US plans investor roadshow for Africa later this year

United States will launch an African investor roadshow later this year to connect entrepreneurs with potential US investors as part of a push for increased trade with the continent, the US commerce secretary said on Friday.

Speaking on the sidelines of the just-concluded Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi, which President Barack Obama addressed on Saturday, Penny Pritzker said the United States was seeking to address the main concern raised by African entrepreneurs— limited access to foreign capital.

“The president and our department are very focused on how to improve trade and investment between Africa and the United States. It’s really top of our mind. And what we’ve found is that there is an enormous amount of entrepreneurial activity happening here,” Pritzker told Reuters.

“It’s a really important effort because everybody talks about access to capital here... We listened to the customer.” The roadshow will be launched in New York in September during the annual meeting of world leaders at the United Nations.

In 2016, potential investors will travel to African countries, she said, adding that the specifics have yet been set.