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DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — On a humid but very cool Friday in Dakar, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen caravans from government buildings to business incubators, ending her day at the presidential residence. , spread the message of mutually beneficial US-African relations.
She advocates for multilateral banks such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to be fair to the interests of developing countries, to build new projects such as West Africa’s largest wind farm, and to provide new funding for education and health care in Africa. We talked about throwing in. Continent.
read more: Treasury Secretary Yellen kicks off Biden administration’s trip to Africa
Seeking to set the tone for self-determination in Africa after countless colonial atrocities, Yellen said on Wednesday that the United States, starting with Senegal, would promote all economic possibilities between the two countries. I visited 3 African countries for 10 days. Second largest continent in the world.
Prime Minister Yellen’s motorcade weaved through Dakar’s busy beach roads, past throngs of people in Friday vests. The most important day of Yellen’s visit was a weekly holy day in Muslim-majority countries.
Her biggest speech was on Friday morning at Dakar’s business incubator and co-working space. It provides credit and sector-specific technical assistance to young entrepreneurs and women entrepreneurs. She shared a broad vision of potential business with the US in Africa, her broad vision for her ventures, and how the US is already investing in the African continent.
“Africa continues to lead as the newest continent in the world. Here in Senegal, the median age is 19. Currently, 1.7 million Africans enter the job market each month,” Yellen said. Told. “And he said that by 2035, there will be more working-age people in sub-Saharan Africa than in the rest of the world combined.”
“A growing working-age population presents opportunities for the African continent,” she said.
read more: Treasury Secretary Yellen to meet China’s finance minister in Switzerland
The young entrepreneurs she met on Friday owned businesses such as food processing, baby food manufacturing, cosmetics, digital marketing and hygiene.
She describes how the US Development Finance Corporation has committed more than $11 billion across Africa and how the US foreign aid agency Millennium Challenge has more than $3 billion in active programs in 14 African countries. I talked about what was going on. pipeline.
“We plan to invest more than $350 million to expand affordable internet access and advance digital skills and entrepreneurship,” she said.
Yellen also warned of the risks of capitalizing on this economic growth, pointing to China’s huge investments in African countries. This includes unfair terms and has been criticized for imposing large amounts of debt on countries.
“Countries need to beware of shiny deals that are opaque and may not ultimately benefit the people they were designed to help in the first place,” she said.
read more: US expected to hit debt ceiling on Thursday, Yellen tells Congress
Her final stop on her trip is South Africa, where she tours a Ford assembly plant and showcases successful economic ties between the United States and Africa.
Yellen will also stop by Zambia to highlight its huge debt to China, its biggest creditor nation. Zambia is renegotiating his nearly $6 billion debt, and Yellen has been critical of China’s lack of progress in negotiations.
“The international community, including China, needs to provide meaningful debt relief to help countries regain their footing,” she said. “Timely debt relief is in the interest of both debtors and creditors.”
Yellen’s meeting on Friday included a roundtable with Senegal’s economy minister, Urimata Searle, and a meeting with young female business owners. She concludes the day with dinner at President McKee Sall’s mansion.
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