President James Michel arrived in Washington on Tuesday for the US-Africa Summit and is accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs Jean-Paul Adam.

President James Michel was received at the White House on Tuesday evening by US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, for the official dinner of the US-Africa Leaders Summit.

The US and African leaders are expected to discuss investment, peace and regional stability as well governance issues on Wednesday.

President Michel has said the summit will be an opportunity to discuss the development of the Blue Economy in Africa with the support of the US.

“The Blue Economy has been identified as a key opportunity to maximize food security across the African continent, contributing to poverty eradication and mitigating the effects of climate change. We are firm advocates of an inclusive view of the Blue Economy that can harness the true potential of Africa. We count on the support of the US in ensuring that Africa’s oceans can bring renewed wealth creation opportunities to our continent,” said the President in a national statement issued to the US government.

“It is essential that we work towards sustainable development goals that move beyond extraction of natural resources as the basis of economic growth, and that look at transforming our oceans into spaces for development and shared opportunity.”

Editor’s note

- photo credit:  President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama greet President Michel in the Blue Room during a U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit dinner at the White House, Aug. 5, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)