Berlin, 20 November 2023: On this day, the Federal Chancellor met with African heads of state and government at the G20 Compact with Africa Conference.
The initiative was started during the German G20 Presidency in 2017. The idea was for the G20 to closely cooperate with African partners in the CwA format to pursue a shared goal: to ensure an increase in foreign (private) investment in the CwA countries by improving general economic conditions.
On the margins of the conference, the Federal Chancellor had bilateral meetings with various participants, such as Kenya’s President William Ruto.
Before the start of the conference at the Chancellery, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier received the African heads of government at Bellevue Palace.
During the G20 Compact with Africa Conference at the Chancellery, Federal Chancellor Scholz called for greater business cooperation with Africa.
While the focus was on the CwA countries, the conference also drew our attention to our neighbouring continent Africa as a whole. This is why the Federal Chancellor had invited not only CwA countries and those interested in joining, but all African countries involved in G20 in 2023, too.
Scholz said that Africa was “the partner of our choice” when it came to intensifying economic relations and pursuing a joint path towards a climate-neutral future. “Large-scale private investment is essential if we wish to realise the enormous economic potential.”
Economic growth was twice as high in CwA states in the past year as was the case in African non-CwA countries, and growth in exports of goods and services was almost four times as high in CwA countries.
Scholz said that Africa had huge potential for growth and that our neighbouring continent was indispensable when it came to solving problems on a global scale. “For us, bringing Africa onside and strengthening our partnership for a sustainable economy for the future is not only an aspiration but an imperative.”