King to miss President Biden’s democracy summit
MBABANE – His Majesty King Mswati III will, in person, miss US-Africa Leaders Summit, which shall discuss, among other issues, democracy and good governance.
The head of State will miss the gathering because of the sacred Incwala Ceremony.
He is expected to be in seclusion in accordance with Eswatini culture and tradition at the time of the summit.
President Joe Biden will host the African heads of State on December 13-15, 2022.
His Majesty yesterday hosted the end of the year church service at Mandvulo Grand Hall, Lozitha Palace. Legend has it that the King holds the service before he goes to seclusion.
He does the same at the beginning of the year, after the Incwala Ceremony.
Reverend Alpheous Nxumalo, the Government Spokesperson, said nothing has yet been communicated to him concerning the invitation to the summit.
ASSISTANCE
He said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation or Director of Communications at the King’s Office could be of assistance.
Percy Simelane, the Director of Communications at the King’s Office, said the entry point to Eswatini for such invitations was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Thuli Dladla, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, could only disclose that Eswatini was indeed invited to the US-Africa Leaders Summit.
It must be said that the forthcoming summit will be the first heads of State gathering of African leaders and a USA president since 2014. It shall mark only the second time Washington has accorded this level of attention to a partnership dialogue with the region.
In 2014, His Majesty the King attended the summit hosted by former US President Barack Obama.
This is one meeting in which the late former Prime Minister, Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini, popularised. He issued a threat to human rights attorney Sipho Gumedze and Vincent Nqongwane (late) that they should be strangled upon their return from Washingtoc DC.
He made the threat, which hit global headlines, after Gumedze and Nqongwane were seen outside the White House carrying placards written: “Free speech in Swaziland now.”
He later withdrew the threat, claiming he was misunderstood as he did not mean literal strangulation, but meant counselling in the form of ‘squeezing knowledge’ to them about the importance of respecting the King.
It is not yet certain if the King will send Prime Minister Cleopas Sipho Dlamini or his deputy, Themba Nhlanganiso Masuku to the December Summit in Washington DC.
According to the US Department of State, the summit will demonstrate the United States’ enduring commitment to Africa.
PRIORITIES
It will underscore the importance of US-Africa relations. The department, the equivalent of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that the summit would increase on shared global priorities.
“Africa will shape the future - not just the future of the African people, but of the world. Africa will make the difference in tackling the most urgent challenges and seizing the opportunities we all face,” a statement from the US Department of State reads.
It is said that the US-Africa Leaders Summit will build on shared values to better:
Foster new economic engagement Advance peace, security and good governance
Reinforce commitment to democracy, human rights and civil society Work collaboratively to strengthen regional and global health security Promote food security
Respond to the climate crisis Amplify Diaspora ties
Promote education and youth leadership.
Commenting on the forthcoming meeting, President Biden said: “I look forward to working with African governments, civil society, Diaspora communities across the United States, and the private sector to continue strengthening our shared vision for the future of US-Africa relations.”
He said he was looking forward to hosting leaders from across the African continent in Washington, DC.
Kendra L Gaither, the Vice President of the US-Africa Business Centre and Executive Director for the Coalition for the Rule of Law in Global Markets at the US Chamber of Commerce, recalled Biden’s video message to the African Union Summit two weeks after taking office.
DELIVERED
“On February 5, 2021, a mere two weeks after taking office, President Joseph R. Biden delivered a video message to the African Union Summit, a convening of heads of State from the 55 member countries held virtually due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” she said.
“President Biden said his administration would work to improve the relationship with the African continent based on mutual respect and solidarity to advance our shared vision of a better future.”
She recalled that the message was well received by African governments and institutions.
In November, during his first trip to Africa as Secretary of State, Antony
Blinken announced that President Biden would host the second US-Africa Leaders Summit to deepen cooperation.
“We at the US Chamber of Commerce’s US-Africa Business Centre, the member companies we represent, and our network of affiliated American Chambers of Commerce across Africa enthusiastically welcomed Biden’s early signal and the Blinken announcement,” Gaither said.
“The US private sector, like others, had taken stock of USA foreign policy engagement with Africa and compiled a series of recommendations on engaging the African continent as a US foreign policy priority. Topping that list was a call to reinstitute the US-Africa Leaders Summit and its accompanying business forum, and to demonstrate commitment to mutually beneficial trade and investment as part of an ongoing strategic partnership with the African continent.”
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Gaither said one needed only to look at the contemporary global issues that had dominated 2022 to understand the ‘critical role the African continent plays today’ and how it would shape the future.
She said South African scientists’ extensive and sophisticated genomic surveillance system was the first to identify and detect the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in a critical effort in the global fight to stop the spread of the virus.
The Vice President of the US-Africa Business Centre said the continent represented 28 per cent of the United Nations membership and has a significant voice in geopolitics.
“This was on display as only half of Africa’s 54 member States voted to rebuke Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and most of the remaining countries abstained,” Gaither said.
COMMITMENTS
As the world assesses its progress and makes new commitments to climate change, she said Africa was classified by the United Nations Environmental Programme as the most vulnerable region in the world to the effects of global warming.
She mentioned that the African continent was also home to mineral resources like lithium, cobalt, palladium and others that were powering the green revolution and electric vehicles in the race for sustainability solutions.
The African continent is home to approximately 1.3 billion people, with an estimated population growth rate of 2.7 per cent, which is more than double that of South Asia at 1.2 per cent.
It tripled that of Latin America, which stood at 0.9 per cent.
The United Nations projects that by 2050, Africa’s population will nearly double to 2.5 billion people, and by 2100 triple to 3.8 billion. These numbers are even more significant in light of the 2020 Lancet Study that predicts every other region could see its population decline during this same period, said Gaither in her analysis of the Summit.
She said Africa also had an exciting new trade bloc, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) that was established to unite the continent into a single giant market.
In other words, by the end of this century, she predicted that one-third of the people on the planet would be African and largely concentrated in cities, with 65 per cent of the top 20 urban areas projected to be on the continent.
POISED
Nigeria, already the most populous African country, is expected to nearly double in population to 400 million by 2050, overtaking the United States as the third-most populous nation in the world, with Lagos poised to become the world’s largest city.
The Brookings Institution also projects that Africa’s combined business and consumer spending will exceed E272 trillion (US$16 trillion) by 2050, making the continent an attractive market for African producers and global exporters alike.
According to the executive director for the Coalition for the Rule of Law in Global Markets at the US Chamber of Commerce, this, therefore, means that Africa would be a continent with the youngest population in the world.
She said the continent would set trends in trade, technology, climate sustainability and urban development that will dictate the future of the planet.