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On Friday, March 3, 2023, French President Emmanuel Macron will visit three African capitals within a few hours, seeking to establish a “new relationship” with the continent.
On Friday morning, Macron participated in an economic forum focusing on agriculture in Luanda, the capital of Angola, in the presence of more than 50 French companies, before meeting his Angolan counterpart, Joao Lourenço.
On this occasion, Paris and Luanda concluded a partnership agreement aimed at developing the agricultural and food sector in the oil-producing African country, which aims to diversify its economy.
“The great interest expressed by the private sector on both sides testifies to this common feeling that we must together build this diversification and respond to the challenges of the present,” the French president said during the economic forum.
“Mentalities have changed… This is in line with my idea of economic partnership between the African continent and France and between Angola and France,” he added.
“It means responding to Angola’s challenges with actors representing both parties and offering common solutions rather than coming up with ready-made solutions, and doing so by serving the interests of both sides in a respectful manner,” he added.
Angola, which imports a large part of its food products, confirmed that it wants to strengthen its “sovereignty”, while the Elysee indicated that France could provide it with “technical expertise” from production to processing and marketing.
The French president is accompanied by representatives of major grain companies, as well as companies specializing in infrastructure development such as “Meridiam” and “Total”.
On Friday, he is scheduled to head to Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of the Congo, then to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the last stop on his African tour.
Emmanuel Macron is working to confirm the turning of the page on “African France”, a term that refers to Paris’ networks of influence inherited from colonialism with the accompanying murky practices, and the establishment of relationships based on practical partnerships from environmental protection to health.
Keen to diversify France’s relations with the continent, the French president has increased his visits to African countries since his first term.
