With major wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East, Africa may well be low on Trump's foreign policy priorities. He has yet to appoint an Africa team, in contrast to his defeated opponent U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who named a team for the region in the days before the Nov. 5 election.

As part of a special series, “ America Votes: What It Means for the World ,” Martin Kimani argues that the status quo between the United States and African countries needs to change: “In some strange way, Trump’s disruptive politics dovetail really well with the need to disrupt the traditional American relationship with Africa.” 

A decline in U.S. influence in Africa means U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's administration will have to grapple with blind spots in its understanding of a fast-changing continent increasingly allied with China and Russia and threatened by spreading jihadist insurgencies.

President-elect Donald Trump talked tough on China during his campaign, vowing to impose higher and sweeping tariffs on imports from the Asian giant. Beijing will now also be closely watching the incoming administration’s movements further afield,

During his first term as US president, Donald Trump sparked outrage over his remarks about African nations, but Africa leaders have been quick to congratulate him since his re-election.