WATCH: Thousands cheer Biden’s arrival in Angola for his long-promised sub-Saharan Africa visit

(AP) — President Joe Biden arrived for his long-awaited first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa on Monday to the cheers of thousands in Angola, where he will highlight an ambitious U.S.-backed railway project meant to counter China’s influence on the continent of over 1.4 billion people.

Biden’s three-day visit to Angola will focus largely on the Lobito Corridor railway redevelopment in Zambia, Congo and Angola. It aims to advance the U.S. presence in a region rich in the critical minerals used in batteries for electric vehicles, electronic devices and clean energy technologies.

President Joe Biden arrived in Angola on Monday for his long-awaited first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa.

He will use the three-day trip to counter China’s influence by highlighting an ambitious U.S.-backed railway project.https://t.co/5AGhrGFld3 pic.twitter.com/NFjv3A8JCK

— Voice of America (@VOANews) December 3, 2024

Biden’s trip comes weeks before Republican Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20, finally delivering on Biden’s pledge to visit sub-Saharan Africa. On his way to Angola, he stopped in the Atlantic Ocean island nation of Cape Verde for a brief, closed-door meeting with Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva.