U.S. pledges $45 million in security funding to West Africa

US top diplomat Antony J. Blinken announced Tuesday January 23 a pledge of $45 million in funding for security in West Africa, a region reeling with terrorism activities in some of its countries.

Blinken made the announcement in Cote d’Ivoire as he met with President Alassane Ouattara in the capital, Abidjan.

“Cote d’Ivoire is an essential partner for us and for other countries in the region that are trying to move forward”, Blinken said at a joint news conference.

“We appreciate particularly the leadership shown by Cote d’Ivoire in countering extremism and violence”, underlined the US top diplomat.

Ouattara said security in the region is “difficult and we appreciate the US for all their support in countering terrorism”. Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo and Benin are struggling to thwart terrorism activities. Since 2022, the U.S has contributed $300 million in “stability-focused assistance” in the region.

The US pledge will seek to support the countries with many of them namely Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, having tilted towards Russia in the efforts to get rid of terrorists.

Cote d’Ivoire was the second stop of Blinken on his African tour that started from Cape Verde. He travelled from Abidjan to Nigeria. He will wrap up the tour in Angola.