Theresa May kicks off first Africa tour as Britain’s PM, vows to be ‘number one investor’
UK prime minister pledges to prioritise investment in Africa as she starts three-nation visit
British Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday pledged to prioritise investment in Africa as she started a three-nation visit to the continent aimed at drumming up trade deals ahead of leaving the European Union.
Her tour of South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya – May’s first to Africa since becoming premier in 2016 – is seen as an effort to reinforce Britain’s global ambitions after Brexit.
“By 2022, I want the UK to be the G7’s number one investor in Africa, with Britain’s private sector companies taking the lead,” May told business leaders in Cape Town.
The G7 groups major industrialised nations but does not include China, which has become a big investor on the African continent.
“As prime minister of a trading nation whose success depends on global markets, I want to see strong African economies that British companies can do business with,” she said. “I want to create a new partnership between the UK and our friends in Africa built around shared prosperity and shared security.”
May is facing pressure at home from so-called Remainers sceptical of her ability to forge trade deals once Britain severs ties with the EU, as well as from Brexiteers fearful she will not deliver a complete break.