Biden meets Angola leader in visit showcasing US investment in Africa

Luanda: US President Joe Biden met his Angolan counterpart Joao Lourenco Tuesday at the start of a two day visit to the African country centred on a m...

Luanda: US President Joe Biden met his Angolan counterpart Joao Lourenco Tuesday at the start of a two-day visit to the African country centred on a major infrastructure project that showcases US investment on the continent, where rival China is boosting its own interests.

The two presidents were expected to discuss trade, security and investment, including on a massive project to rehabilitate a railway line that transports minerals from inland countries to the Angolan port of Lobito for export.

The government of the oil-rich country has declared Tuesday and Wednesday public holidays and deployed heavy security across the capital of around 9.5 million people.

It is the first time a US president has visited the former Portuguese colony and Biden's only visit to Africa since he took office in 2021 apart from his attendance at a COP27 meeting in Egypt in 2022.