Trump strengthens his African house of cards
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Trump strengthens his African house of cards
With the DRC peace deal America has added a piece of the puzzle to its African house of cards.
By Leon Louw founder of WhyAfrica and editor of the WhyAfrica magazine
America has further strengthened its position in Central and Southern Africa after peace talks in Wahington DC last week ended in the DRC and Rwanda delegations signing an agreement to work towards a draft peace agreement by May 2.
The declaration was signed in the presence of American Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Earlier this year DRC President Felix Tshisekedi sought the support of President Donald Trump in the DRC’s ongoing battle with the M23 rebels in the East of the country. Tshisekedi accused neighbouring Rwanda of backing M23.
In exchange Tshisekedi offered the US access to the DRC’s abundant critical minerals vital for new technologies.
USA strengthens African position
After President Trump threatened Rwanda with sanctions should they not withdraw their troops from the DRC, President Paul Kagame reluctantly agreed to American led peace talks.
With the agreement the USA will now have a significant foothold in the DRC, Rwanda, Zambia and Angola.
The joint declaration signed by the three parties last week stated that the two countries can expect significant investments facilitated by the US government and US private sector.
According to a press release by the US Department of State seen by WhyAfrica the “participants commit to launch and/or expand cooperation on shared priorities such as hydropower development; national park management; derisking of mineral supply chains; and transparent, formalised, and licit end-to-end mineral value chains (from mine to processed metal) that link both countries, in partnership with the U.S. government and U.S. investors.
US private sector in the DRC
Hot on the heels of the announcement, USA based KoBold Metals, backed by a group of tycoons including Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, announced that they will further expand their interest in the DRC.
KoBold has already made a bid for the Manono project, reportedly one of the largest lithium deposits in Africa. Manono also hosts significant tin deposits. Yesterday KoBold said it will now “go big” in the DRC and will continue pursuing more copper and cobalt deposits.
Moreover, Rwanda hosts good deposits of critical minerals, especially lithium, and several international players are advancing their exploration projects in Rwanda.
KoBold is also fast tracking the development of its Mingomba copper project in Zambia, a massive discovery that could boast an underground mine in less than five years.
Developments in Angola
The USA has invested significant money into developing the Lobito Trans Africa Corridor and railway line in Angola, which will eventually link the Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean and at the same time provide easy access for mining products from the Zambian, DRC and Angolan copper belts to reach large ports like Lobito and Luanda on the west coast in Angola and Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania in the east.
The Port of Lobito is about 12,125km from the Port of New York and New Jersey in the USA and the shipping time could range from 25 to 30 days, depending on weather conditions. However, it is a lot safer and less costly compared the other shipping routes around the word today.
Let’s continue following this very important story on the WhyAfrica website, your one-stop-shop for on the ground information and business intelligence about Africa.
Trump strengthens his African house of cards
