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Published on The Hill. April 12, 2025; by Chris Stewart and Rosa Whitaker

As China tightens its grip on global mineral supply chains, the U.S. faces a critical choice: cling to outdated dependencies or forge a strategic partnership with Africa. Stewart and Whitaker propose a U.S.-Africa Security Defense Tax Credit to catalyze American investment in Africa’s vast mineral wealth, especially in AGOA-eligible nations. This policy, they argue, would reduce reliance on China, enhance U.S. national security, and strengthen economic ties with a region vital to global stability. In a world of rising geopolitical stakes, Africa must be seen not as a risk—but as an opportunity. Read more here

Published on LinkedIn, GhanaWeb, Vanguard Nigeria. May 26, 2025; by Rosa Whitaker

Rosa Whitaker pays heartfelt tribute to her mentor and friend, Congressman Charlie Rangel, who passed away at 94 on Memorial Day. More than a legendary American lawmaker and civil rights champion, Rangel was also a tireless advocate for Africa, helping shape policies like AGOA that deepened U.S.-Africa ties. Whitaker recalls his humor, resilience, and undying belief in progress, both at home and abroad. His impact, she writes, spans continents and generations. “How blessed we are that Charlie Rangel lived.” Read on our blog. 

Published on The Wilson Center December 11, 2024; by Rosa Whitaker

In this wide-ranging conversation, Rosa Whitaker, trailblazer behind the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), recounts the origins of the landmark trade legislation, the bipartisan coalition that birthed it, and her vision for its future. Reflecting on AGOA’s successes and shortfalls, she emphasizes the need for modernization, not just renewal. From early resistance in Côte d'Ivoire to consensus-building on Capitol Hill, Whitaker shares how grassroots activism, strategic diplomacy, and coalition politics made AGOA possible and why its next chapter must go further. With AGOA set to expire in 2025, she urges U.S. leaders to act boldly, saying: “We don’t need to agree on everything, just on some things.” Read more here.

Published on LinkedIn, August 26, 2024; by Rosa Whitaker

In a deeply personal tribute, Rosa Whitaker remembers business titan and humanitarian Mike Ullman as more than a legendary CEO; he was a man of faith, resilience, and global compassion. Despite lifelong health challenges, Ullman led with unmatched integrity at firms like JCPenney, LVMH, and Starbucks, while quietly uplifting countless lives, especially across Africa. For Whitaker, he was a mentor, friend, and example of servant leadership. His legacy, she writes, is not only in boardrooms but in the hearts of those he helped. “May his life continue to inspire generations to be better and to do better.” Read more here

Published on International Business Times, AGOA.info. July 23, 2024; by Rosa Whitaker 

As Washington’s attention turns inward, Africa once again risks being sidelined. But with the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) set to expire in 2025, the stakes are too high for complacency. AGOA has been central to U.S.-Africa economic ties for a generation, and its renewal, through a stronger, smarter “AGOA 2.0”, is essential not only for African development but also for America’s global competitiveness and climate strategy. Africa holds the key to critical minerals, clean growth, and a vast, young workforce. Abandoning this partnership would hand opportunity to authoritarian rivals and sabotage U.S. interests. Read more here.

Published on National Interest December 14, 2022; by Rosa Whitaker 

African governments have made it clear that they wish to be active participants in the clean energy revolution. The United States should support the continent’s efforts beyond rhetoric. Before gathering for the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit President Joe Biden is hosting in Washington this week, African heads of government caucused at an African Union (AU) summit in Niger’s capital, Niamey. The message from that meeting was that Africa does not plan on being a hapless victim of climate change, but rather a big part of the solution. African leaders and entrepreneurs see in global warming the catalyst for Africa’s own long-delayed industrial revolution—one without smokestacks.  Read on our blog.

Published on Africa.com; AllAfrica; Medium. June 14, 2022; by Rosa Whitaker 

If anyone has good reason to be appalled by Putin’s revanchist designs to raise the Russian empire from the ash heap of history, it is the people of Africa, having been for so long on the receiving end of the very kind of enslavement Putin is attempting to impose upon Ukraine. And now, thanks to Putin and his perverted dreams of restoring a mythical past, the lives of millions of Africans, already reeling from the COVID pandemic, are likely to be made even harder as his wicked war causes energy prices to soar and shuts down one of the world’s most important granaries.  Read on our blog.

The Africa Report, Oct 11, 2021; by Rosa Whitaker

A  prosperous, healthy and self-reliant Africa, on a sustainable,  carbon-neutral trajectory to industrialization and urbanization driven  by its extraordinary natural endowments, is not a nice-to-have. It is a  must-have. But the only people who can make it happen are Africans  themselves, unencumbered by the self-serving ministrations of colonial  powers, both the old and the new ones that pretend to be something else...We  must first listen to Africa’s collective aspirations and respond  impactfully, whether by creating tax incentives for private US  investments in Africa or by leveraging our bond market to support  Africa’s infrastructure development. Read on our blog.

Newsweek, May 25, 2021; by Rosa Whitaker

No country in the world has developed economically with an aid-based model—why would African countries be any different? Our economic policy toward Africa is faltering primarily because we continue to welcome and build a dysfunctional network of aid peddlers instead of properly incentivizing trade and investment—proven catalysts for job creation and income expansion on the ground where it is needed most. For post-COVID reconstruction, we must reimagine what is possible in U.S.-Africa trade and investment policy. We must disrupt the antiquated aid model and build a bold new approach. We must incentivize the U.S. private sector to invest in Africa in transformative and mutually beneficial ways. Read on our blog.

U.S. News & World Report, December 4, 2020; by Rosa Whitaker & Gail Strickler

Many are looking to President-elect Biden's administration to drive a positive trade agenda that respects stakeholder input on issues such as labor standards and the environment. Trade preferences, if well designed, and trade agreements, if skillfully negotiated, are powerful tools both for improving the competitiveness of our workers at home and raising labor and environmental standards globally. So, who should President-elect Biden nominate as his USTR to tackle these challenges? Our unequivocal — and unbidden — recommendation is Katherine Tai, the House Ways and Means Committee's chief trade counsel, who previously served as USTR's chief counsel for China trade enforcement . Read on our blog.