Harris to Travel to Ghana, Tanzania, Zambia to Strengthen US Partnerships in Africa

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff make their way to board a flight before departing from Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland on Sept. 11, 2021. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff will travel to Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia later this month as a follow up to the U.S.–Africa Leaders Summit held in December, the White House announced.

“The trip will strengthen the United States’ partnerships throughout Africa and advance our shared efforts on security and economic prosperity,” according to a White House statement.

During the course of the trip, the vice president will work in collaboration with African governments and the private sector to advance efforts to “expand access to the digital economy, support climate adaptation and resilience, and strengthen business ties and investment, including through innovation, entrepreneurship, and the economic empowerment of women,” it states.

These goals will be pursued in an effort to expand economic opportunity across Africa.

The vice president will meet with President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, President Samia Hassan of Tanzania, and President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia to discuss regional and global priorities.

Some of the topics to be discussed include the nations’ shared commitment to democracy, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, food security, and the effects of Russia’s war with Ukraine.

The vice president will work to enhance people-to-people relations and interact with civil society, especially young business leaders, members of the African diaspora, and corporate representatives and entrepreneurs, according to the statement.

The three-day summit, held in Washington from Dec. 13 to Dec. 15, was the first gathering of its kind held in the United States since 2014, during the Obama administration.

President Joe Biden, speaking on day two of the summit, detailed a series of initiatives that would be taken to improve the United States relations with the continent that will likely cost billions of dollars.

“The United States is all in on Africa’s future,” Biden said during his speech. “And the work we’ve done over the past two years—building on decades of vital investments made under previous American presidents—has helped make possible the critical steps that I’m about to announce.”

Delegates from 49 countries and the African Union attended the summit, as well as 45 national leaders from various African nations.