The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, said on Tuesday that the US would be providing an extra $45 million in funding to West African countries who are having security issues.
As per the reports published by AFP and Reuters, the United States has committed about $300 million in total under the initiative, which has been running for a year.
During a four-nation tour of African democracies, which included meetings with Presidents Bola Tinubu of Nigeria and Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, Blinken made the announcement.
Building on a December 2022 meeting in Washington, the trip focuses on US-African collaborations on trade, environment, infrastructure, health, security, and other concerns.
Blinken commended Ivory Coast’s response to the coup in Niger in 2023 as well as its “building security together” strategy, which mixes economic development with measures to combat radicalism in the country’s northern areas that border Burkina Faso and Mali.
Blinken and Ouattara remarked, “I applaud Cote d’Ivoire’s approach of working with and listening to communities, ensuring security forces understand their needs and concerns.” “This could serve as a potent role model for other nations.”
“We addressed challenges of mutual security and recognize Ivory Coast’s leadership in combating extremism and violence,” he continued.
Blinken declared a fifteen-fold rise in US military training for Ivory Coast, as well as investments in civil protection. Additionally, he promised to improve ground cooperation, mainly by training security forces.
The declaration is made in the midst of current security concerns in Africa, such as the coup in Niger, terrorist strikes in Nigeria (including the Plateau massacre on Christmas Eve), and ongoing kidnappings throughout the nation.