The evaluation of American diplomats in Africa will be predicated upon the commercial transactions concluded, as opposed to the aid allocation, according to a senior official from the Department of State.
In the statements shared, Troy Fitrell, the senior bureau official for African Affairs, revealed this strategy, signifying the Donald Trump administration’s objective to eradicate trade deficits and stimulate mutual wealth creation on the African continent.
“Assistance involves a donor and a recipient, but commerce is an exchange between equals,” he added at the launch of the policy in Ivory Coast.
According to Fitrell, in Donald Trump’s first 100 days, US ambassadors in Africa have already negotiated 33 agreements totalling USD 6 billion.
“The adage trade, not aid, which has been used for years, now accurately describes our approach to Africa,” the diplomat stated.
According to the US think tank the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, less than 1% of US trade is made up of goods exported to sub-Saharan Africa. Washington has committed to lending USD 550 million for the Lobito rail corridor, which would transfer copper and cobalt from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Angola’s Atlantic port, avoiding China-controlled routes, despite Donald Trump’s drastic spending cuts.
Russian and Chinese influence on the continent, especially about trade and minerals, is something the US is eager to counter. In one of China’s most recent agreements on the continent, a USD 652 million loan agreement for a highway that will supply the new Dangote refinery and Lekki port was reached with Nigeria via the Exim bank. Before the next US-Africa Leaders’ Summit later 2025, the US has set six goals, the envoy stated.
Those include promoting “bankable” infrastructure rather than “vanity projects,” pressuring priority nations to implement business-friendly reforms, and making commercial diplomacy a primary goal. Additionally, it aims to make more business-only diplomatic trips, pair African ventures with export-ready US companies, and update financing instruments to provide blended funding that is quicker and more risk-tolerant. International aid organisations have widely criticised the United States for cutting aid to Africa, claiming that this is causing the most vulnerable to lose their lives.