President Biden is hosting nearly 50 African leaders this week in an effort to show “renewed commitment” to a continent routinely neglected by the West, one that has been battered by coups and wars, poverty and the pandemic, but that also has seen vast Chinese investment in numerous nations. “The gap, I think, between 2014 and 2022 certainly is regrettable,” said Judd Devermont, who heads African affairs at the National Security Council. In addition, Biden is expected to urge that the African Union, which represents 55 African states, be given a seat in the Group of 20, an influential collection of the strongest economies in the world. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan vowed the summit, which begins Tuesday and lasts through Thursday, would yield more than the platitudes that have previously frustrated African leaders and supporters. African leaders are arriving in the U.S. capital bringing with them a message of partnership over paternalism, an old theme but one many say continues to undermine economic development.

Source: Ethiopian News December 13, 2022 08:38 UTC