In Africa, meager expectations and some hopes for a second Trump presidency
African leaders may have been quick to congratulate Donald Trump on his election, professing a desire for mutually beneficial partnerships
ABUJA, Nigeria — African leaders may have been quick to congratulate Donald Trump on his election, professing a desire for mutually beneficial partnerships, but there are meager expectations that his presidency will change things for this continent of over 1.4 billion people.
In the wake of Trump's win, Kenya's William Ruto said his country “stands ready” to deepen its ties with Washington. Nigeria's Bola Tinubu spoke of a second Trump administration ushering in an era of “earnest, beneficial, and reciprocal” cooperation.
Still, observers say African countries — once described by Trump as “shithole countries” — are definitely not going to be high on his to-do list.
U.S. foreign policy has not made Africa a priority for a long while — beyond seeing the continent through the lens of countering rivals such as Russia and China, said Charles Ray, chair of the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Africa Program.
President Joe Biden talked about Africa as a key partner, said Ray, who served as the U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe between 2009 and 2012.
But not much action followed those words.
Africa “will be at the very bottom of (Trump's) list of priorities” and any U.S. action on the continent would likely be driven by his “transactional, ego-driven leadership style,” Ray added.
Many experts agree, citing Trump’s “America First” strategy.
Murithi Mutiga, program director for Africa at the Crisis Group, says the president-elect is “a committed isolationist and clearly wants to pull back” on various fronts across the world.
J. Peter Pham, Trump's former special envoy to Africa's Great
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