President Muhammadu Buhari and other African heads of state have been invited by the president of the United States of America (USA), Joe Biden to attend the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit scheduled for 13-15 December 2022 in the country’s capital, Washington DC. The 3-day summit is expected to build vital economic, political and strategic collaboration between the US and African countries.
According to a statement from American authorities, “The summit’s agenda will be packed including increasing sustainable food production, strengthening health systems, providing humanitarian assistance, responding to the climate crisis, reinforcing democracy and human rights, boosting US-African trade, advancing peace and security, and even enhancing space research and cooperation”.
A top US government official also said the Summit will focus on “deepening and expanding the long-term US-Africa partnership and advancing our shared priorities, amplifying African voices to collaboratively meet this era’s defining challenges”.
Although all 50 invited delegations i.e. from 49 African countries and the African Union (AU) have accepted the invitation, it is still unknown what level of government would be present for the Summit.
The US did not invite Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, and Sudan because the AU has suspended these nations over unconstitutional changes of government; while Eritrea and Somaliland were also excluded from the Summit because the USA has no diplomatic relations with the country.
