Biden: the U.S. will support permanent membership of the African Union in the G20

President Joe Biden said he would support permanent African Union membership in the G-20 .

“African voices, African leadership, African innovation, are all critical to addressing the most pressing global challenges and to realizing the shared vision we all share: a free, open, prosperous and secure world,” Biden said at a three-day summit in Washington attended by U.S. leaders and 49 African countries.

According to the president, “African countries should be present at every negotiation table where global problems are discussed and in every international organization where discussions take place.”

Biden stressed that the U.S. seeks greater cooperation with African countries in all areas and that this is why it announced in September that it supported the inclusion of a permanent representative from Africa in the UN Security Council.

The Washington summit was designed to position the U.S. as a partner to African countries in competition with China, which is seeking to expand its influence in Africa by actively funding infrastructure projects on the continent. Speaking at the summit Wednesday, Biden said the U.S. would give $15 billion to African countries in trade and investment partnerships and deals.

China’s trade with the African Union is about four times the size of U.S. trade with African nations, and Beijing has become an important lender on the continent, offering cheaper loans — often with opaque terms and collateral requirements.

The U.S. said Thursday it would give more than $165 million in 2023 to support democratic and transparent elections in Africa.

Presidential National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters Monday that the U.S. plans to give African countries $55 billion over three years.