Europe-Africa cooperation: The European Union plans an investment of 150 billion euros in Africa.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has revealed what the EU plans to do for Africa. This announcement was made on Thursday 10 February 2022 during his visit to Macky Sall in Dakar.

During her visit to Senegal, the President of the European Commission told the press that Europe aims to mobilise more than 150 billion euros for Africa. This mobilisation is part of the EU’s new “Global Gateway” investment strategy. Referring to the initiative set up in December 2021, the president of the European Commission said “Today, I am proud to announce more than 150 billion euros for the Africa-Europe programme; it is the very first regional plan under Global Gateway“, a quote relayed on the rfi website.

The objective of this investment plan is to fight against the “new silk roads” set up by China on the African continent. Thus, Global Gateway is seen as a means of fighting back against the “new silk roads” traced by China and linking Europe to China. This programme aims to mobilise funds to the tune of 300 billion for public and private infrastructure worldwide by 2027. But according to a document made public by the European Commission, the declination of this strategy for Africa is set for 2030.

150 billion investment, what benefits for Africa?

With this programme, a combination of resources from the EU, Member States, European financial institutions, national development agencies and the private sector can be expected. Outre cela, il favorisera la mise en œuvre de projets d’infrastructures stratégiques. Several sectors are targeted to benefit from this investment. These include industry, health, youth and education. According to Ursula von der Leyen, the involvement of the private sector is of great importance. “For all this, we of course need the private sector, its expertise and its strong investment,” she said.

It should be noted that after this visit there will be a summit between the European Union and the African Union. This summit is scheduled to take place on 17 and 18 February in Brussels. In this respect, the President promises that investments will be at the heart of the discussions.