US Vice-President Kamala Harris is in Africa, so why does China keep coming up?

Harris started her week-long trip saying Washington would invest millions of dollars in the continent

She is the latest in a series of high-level American officials to visit this year, signalling US desire to reset relations

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US Vice-President Kamala Harris shakes hands with Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo after talks in Accra, Ghana, on Monday. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:00pm, 1 Apr 2023

As she launched her week-long trip to Africa on Monday, US Vice-President Kamala Harris promised Washington would invest millions of dollars in the continent.

Standing alongside Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, Harris said the US would also push for debt relief for distressed African economies such as Ghana and provide more than US$100 million to aid stability in Ghana, Benin, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Togo.

“The relationship between the United States and this continent and African leaders is an important one,” Harris said.

“There’s a historical basis for this relationship – not to mention as we look forward, as all governments should, and recognise the unachieved as-of-yet opportunities that exist going forward.”

But while Harris was focused on US-Africa ties, the media asked if the real reason for her trip was the American rivalry with China, a key financier for mega projects and a huge trading partner in the region.

Harris batted away the suggestion but the Ghanaian president indicated otherwise – and that there was little cause for concern.

“There may be an obsession in America about Chinese activity on the continent, but there is no such obsession here,” he said. “China is one of the many countries with whom Ghana is engaged in the world.”