The United States of America President, Barack Obama has arrived in Senegal on the first leg of a three-nation tour of Africa which begins this week.
Mr. Obama, who arrived in the Senegalese capital, Dakar, on Wednesday night with his family, was warmly welcome by dignities at the airport including the country’s President, Macky Sall and he is due to meet him later on Thursday to hold bilateral talks.
After Senegal, Mr. Obama will visit the Republic of South Africa and Tanzania as his next destinations but the people of South Africans will be more focused on the worsen condition of their icon, Nelson Mandela who has been in hospital for days as his condition worsen day-in and day-out.
But the White House has said it will defer to the wishes of Mr. Mandela’s family over whether Mr. Mandela is well enough to receive a visit from President Obama in hospital in Pretoria or not.
This is the second visit of President Obama since he became the President of the United States of America as he started his maiden Africa visit from Ghana.
The Washington Post estimates that Mr. Obama’s Africa trip could cost $60 million to $100 million, citing a person familiar with the details who cited previous presidential missions to Africa.
But the post pointed out that more precise estimate is impossible, because details about the president’s security are classified and not revealed.
President Obama’s deputy national security adviser for strategic communication, Ben Rhodes, told the Post that the security of the president has been planned and schedule to meet any challenge that is likely to occur during his visit.
“The infrastructure that accompanies the president’s travels is beyond our control, the security requirements are not White House-driven, they are Secret Service-driven.”
“Hundreds of U.S. Secret Service agents will be dispatched to secure facilities in Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania- A Navy aircraft carrier or amphibious ship, with a fully staffed medical trauma center, will be stationed offshore in case of an emergency.
“Military cargo planes will airlift in 56 support vehicles, including 14 limousines and three trucks loaded with sheets of bulletproof glass to cover the windows of the hotels where the first family will stay-Fighter jets will fly in shifts, giving 24-hour coverage over the president’s airspace, so they can intervene quickly if an errant plane gets too close’’, Mr. Ben Rhodes disclosed to the Washington Post.
Mr. Obama’s visit is expected to boost economic ties with the African continent and promote good governance and democratic practices.
Issaka Adams / NationalTurk Africa News
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