Witney Schneidman

Witney Schneidman

Senior International Advisor for Africa

Witney Schneidman is a senior international advisor for Africa.  Dr. Schneidman, a non-lawyer, has a deep understanding of many of the major African countries, as well as uniquely valuable insight into the recurrent challenges and opportunities across the continent.  He provides strategic advice on the varied political, economic, social and regulatory issues that are critical to companies’ success in Africa.  Dr. Schneidman’s work focuses on US-African relations, trade and investment in Sub-Saharan Africa, and issues related to economic growth and regional integration on the continent.

Previously, Dr. Schneidman was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.  He played a key role in ensuring the passage and implementation of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, and the establishment of the U.S.-SADC Forum, the U.S.-Angola Bilateral Consultative Commission and the U.S. Nigeria Joint Economic Partnership Committee.

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Top Ten Issues to Watch in Africa in 2019

By Witney Schneidman, Jay Ireland, Robert Kayihura, Benjamin Haley, Ursula Owczarkowski, Lido Fontana, Sarah Crowder, Kimberly Stietz and Kgabo Mashalane on Posted in Africa
Africa’s Growth Prospects. Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow at 3.8 percent in 2019, which is a significant improvement over last year’s regional growth rate of 2.6 percent. Excluding the continent’s largest economies (Angola, Nigeria and South Africa), which are growing collectively at an average of 2.5 percent, the aggregate growth rate … Continue Reading

Congress takes the lead on U.S.-Africa Policy

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, Congressional Action
While the nation has been transfixed by the confirmation hearings of Judge Brett Kavanaugh for a seat on the Supreme Court, Congress passed significant legislation on Africa that has attracted virtually no attention. On October 3, the Senate passed the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act, better known as the Build Act. President … Continue Reading

The Heat: Forum on China-Africa Cooperation wraps up in Beijing

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, China
Witney Schneidman, Chair of Covington’s Africa Practice, recently participated in a China Global television show to assess the outcome of the 7th FOCAC meeting in Beijing that was held last week between Chinese leaders and more than 50 African leaders. LINK This post can also be found on CovAfrica, the firm’s blog on legal, regulatory, political … Continue Reading

Smart Power: Investing in Youth Leadership and Development

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
“So, young people…my message to you is simple, keep believing, keep marching, keep building, keep raising your voice. Every generation has the opportunity to remake the world.” -President Barack Obama, 2018 Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture, South Africa Of the many statistics that define Africa’s complexity, this may be the most important one: With 200 million … Continue Reading

The 2018 AGOA Forum: A turning point for US-Africa commercial relations?

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
The 2018 AGOA Forum—named for the African Growth and Opportunity Act passed in 2000 and extended three years ago to 2025—could be a turning point in U.S.-African commercial relations. AGOA abolished import duties on more than 1,800 products manufactured in eligible countries sub-Saharan Africa (those with established or making continuous progress with market-based economy, rule of … Continue Reading

Competing in Africa: China, the European Union, and the United States

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, China, EU Law and Regulatory, Trade Agreements
Given recent developments in the global economy, especially Brexit and the Trump administration’s “America First” policy, it is worth assessing how Africa’s three largest commercial partners—China, the European Union, and the United States—are likely to impact the region in the near future as it relates to trade and investment trends. The China-in-Africa story may be … Continue Reading

Ten Key Issues to Watch in Africa in 2018

By Witney Schneidman, Kimberly Stietz, Hannah Edmonds-Camara, Deon Govender and Kgabo Mashalane on Posted in Africa
 In this blog, Covington’s Africa practice  highlights ten key issues to watch in Africa in 2018. U.S. Policy: The derogatory remarks that President Trump made about Africans and Haitians, which he denies having said, create a negative image for the U.S. across the region as the year begins. Nevertheless, the administration will push forward on … Continue Reading

Ramaphosa’s Victory: Progress or Paralysis?

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
The election of Cyril Ramaphosa as president of the African National Congress (ANC), and now the leading contender to become South Africa’s next president, was hailed as a “humbling rebuke” of South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma and a stark rejection of his policies, which have led to anemic economic growth, widespread corruption, and rising frustration in one … Continue Reading

Post-AGOA: Moving to a Reciprocal US-Africa Trade Arrangement

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, Trade Agreements
The global trade environment is rapidly changing and already affecting the U.S.-Africa trade relationship. Indeed, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) was not intended to be permanent. The program was designed as a stepping stone to a more mature trade relationship between the U.S. and the continent. AGOA’s expiration date in 2025 may seem … Continue Reading

Trump and Africa: Imagining a Positive Legacy

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
The contours of Trump’s Africa policy are emerging, although key appointments, such as the assistant secretary of state for African affairs, have yet to be made. On February 13, President Trump had telephone conversations with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria and President Jacob Zuma of South Africa—his first with leaders from sub-Saharan Africa. The calls, … Continue Reading

Ghana’s New President: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
Nana Akufo-Addo, the 72-year-old leader of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), was elected Ghana’s president on December 9 by a margin of 1 million votes, affirming the country’s status as a leading democracy on the continent. The peaceful election  supports former assistant secretary of state for African affairs and election observer Ambassador Johnnie Carson’s recent … Continue Reading

Donald Trump and Africa

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
For Africa, at stake in this election of Donald Trump is the strong bipartisan consensus in Congress that has been the cornerstone of U.S. policy toward the continent for the last three administrations. This consensus, supported by Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama, was predicated on the notion that Africa has opportunities worth U.S. attention and … Continue Reading

Investing in solar energy

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
Solar energy is a very good and important investment in sub-Saharan Africa. The energy is cheap, clean and relatively easy to install. It is also very beneficial to consumers.  As Andy Herscowitz, the coordinator for Power Africa notes, individuals do not have to rely on an electricity grid that can be unreliable, and once they … Continue Reading

Japan and Africa: Turning a New Page

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, Asia
Is Africa becoming a strategic priority for Japan? The Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), held in Nairobi, Kenya August 27-28, suggests that Japan is looking at Africa differently than in the past. For one, the five previous TICADs have been held in Japan; this is the first to be convened on … Continue Reading

Agreement in principle announced for an EU regime on conflict minerals

By Jean De Ruyt, Witney Schneidman and David H. Engvall on Posted in EU Law and Regulatory
In a so-called “trilogue” meeting on June 16, the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, and the European Commission reached a “political” agreement on the key elements of a regulation that would implement a due diligence and reporting regime for conflict minerals imported in the EU. It has taken more than three years since the … Continue Reading

Zimbabwe’s Economic Reform Challenges

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
Ten months ago, on August 26, 2015, Zimbabwe’s 92-year old leader, Robert Mugabe announced a 10-point plan to revitalize economic growth. Since then, the government has taken steps that signal the intention to transform a moribund economy. But the question is whether a Mugabe-led government can be successful in restoring growth and confidence in a … Continue Reading

An end to the never-ending South African poultry dispute?

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
President Obama, on January 11, suspended the application of duty-free treatment to South Africa’s agricultural exports that come into the U.S under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The suspension will take effect on March 15 if South Africa does not lower tariffs on American poultry products before then. The development represents another twist … Continue Reading

Zimbabwe (re-)opens to the West

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
Zimbabwe, in an economic quagmire for nearly two decades, has begun to implement economic reforms that, if continued, could help the nation improve the quality of life for the majority of its citizens. This nascent reform movement also suggests that government leaders have realized that its current singular reliance on China will not solve the … Continue Reading

The SDGs, business, and the development challenge

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
The most intriguing characterization of the new Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs), endorsed by world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on September 25, came from Amina Mohammed, assistant secretary-general of the United Nations and special advisor on Post-2015 Development Planning. During a panel discussion at the African Leadership Forum on September 24, Ms. Mohammed … Continue Reading

Obama in Kenya: A report from the field and a recap of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa
The nation of Kenya was gripped by a palpable sense of excitement and outsized expectations prior to President Obama’s arrival on Friday, July 24. On the day the president arrived, offices in Nairobi were closed, banks shut down early, and the city’s emptied streets were adorned with American flags and ubiquitous posters conveying the message, … Continue Reading

A Reauthorized U.S. Export-Import Bank is Central to U.S. Commercial Success in Africa

By Witney Schneidman on Posted in Africa, Congressional Action, International Strategy
If the U.S. Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im) is not reauthorized, U.S. efforts to deepen commercial ties to Africa will be significantly impeded. Not only would this put U.S. companies at a commercial disadvantage to companies from the European Union, China, Russia, India and elsewhere, it would impact negatively on the contribution that many American companies make … Continue Reading
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