US Treasury Secretary Yellen Believes Africa Will Shape World Economy
During the US-Africa Leaders Summit (#UALS2) which took place in Washington DC last December 2022, President Joe Biden indicated that “the USA is all in on Africa” and 2023 will see several visits from top officials in his administration to Africa. To kick off the string of visits, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is on a three-nation tour which will take her to Senegal, Zambia and South Africa (#YellenAfrica2023) from 20 to 30 January 2023.
In South Africa, Secretary Yellen visited the Ford factory where cars and pickup trucks are assembled. In her speech, she echoed Blinken’s remarks during the US-Africa Leaders Summit in December 2022 whereby Africa will play an increasingly important role in the world.
“The United States’ strategy towards Africa is centered around a simple recognition that Africa will shape the future of the global economy.”
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen
Interestingly, Yellen’s arrival to South Africa comes right after Russian FM Sergey Lavrov. Russia, China and South Africa plan to have joint naval drills and the ‘belle entente’ among these #BRICS member countries raised some eyebrows at the White House.
During a visit to Game Reserve, Secretary Yellen highlighted #biodiversity protection as another successful partnership between USA and South Africa. In order to combat Wildlife Trafficking, she announced the creation of a joint US-SA Task Force on Combating the Financing of Wildlife Trafficking. The objective of the Task Force is to curb illegal trafficking in elephant ivory, rhino horns and pangolins amongst other items.
Facing rolling blackouts, South Africa is in urgent need for power generation. However, 80% of its energy comes from coal. Thus, the US and other Western countries have pledged some USD 8.5 billion in loans to finance the #GreenTransition in South Africa, with more coming. In particular, US, UK and EU back South Africa’s in its efforts to adhere to the “Just Energy Transition Partnership” (#JETP).