State Department: over 30 investment deals worth more than $6 billion signed with African partners

Tommy Piggott, principal deputy spokesperson at the U.S. Department of State, said in a virtual question-and-answer session that the United States has signed more than 30 investment deals worth over $6 billion with African partners.

"Nothing could be further from the truth," Piggott said when asked why the U.S. was not interested in investing in Africa. "We've actually seen, just in a matter of months, over 30 deals signed worth over $6,000,000,000 about investing in Africa." He added that the effort reflects a shift "from an aid dynamic to a trade dynamic."

Piggott said the administration views the approach as reciprocal: "Putting America First allows us to identify common interests we have with countries, leads to stronger bilateral relationships, and actually leads to long term prosperity," he said. He described that long-term prosperity for both the American people and other countries as a fundamental tenet of the administration's approach.

The brief online session did not include further details about the deals — such as the countries involved, the sectors targeted, or the sources of financing — and Piggott did not provide a timeline for when the agreements were signed. The exchange followed a viewer question from someone identified in the session as Victor.

Piggott closed the session by inviting additional questions across the department's social media platforms. No formal policy text, statute, or contract was presented during the Q&A.