Trump Administration's Africa Policy: Filled with Challenges

 Semafor posted on 21 May 2025 a commentary titled "Analysis: The Challenge with Trump's 'Trade Not Aid' African Strategy" by W. Gyude Moore.  

The author suggests that while there may be merit in the Trump administration's Africa strategy, it is almost impossible to implement it when you dismantle the institutions designed to do so.  

Can the Remnants of USAID Be Merged Successfully into the State Department?

 The Center for Strategic and International Studies published on 25 March 2025 an analysis titled "How to Successfully Merge USAID and the Department of State" by Daniel F. Runde.  

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the State Department will administer what remains of USAID programs.  The author notes that numerous other aid donor countries have followed this pattern, and the US could learn from them.  The author then proposes a number of steps needed to merge State and USAID successfully.

Comment:  This scenario makes some sense if done thoughtfully and in advance of the dismantlement of USAID.  It holds little chance of succeeding after USAID has been dismantled and its personnel dispersed unless the goal is to retain virtually nothing of former American foreign aid programs. 

At the turn of the last century, the United States Information Service (USIA) merged with State and became the public affairs division of State.  It was done methodically, thoughtfully, and with great effort to preserve most of its former programs.  But even in this case, the State Department public affairs division has never lived up to the success of the former USIA. 

US Trade and Investment with Africa

The White House published on 21 September 2016 a fact sheet titled "U.S.-Africa Cooperation on Trade and Investment Under the Obama Administration."

This document offers a good summary of U.S. programs and efforts to increase trade and investment with Africa. U.S. investment in Africa has increased impressively from a total of $37 billion in 2008 to $64 billion in 2015. Trade, on the other hand, has dropped sharply from $142 billion in 2008 to $52 billion in 2015. Most of the decline is accounted for as a result of reduced oil imports from Africa following fracking in the United States.