The president of the African Union, Azali Assoumani, defended, yesterday, a “positive competition” between Europe and China for investments in Africa, warning that the high level of debt is preventing countries from investing.
“Honestly, we have a very difficult past with our European neighbors, we managed it with some difficulty, and when China appeared, it learned all its lessons and that’s how it started to play a very important role” in terms of investment, said Assoumani , during a series of meetings within the scope of the G20 Compact with Africa.
“Now, I can assure you that everything is changing, and we are trying to correct the mistakes”, added the official, who is also President of the Comoros. Azali Assoumani said, at a press conference in Berlin, that there is a need for “competition between China and Europe”, considering that “there is no monopoly anywhere, everyone has their place”.
“The problem we sometimes have in Africa is that we cannot invest because we are paying debts”, he stressed, warning that the reason is that the debt is “so high”. Assoumani was speaking during a press conference on the sidelines of the G20 Compact with Africa forum, dedicated to promoting private investment on this continent, an initiative launched by Germany in 2017, during its presidency of the G20.
China is one of the main investors on the African continent, with Angola being one of the main beneficiaries of this investment, and is, at the same time, one of the largest suppliers of oil to the Asian giant.