Why Obama Is Selling Africa Short

President Obama is flying to Africa this week, with plans to visit Kenya and Ethiopia. On his last trip to the continent, Obama showed off his sporting prowess with the soccket—a soccer ball that generates small amounts of electricity while you play. An overpriced and ineffective toy presented as a solution to the region's need for reliable energy, it's also a symbol of the U.S. government's lack of serious engagement with Africa. But it isn’t too late for the U.S. to do better—and act on the real potential of an area home to 1 billion people.

In the past 15 years, the economy of sub-Saharan Africa has doubled in size to more than $1 trillion (this at market exchange rates). The region’s imports of goods and services over the same period have climbed from $127 billion to $377 billion. And there are a lot of reasons to think Africa’s economic future is bright. Inflation is down and debt is increasingly sustainable: In 1997, the region was paying 4.6 percent of gross national income GNI to debt service, but that's dropped to 1.9 percent in 2013. Sub-Saharan Africa is also ever more healthy and educated: Life expectancy has climbed seven years since 2000, and secondary school enrollment rates went from 21 percent to 34 percent over that time.