French President Macron Announces $27 Billion Investment in Africa During Kenya Summit

French President Emmanuel Macron Announces 23 Billion Euros in Investment at Africa Forward Summit

Nairobi, Kenya - French President Emmanuel Macron attended the two-day Africa Forward summit in Kenya, where he announced a total of 23 billion euros ($27 billion) in investment. The investments are divided into 14 billion euros ($16.4 billion) from private and public funds from French companies, and 9 billion euros ($10.5 billion) from African companies.

The investments will focus on energy transition, agriculture, and artificial intelligence (AI), with the aim of creating 250,000 jobs in France and Africa. Macron stated that the partnership between France and Africa is based on common objectives and a “partnership of equals”.

African leaders, including Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote and executives from TotalEnergies and Orange, were also present at the summit. The French shipping group CMA CGM committed an investment of 700 million euros ($8.2 million) to modernize a terminal at the Kenyan port of Mombasa.

The Africa Forward summit comes as France seeks to strengthen its ties with English-speaking African countries amid waning ties with its former colonies on the continent. Macron aims to renew France’s engagement with the African continent, which he views as a “whole”.

Macron also addressed the issue of colonialism and the return of looted African cultural artefacts, stating that the process has become “unstoppable”. The French parliament recently passed a law paving the way for the government to return these artefacts.

The summit takes place at a time when many African nations are reducing or expelling foreign military forces. Kenya is hosting a growing international military presence, with about 800 French soldiers arriving in the country on a navy ship just a month before the summit. Kenyan President William Ruto praised his relationship with France, saying that the focus should shift from aid and loans to investment and trade.

Source: Al Jazeera