President Barack Obama has pledged $7 billion to help combat frequent power blackouts in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama’s announcement came during his trip to South Africa, the continent’s biggest economy. The visit is part of his three-nation trip that started in Senegal and will end in Tanzania this week.
The trip aims to bolster U.S. investment opportunities, address development issues such as food security and health, and promote democracy. It comes as China aggressively engages the continent, pouring billions of dollars into it and replacing the United States as Africa’s largest trading partner.
Obama applauded China’s investment in Africa, saying he is “not threatened by it.” Africa’s greater integration into the global economy will benefit everyone with the potential creation of new jobs and opportunities, he said. Funds from the initiative, dubbed Power Africa, will be distributed over the next five years. Sub-Saharan Africa will need more than $300 billion to achieve universal electricity access by 2030, the statement said.
The preliminary setup will include Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria , Tanzania, Uganda and Mozambique. “These countries have set ambitious goals in electric power generation, and are making the utility and energy sector reforms to pave the way for investment and growth,” the statement said.
Source: CNN
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