the forum. The accords are a set of principles for participating in the US-led space exploration programme called Artemis. African countries need to approach the framework with a clear understanding of the costs and benefits. The African Space Strategy also highlights space missions, technologies, operations and applications, that should guide them in their decision-making. SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION     Why Five Countries where Excluded from the Summit   According to the U.S. State Department’s Office of African Affairs, 49 African governments and African Union (AU) dignitaries were invited to attend the three-day summit beginning Tuesday. However, five countries were excluded from the invitations: Mali, Guinea-Conakry, Burkina Faso, Eritrea and Somaliland. Justifying the exclusion. yesterday, Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council, Judd Devermont, said the State Department “wanted to respect the decisions of the African Union and did not invite countries the AU has sanctioned, as is the case of Mali, Guinea-Conakry and Burkina Faso. On the other hand, Eritrea and Somaliland were excluded because they don’t have diplomatic relations with the U.S.” SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN NIGERIA     Open Government: A True Solution to Africa’s Governance Challenges   Platforms to build trust between governments, civil society organisations and citizens play a crucial role in reestablishing confidence in governance. Last month, the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Regional Meeting in Morocco created such a platform. More than 600 open government reformers from Africa and the Middle East met in Marrakech to discuss ways to renew our societies and build better democracies that can help address these challenges. The gathering brought civil society, ministers, parliamentarians, and local leaders together to have difficult conversations that can unearth solutions and forge broader coalitions to renew societies and institutions that can tackle these challenges. In 2020, the Mo Ibrahim Governance Index reported the first-ever decline in average governance score since 2006. The same year, Freedom House reported a decline in freedom in 22 African countries. The 2022 African Union Summit had a strong call for governments to improve governance to deliver better for citizens. An important aspiration not only for governments but for all Africans who call the continent home. SOURCE: AFRICA.COM