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During a meeting on exchanges with Africa, the center of Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, German Finance Minister, Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and German Development Minister Gerd Mueller take part in a meeting. Compact with Africa Conference on Trade, Aid and Diplomacy, meeting at the Berlin Chancellery on Tuesday 30 October 2018. (John Macdougall / Pool via AP) (Associated Press)
BERLIN – Chancellor Angela Merkel met Tuesday with a group of African leaders, international organizations and business leaders to promote a program launched under the German presidency of the Group of 20 years last year to encourage private investment in Africa.
Working with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank, the G20 hopes to create the necessary conditions in African countries to attract private investment, including economic stability, anti-corruption systems and financing.
The program's goal is to bring together "reform-oriented" African governments to coordinate country-specific plans on a continent that, Merkel said, has been too often overlooked.
"The central idea of the Pact with Africa is not only to talk about Africa, but to talk with Africa," said Merkel.
"For many years we have been very focused on Asia," Merkel added. "I think that in the future we will have to turn more towards Africa."
The pact is open to all African countries. To date, 11 countries have joined: Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Morocco, Rwanda, Senegal and Togo. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was present as Co-Chair of the G20-Africa Consultative Group.
At the summit, the German industrial conglomerate Siemens signed an agreement with Togo on a new gas-fired power plant and in Egypt to help develop a multi-year plan to improve the competitiveness of Egyptian industry, the company said .
Siemens said it was also working with German automaker Volkswagen, the German Development Agency for International Cooperation and others on a mobility project for the Rwandan capital, Kigali, aimed at putting electric vehicles available to local residents.
The project includes a VW production facility for vehicle assembly, as well as the infrastructure needed for electric mobility.
Joe Kaeser, CEO of Siemens, told participants that the right conditions would result in greater investment and more jobs for Africans.
"It will help us win the fight against poverty and overcome the social divide," he said.
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