At 11:25am EST on Saturday, November 7th, the AP(Associated Press) announced that Joe Biden had won Pennsylvania, giving him the electoral votes he needed to win the presidential election.
President-elect Joe Biden has promised to strengthen international climate diplomacy and with a plan to put the United States of America on a path of net-zero carbon emissions “no later than 2050”. Biden won more votes than any other candidate in U.S. history. Final results are still being tabulated, but so far his margin of victory over Trump in the popular vote, currently at time of writing, is estimated over 5 million.
Morning Consult through their exit polls, found that 74% of Biden voters described climate change as “very important” to their vote, while 19% of Trump voters shared the same opinion. Biden has promised to rejoin the Paris climate agreement on his first day in office, hence reversing the withdrawal by President Donald Trump.
Leaders across Africa have congratulated Joe Biden for his election win, with many expressing hope that his presidency will boost ties between countries on the continent and the United States of America. Trump’s Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 (BUILD Act), his 2018 Prosper Africa commercial initiative and his continued support for the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) first introduced by President Bill Clinton, offer a solid starting point for the Biden administration. The AGOA Act is a popular scheme that provides African manufacturers with tariff-free access to the American market, but however it is set to expire in 2025. It would be expected that President-elect Biden would be more likely to support the extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) beyond 2025.
