 coming out of the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit. African leaders are heading towards the African Union Summit in February. It is important to take a step back and look at the commitments that were made during the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit and discuss the critical steps needed to move this partnership forward. This is the latest. The U.S. Africa Leaders Summit ended in a very positive note with a series of meaningful commitments. Commitments of $55 billion in form of assistance on various domains from security, to democracy promotion, to food security, health, etc. The challenge will be to implement all these commitments. Here are some of the key steps that the United States and African countries should take in order to advance the implementation of the commitments made during the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit. Number one, the United States should put in place a follow-up mechanism. The appointment by President Biden of Ambassador Johnny Carson as the Presidential Special Representative to the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit implementation is a key step in that direction. Number two, the United States government should encourage African partners to do the same, to put in place follow-up mechanisms so that Ambassador Carson and the U.S. administration will have interlocutors on the continents to follow up with the different commitments or commitment areas that were made. Number three, sustain diplomatic engagement at the highest level. It will be critical moving forward for the United States to be present on the continent, not just at the ambassadorial level, but really at the highest level of this administration. It will be important for our African partners to also work hard to create the enabled environment that will allow African countries to harness and leverage these partnerships to benefit millions of citizens. In addition to discussing the challenges, African leaders will also look ahead to discuss opportunities. And I'm reminded that the African Union team in 2023 is accelerating African continental free trade area. So, clearly, trade, inter-regional trade, will be front and center. And I hope that during those discussions, there will also see ways to leverage the commitments that were made during the U.S. African leaders summit.