The US-Africa Business Summit concluded its activities in Morocco’s Marrakech city on Friday.
Themed “Building the Future,” the summit was organized under the patronage of King Mohammed VI and in partnership with the “Corporate Council on Africa” (CCA).
It brought together 2,500 participants, including a large US government delegation, African ministers, and decision-makers of the largest US multinationals and African business community, of whom 40% were women.
The event was marked by high-level dialogues, plenary sessions, panels, roundtables, and side-events about the continent’s priorities in food security, health, agriculture, energy transition, new technologies, infrastructure, and the integration of industrial ecosystems.
A Moroccan Foreign Ministry source told Asharq Al-Awsat that about 6,000 contacts were made among the participating businessmen.
Many contracts were also concluded between the Americans and Africans in the fields of petroleum and mines, in addition to 37 meetings on the means of development.
The concluding session focused on the future that is currently being built. It underscored the importance of the concerted efforts of the various partners to economic development and Africa’s prosperity.
African participants called for establishing relations based on commercial and investment dealings and not only receiving aid.
They said Africa looks forward to a partnership with the United States that would pump more valuable trade flows and promote the level of investment.
Morocco’s Industry Minister Ryad Mezzour said there are no perfect solutions that can be programmed, noting that every challenge is an opportunity, especially for a continent that has been neglected for decades.
He pointed out that 30% of the world’s youths are Africans, which represents an actual value for this human capital that must be valued.
He expressed hope for US contribution to the continent’s efforts to achieve development, pointing out that it has previously declared it is willing to attain an effective bilateral cooperation.
Ghana's Trade and Industry Minister Alan Kyerematen urged the US and Africa to join efforts to overcome the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine.
He further called on the US to support Africa’s integration efforts and avoid reaching out to each African country individually.
He cited some of the obstacles facing development efforts, including the weak infrastructure and prevalent famine.
Dana Banks, the Special Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for the US-Africa Leaders Summit, said the pandemic has underlined the integration in the global future and the possibility of joining interests, starting with the ways of addressing the health system.
She also spoke about the “Prosper Africa” initiative, which aims to bolster resources for investors, as part of partnerships that are based on dialogue and cooperation.
