U.S. businessman, politician and media mogul Michael R. Bloomberg will co-host a U.S.-Africa Business Forum Aug. 5 focused on trade and investment opportunities on the continent as part of President Barack Obama’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit.

Along with Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, Bloomberg Philanthropies and the
U.S. Department of Commerce will co-host the first-ever forum, AllAfrica reports. President Barack Obama is scheduled to be the keynote speaker.

Bloomberg served as the 108th Mayor of New York City for three consecutive terms starting in 2001. With a net worth of $33 billion, he is the 11th-richest person in the U.S. and the 16th-richest in the world.

He is the founder and 88-percent owner of Bloomberg L.P., a global financial data and media company.

In early August, Obama will make good on a promise announced last summer when he toured Tanzania to gather leaders from more than 45 sub-Saharan and North African countries in the U.S. They’ll discuss regional economic, political and development issues.

Obama’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit will be the first summit of its kind and the largest that any U.S. president has ever convened with African heads of state or government, AllAfrica reports.

The goal of the summit is to forge partnerships rooted in shared interests, make deeper transatlantic ties and explore collaborative solutions to unlock economic growth and opportunity.

While touring Tanzania last summer, Obama said, “in our global economy, our fortunes are linked like never before. So more growth and opportunity in Africa can mean more growth and opportunity in the United States. And this is not charity; this is self-interest.

“And that’s why a key element of my engagement with Africa, and a key focus during this trip, has been to promote trade and investment that can create jobs on both side
of the Atlantic.”

Held at the Mandarin Oriental, in Washington, D.C., the U.S.-Africa Business Forum will focus on U.S. private sector engagement in Africa in the areas of finance and capital investment, infrastructure, power and energy, agriculture, consumer goods, and information communication technology.

Heads of state will talk to business executives from both sides of the Atlantic about successes and solutions to greater access for trade and investment in Africa. Obama will participate in the conversation with CEOs and government leaders from the U.S. and Africa.

“The opportunities for the U.S. and Africa to work together to achieve mutual prosperity for our countries and our people are growing,” Pritzker said. “There is great potential for U.S. firms to sell their goods and services, and leverage their expertise, to help African countries meet their development goals. At the Department of Commerce, we’re working with American companies to help ensure they have the tools they need to do business in Africa, and this forum will be yet another mechanism for cooperation between the U.S. government and private sector, and our counterparts in Africa.”

Bloomberg said, “There is great optimism for what lies ahead as Africa will play an increasingly central role in global affairs and international commerce. Vibrant,
transparent business communities that are wired into the global economic conversation are essential for the future of Africa. This forum and summit builds on this dedication to the future of Africa, and will go far in building a better and more secure economic and political future for the continent.”