Rep. Charles Rangel
Congressman Charles B. Rangel joined President Barack Obama at the Young African Leaders Town Hall on Monday, July 28, 2014, which was held as part of the Presidential Summit for Mandela Washington Fellows.
The Fellowship is the flagship program of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), which empowers young people through academic coursework, leadership training, and networking.
“I’m very proud that the President finds it important to cultivate the extraordinary promise of an emerging generation of sub-Saharan African leaders,” Rangel said. “The 2014 Mandela Washington Fellows have established records of accomplishments and are well-positioned to assume the responsibility of shaping the future of their continent. We must help them in continuing to develop their countries by promoting opportunities to hone their skills.”
The 500 Mandela Washington Fellows are between 25 and 35 years old, include equal numbers of men and women, and represent all 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their youth, more than 75 percent of Fellows already hold a mid-level or executive position.
Rep. Rangel has been a longtime supporter of promoting economic growth and development in Africa.
He was one of the prime authors of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which for the first time created a trade and investment framework between the U.S. and the countries of sub-Saharan Africa.
In the first 18 months, apparel exports from Africa to the U.S. increased 28 percent, signaling new job opportunities in Africa and investment opportunities for Americans.
