Rejigged US – Africa strategy targets youth demographic, promises better engagement with governments; Pandor urges unity in tackling global challenges
Anthony Blinken, US Secretary of State who arrived in South Africa on Sunday to begin his three-nation tour of the continent says its new “U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa” will actively engage the region’s leaders on issues from climate change to pandemic recovery to food insecurity.
The new strategy also includes addressing the needs of Africa’s youth. As of 2021, 40 percent of Africa’s population is 15 years old or younger.
“As part of our increased focus on ensuring African youth have improved access to a broader range of skills and knowledge, the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development will seek to leverage U.S. academic institutions as well as the private sector, to facilitate the provision of online undergraduate and certificate-level courses in science, technology, engineering, and math fields,” the statement read in part.
The document, published on Monday expands on a November 2021 speech in which US Secretary of State first spelled out President Biden’s African agenda. It states that it is “impossible to meet today’s defining challenges without African contributions and leadership.
The U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa outlines four main objectives for the U.S. in sub-Saharan Africa, including; fostering openness and open societies, delivering democratic and security dividends, advancing pandemic recovery and economic opportunity, supporting conservation, climate adaptation, and a just energy transition.
The paper says the U.S. will also work with African governments and regional bodies, including the African Union, to support sustainable development “accelerators,” it said.
South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor says world leaders should come together to address the numerous challenges that have struck various regions.
Pandor made the call in a speech as she met with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Pretoria on Monday.
“The world is going through an extraordinarily difficult period. Many countries are having to contend with high costs for fuel, food, and transport, which are basic necessities,” she spelled out.
“The current global economic environment, which is marked by rising inequality, conflict, unequal technological advances, and environmental degradation brought about by climate change, has huge implications for food security and agricultural systems, especially in Africa where the pandemic has reversed the gains that have been made under the African Union’s socio-economic development blueprint, Agenda 2063, to bring about the Africa we want.”
Pandor urged leaders to ensure that the undertakings made at the United Nations, the G7, and G20 to address food insecurity, global health, peace and security, sustainable and just energy transition, as well as human security are meaningfully addressed.
“Together we must identify paths to greater prosperity and human-centered development that improve local communities’ self-reliance, social justice, and participatory decision-making,” the minister said.
Pandor also used the opportunity to call for stronger ties between South Africa and the US, noting that it should create the conditions for both democracies to thrive.
The U.S. Secretary of State is scheduled to stay in South Africa until Tuesday before traveling to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda.
