World
US-Africa Leaders Summit: Matters Arising and Way Forward
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
On the eve of the US-Africa Leaders Summit planned for December 13-15 in Washington, the Corporate Council, in partnership with the African Union and the US State Department, hosted discussions which were a combination of online and offline with some experts from the United States and Africa.
Katherine Tai, the 19th United States Trade Representative and Secretary-General Wamkele Wene from the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Ambassador Rama Yade, Senior Director of the Africa Centre. Taking part was the Dean of the African diplomatic corps in the United States.
This discussion came on the eve of the US-Africa Leaders Summit (ALS), which will advance US-African collaboration on today’s most pressing global and regional priorities. The ALS will reflect the breadth and depth of US partnerships with African governments, businesses, civil society, and citizens-partnerships based on dialogue, respect, and shared values that harness the ingenuity and creativity of American and African people.
There were various themes during the discussion against the difficult geopolitical backdrop of high global economic imbalances slowing direct investment into the continent as well as accelerating shifts in the job market.
Worth noting that the United States – Africa Leaders’ Summit will be hosted by President Joe Biden, and it primarily serves as a demonstration and commitment towards the African continent and further provides the platform for new joint initiatives between the United States and Africa.
The discussion reviewed the current relations as well as possible new initiatives that boost the continent’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, how to bolster food security effectively and to promote investment in various critical sectors, including infrastructure, health and renewable energy, among other priorities.
On the other hand, the discussion also focused on strengthening the African diaspora communities and engaging them in advancing a two-way trade and investment partnership, scaling up innovation and entrepreneurship, and driving advancements in key sectors.
The United States, together with the African diaspora, have a unique opportunity to make sure to change the narrative of trade and focus on inclusion rather than only on market access. Supporting women and youth in identifying opportunities, challenges and also barriers that confront them.
Questions such as what are the challenges that we can confront together and what are the solutions that we can present to heads of state and government to begin to change the previous years of exclusion of young people from mainstream economic activity – of small and medium enterprises from mainstream economic activity to make them partners in their implementation.
The United States understands that African Union and African leaders are looking at regional linkages very strategically and then always around inclusivity. How and what to make better with economic engagement inside and outside, to bring everyone along and not to leave people behind.
The United States already plans to take concrete action to benefit young people, including women, to benefit small medium enterprises and small cum medium enterprises in Africa, creating jobs for over 450 million. And the bulk of that 450 million jobs are young Africans.
The Corporate Council on Africa significantly undertakes tremendous support and even galvanizes the US leadership and engagement in partnership with allies and partners to shape solutions to global challenges in Africa. Its people have a critical role to play in achieving such solutions, Ambassador Tai noted in her discussion.
Nearly the discussants agreed that all would require a combination of private sector activities and governmental actions, and one key governmental framework for Africa is the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The free trade area promises to deepen economic integration. It creates a single market for goods and services for almost 1.3 billion people across Africa. In fact, 50 African Union members have signed the agreement, 42 members have ratified it, and 39 have deposited their instruments of ratification.
The Secretary General of AfCFTA during the summit will be able to highlight the way forward. The United States intends to fully engage with Africa as the recent Africa strategy says in a 21st-century US-Africa partnership and one aspect of that Africa is friend shoring, which is to say working with reliable partners. It is noted to work within the framework that provides integration between West Africa and East Africa and between North Africa and Southern Africa.
Within the framework of the African Union agenda, the new generation wants to build on the geopolitical partnership dimension in the regional economic communities and with African countries. The point is that there are symmetries, obviously, between the economy and industrial development trajectory and between developing and developed countries.
The African Growth and Opportunity Act offers rules and regulations relating to trade agreements, especially tariff liberalization; this is an important aspect of building sustainable economic cooperation between the two regions.
The United States and its partnering institutions (both public and private) can best work together to spearhead continuous complementary work as it relates to both business security for participating actors and investors and, including, for example, the African diaspora and beyond the industry for things like creative and cultural industries.
The speakers unanimously confirmed the summit as the highest unique platform to determine the geo-economic centres, examine thoroughly the global priorities and challenges, and concretely design the main directions of U.S.-Africa cooperation. It offers, especially in these critical times, an orientation towards the future, at least the next decade, between the African continent and the United States.
US-African Leaders Summit 2022 aims to enhance cooperation on shared global priorities. The heads of state and leaders from across the African continent will converge in Washington DC, within the context of the United States-Africa Leaders’ Summit hosted by President Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States of America.
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
For the first time in its history, the World Public Summit will be held on the African continent. On 29–30 July 2026, Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, will host the World Public Summit. Africa — “A New World: Africa in Shaping a Shared Future.”
The Summit is organised by the World Peoples Assembly in cooperation with African partner organisations. It will bring together leaders of public diplomacy, representatives of international intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, academics, experts, representatives of the education and cultural sectors, youth leaders, socially responsible businesses, media professionals, and civil society institutions from across Africa and other regions of the world.
The World Public Summit. Africa continues the work initiated during the First World Public Assembly “A New World of Conscious Unity,” held in Moscow in September 2025, and serves as one of the key milestones in preparation for the Second World Public Assembly “A New World: Values That Unite,” which will take place in Moscow on 18–19 September 2026.
Today, Africa is emerging as one of the principal centres of global development. Rapid demographic growth, expanding entrepreneurship, strengthening regional integration, rich cultural heritage, and the growing role of civil society institutions make the continent an increasingly important contributor to the future architecture of international cooperation.
The Summit will focus on issues of genuine sovereignty and sustainable development, public diplomacy, preservation of cultural and historical heritage, international cooperation in education and science, youth engagement, innovation-driven development, creative industries, and the formation of new partnerships among countries and peoples.
The main business programme of the Summit will take place on 30 July 2026 at the headquarters of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in Addis Ababa. Holding the Summit at UNECA highlights its pan-African dimension and creates opportunities for broad international dialogue on humanitarian cooperation and public diplomacy.
The programme will include plenary sessions, strategic dialogues, and expert panels dedicated to values-based development, education, culture, youth leadership, innovation, and international cooperation.
Participation has already been confirmed by Professor Saidou Madougou, Director of the Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation of the African Union; Rita Bissoonauth, Director of the UNESCO Liaison Office to the African Union and UNECA in Addis Ababa; Zuzana Schwidrowski, Director of the Macroeconomics, Finance and Governance Division of UNECA, as well as ministers, leaders of public organisations, and representatives of the business community from a number of African countries.
On the same day, the ADWA Victory Memorial Museum—Ethiopia’s national memorial complex dedicated to the Victory of Adwa and an important centre for preserving the historical memory of the Ethiopian people—will host the award ceremony of the regional stage of the V International Competition “Leader of Public Diplomacy”, followed by a large-scale cultural programme.
One of the key outcomes of the Summit will be the adoption of the African Communiqué, reflecting proposals and recommendations aimed at strengthening humanitarian, educational, cultural, and public cooperation between African countries and other regions of the world.
The outcomes, initiatives, and recommendations were developed during the World Public Summit. Africa will be presented at the Second World Public Assembly “A New World: Values That Unite”, to be held in Moscow on 18–19 September 2026.
According to Andrey Belyaninov, General Secretary of the World Peoples Assembly, “the Addis Ababa Summit is an important step toward building a new world founded on mutual respect, cultural diversity, dialogue and sustainable development.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Kingdom will get its seventh Prime Minister in 10 years as Mr Keir Starmer announced his resignation on Monday.
The Minister said he is stepping down as leader of the governing Labour Party and will leave office within weeks, scarcely two years after being elected in a landslide.
Mr Starmer says he will remain caretaker prime minister until a new Labour leader is chosen by the party.
Mr Starmer made the announcement after facing growing pressure to hand over to a new leader who can try to revive the government’s flagging fortunes.
He led Labour to a landslide election victory in July 2024, but since then, his popularity and that of the party have plummeted.
His departure was triggered by the victory of Mr Andy Burnham in a special election last week. The popular ex-mayor of Greater Manchester planned to challenge the existing PM for the Labour leadership.
Mr Starmer made the announcement outside the prime minister’s 10 Downing St. residence with a brief statement on Monday.
“The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election,” Mr Starmer said. “I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace.
Mr Starmer is the sixth prime minister in a decade to stand outside 10 Downing Street and announce a premature departure.
It comes the day before Britain marks the 10th anniversary of its vote to leave the European Union, a decision that still affects the country’s economy and politics.
Over the past decade, 10 Downing Street has had six occupants, including Mr David Cameron, who left office in 2016 after the Brexit referendum and was succeeded by Ms Theresa May. She was followed by Mr Boris Johnson, whose tenure covered Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic. After Mr Johnson came Ms Liz Truss, whose 49-day premiership was the shortest in British history. Mr Rishi Sunak then took office before being succeeded by Mr Starmer, the outgoing occupant of Number 10.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A financing facility of up to $60 million has been secured by AXIAN Energy, the energy division of the AXIAN Group.
The funding package was provided by MCB, one of the leading financial institutions in the Indian Ocean region.
It comprises a $40 million revolving credit facility with a three-year tenor and extension option, and $20 million in unfunded instruments, providing AXIAN Energy with enhanced financial flexibility, enabling the company to rapidly mobilise resources and seize development opportunities across its target markets.
The energy firm is expected to use the capital to deliver large-scale energy infrastructure projects across Africa.
Over the past two years, AXIAN Energy has significantly accelerated its growth by expanding its renewable energy project pipeline, with solar projects currently under development in Senegal, Benin, Zambia, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, and Burkina Faso.
Building on this momentum, AXIAN Energy now operates a portfolio comprising 350 MW of installed renewable energy capacity, supported by 77 MWh of energy storage capacity, positioning the AXIAN Group as a major contributor to Africa’s energy transition.
The chief executive of AXIAN Energy, Mr Benjamin Memmi, said, “This transaction marks a key milestone in AXIAN Energy’s growth trajectory. It provides us with the financial capacity to sustain the momentum we have built over the past two years, further strengthening our renewable energy portfolio and expanding our presence across new African markets.”
Also commenting, the Global Head of Structured Finance at MCB, Mr Mathieu Delteil, said, “We are proud to support AXIAN Energy in structuring this facility, reaffirming our commitment to enabling transformative projects across Africa.
“By leveraging our sector expertise and deep understanding of regional markets, we have delivered a tailored financing solution that aligns with AXIAN’s long-term renewable energy ambitions.
“This partnership highlights our role as a strategic financial partner, mobilising capital towards investments that drive sustainable growth and accelerate the energy transition across the continent.”
The financing agreement between the two organisations strengthens their long-standing relationship because it is driven by a shared commitment to supporting infrastructure development and economic growth across Africa.
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