Arrival without fanfare of the President of the United States of America, Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr dit Joe Biden
From December 13 to 15, 2022, the second USA-Africa Summit, initiated by President Barack Obama in 2014, was held in Washington District of Columbia. On September 15, 2022, as part of the partnership on Agenda 2063 of the he African Union, President Joe Biden, during an intervention of 11 minutes and 47 seconds, outlined the main lines of the partnership between the United States of America and the African Continent. Here is the French translation made by Jeannot Ramambazafy for madagate.org
Well, hello everyone. I realized last night when our dinner was over and the entertainment was over, it was five o’clock in the morning for most of you. So I admire your collective endurance. Thank you so much. And I promise you that my words will not lead you to tomorrow morning.
My friends, I am honored to welcome you all here to Washington for the United States-Africa Leaders Summit. It was wonderful spending time with you and your spouses last night at dinner. And I really appreciate it, and thank you for taking your time.
Here, allow me to convey my condolences to the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo for the tragic loss of life and to the communities affected by the floods.
Mr. President (Note: President of the DRC, Felix Tshisekedi), we missed you last night, but if there is anything the United States can do to help in this ordeal, please, let us know. We will do everything we can as much as possible.
Today I can’t wait to learn more about all of you; on the issues and priorities that matter most to Africa and how we can deepen our cooperation. And I emphasize the word “cooperation”.
Our nations have worked closely together for a long time. We have significantly improved the lives of countless people in all our countries, on both sides of the Atlantic.
With this Summit and the African Union’s Agenda 2063, our eyes are firmly on the future. We are now in the early years of what will be a decisive decade.
The choices we make today and will make for the rest of this decade; how we approach these challenges, in my view, will determine the direction the whole world takes in the decades to come.
As I said yesterday (at the White House State Dinner), the United States is all for Africa and all with Africa.
African voices, African leadership, African innovation are all essential to addressing the world’s most pressing challenges and to realizing the vision we all share: a free, open, prosperous and secure world.
Africa has a place at the table in every room – in every room where global challenges will be discussed and in every institution where discussions will take place. That is why I announced in September, at the United Nations General Assembly, that the United States fully supports the reform of the UN Security Council to include a permanent representation of Africa. Today, I also call on the African Union to join the G20 as a permanent member of the G20. Anyway, even if it has been a long time coming, it will come.
And today, I am persuaded – whether in our support or defense of the fundamental principles of global peace and security enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, or enshrined in the fundamental principles of the African Union, or in the face of the challenges that we face and that affect every nation-that the peoples of Africa are indispensable partners, capable of bringing about progress that can benefit all, not only in Africa and the United States, but also in the world entire.
The COVID-19 pandemic, followed by Russia’s unjust and unprovoked war against its neighbor Ukraine, has shaken the global economy, wiping out many of the development gains we have worked so hard for together over the last two decades. But that does not change our common goals and our commitment to achieving them. It only makes it more urgent for us to take decisive action, and to take it together. That is why, over the next three years, in close collaboration with the United States Congress, we plan to commit $55 billion to Africa to advance the priorities we share, and to support Agenda 2063. .
This figure represents an overall commitment by the United States to invest in African human resources, African infrastructure, African agriculture, African health care, African security, and more.
In our view, our new joint vision statement establishes a forward-looking foundation for the 21st century partnership between Africa and the United States. We want to work with you on the issues that matter most to the lives of our people. And we seek to increase our collaboration in all areas, from rural communities to urban centers, from cyberspace to outer space. In addition to our investments, we are also committed to helping African countries assess the financing they need – the financing you need to build sustainable and inclusive economies.
We are leading a global effort to seek equitable arrangements for global creditors to provide debt relief, so that nations can prioritize their people, not the backbreaking payment of debt.
And I ask Congress [américain] authorization to lend $21 billion to the International Monetary Fund to provide access to much-needed financing for low- and middle-income countries – which is so hard to come by now – that will help Africa’s efforts for Africa’s recovery , and which will support projects aimed at building resilience to future crises.
The United States will always be guided by our values in our commitment to your countries. Support for democracy, respect for the rule of law, commitment to human rights, responsible governance are all part of our DNA.
This does not mean that we always get the expected results. Surely not. And the work of democracy is never done or guaranteed. It is about constant improvement and a constant of self.
But that is why democracy is the best tool we have to tackle the wide range of challenges we all face, and this belief is shared by Africans and Americans alike.
From South Africa’s revolutionary triumph over apartheid to the Nigerian movement “Not Too Young To Run” from empowering a new generation of changemakers, to record high voter turnout in Zambia where young people were demanding a better future, we see again and again that our greatest power is our people.
Also, one of the new commitments that I want to highlight today is the investment in the fight against democratic backsliding through our new African initiative for democratic and political transition.
Working closely with African governments, regional institutions, and civil society, my administration will work with the United States Congress to invest $75 million to strengthen transparent and accountable governance; facilitate voter registration to vote; supporting constitutional reform; and more.
We will also strive to sustain and reinforce the security gains that flow from good governance, including through a new partnership for African security in the 21st century.
Through a three-year pilot program – with a budget of $100 billion – the US Department of Defense will work with our African partners to accelerate reforms to boost and strengthen their security capacity.
Now, and every leader here understands, the real measure of success is not in announcements, but in follow-up. That is why I have asked one of our top diplomats – a man with deep respect for Africa and a long history of working with governments across the continent – to oversee the implementation at from this summit: Ambassador Johnnie Carson.
Many of you already know him personally. You certainly know his talent and his reputation. So you know he’s going to make sure we translate our commitments on paper into progressive actions that people can see in their daily lives.
And on Tuesday, I also spearheaded the creation of the President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement in the United States so that we can harness the enormous strength of diaspora communities here in the United States, and we ensure that their ideas and experiences are reflected in our work.
And finally, I am grateful that you all made the trip to Washington for this Summit, and I look forward to visiting your continent.
As I told some of you, you invited me to your countries. I said: “Be careful what you wish for, cause I might show up”. Poor parents always show up. The rich never show up. The poor come and they eat your food and stay longer than they should. Well, I look forward to seeing many of you in your home countries.
I also led the creation of the President’s Advisory Council, as I said, on the Diaspora, and we will get his input (…).
Now that we have developed this summit and this agenda in close cooperation with the African Union, we will focus on African priorities.
The United States fully supports the plan you presented in Agenda 2063 to build an integrated city, “integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa”which is driven by the African people, focused on inclusive and sustainable development and where Africa is an indispensable global partner.
I look forward to hearing from all of you how the United States can deepen our partnerships with you and work better with African nations and the AU to realize the aspirations of Agenda 2063 (…).
And I want to thank you again. Once again, thank you very much for being here (…)./.
Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr
President of the United States of America
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