This document examines how the U.S. government’s Prosper Africa program, launched in 2019, aims to double two-way trade and investment between the United States and African countries and, in doing so, to put a new face on American Multilateralism; in Africa. Despite the initiative’s embrace by two separate administrations, it has so far been slow to live up to expectations. The Prosper Africa Act, a draft piece of bipartisan legislation put forward in the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, now languishes in Congress, overshadowed by other crises and attracting little attention. Allowing the legislation to expire is a mistake. To help ensure its success, the Prosper Africa Act’s sponsors should address three key issues around its scope, strategic positioning, and diaspora engagement.
