President Barack Obama has made a special announcement during the U.S,-Africa Business Forum-- the Untied States will invest $14 billion in Africa. The money is from various U.S. businesses that wish to help the African region in aspects of information technology, clean energy, banking, and construction projects. More than 90 American companies sent in their pledges for Africa investments.
The business forum is only one part of a three-day Africa summit being held in Washington this week. The United States is interested in improving trade within the region so it's making a huge investment.
"American companies -- many with our trade assistance -- are announcing new deals in clean energy, aviation, banking, and construction worth more than $14 billion, spurring development across Africa and selling more goods stamped with that proud label, 'Made in America,'" Obama said during the conference
"And I don't want to just sustain this momentum, I want to up it. I want to up our game. So today I'm announcing a series of steps to take our trade with Africa to the next level," he added.
Some of the American companies joining the effort to help Africa include Wal-Mart, Morgan Stanley, Ford Motor Co, Chevron, Citigroup, and Lockheed Martin.
The summit is a first for the U.S. government and it's only now that the country is all out in supporting the region. Meanwhile, Europe, Japan, India, and China already have quick access to these industries in Africa. This also shows Obama is now shifting to a wider reach in Africa after being too engaged with other regions like Asia, Middle East, North Africa, and Russia.
No mention what are the projects particularly but GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt shared that his company has pledged $2 billion to the cause. This shows GE wants to support some technology-related projects.
President Obama also has the Power Africa project. It's an initiative that features a five-year $7 billion plan to improved access to power in Tanzania, Nigeria, Liberia, Kenya, Ghana, and Ethiopia.
Aside from the business forum, President Obama hosted a dinner at the South Lawn of the White House Tuesday for about 50 African heads of state.
