As America celebrates 250 years, nearly 500 business, veteran, humanitarian, farmer, faith, and bipartisan political leaders converged in Washington to share real stories of how America wins when America leads.

Over the past decade, China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – a series of development and investment projects across Central Asia, Africa, and South America – has extended more than $182 billion in loans to 49 African countries, building roads, railways, ports, and power facilities with few governance conditions attached. These finance projects have positioned China as Africa’s largest lender, with 30 of 49 African countries now on interest payments than on public health.

This debt has become a geopolitical exploit for China, especially in regions like the Sahel where security and economic vulnerabilities are increasingly urgent. But it also presents a critical opening for the U.S. to demonstrate a different approach that prioritizes accountability, partnership, and sustainable economic growth.

In a hyper-connected world where diseases cross borders with increasing ease, American leadership in disease prevention and treatment is vital to protect Americans at home and abroad. In 2024, 40.8 million people—and 4.2 million Americans—were living with HIV worldwide. Each year 630,000 people die of HIV-related illnesses globally. It is in the United States’ strategic interest to work with urgency toward an HIV-free generation.

Since 2002, over 15,000 high school students have said “YES”, immersing themselves in a host country through the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program. These students live with host families and attend local high schools, sharing their cultures, learning critical languages, and building life-long relationships. The YES program facilitates citizen diplomacy through cultural exchange at a community level. The impact contributes to global security as students build positive ties between future leaders and their host countries.

For the residents of Kapiri Mposhi, Zambia, the global competition between the United States and China is right at their doorstep. Both countries have selected the town as an endpoint for their African regional railroad projects, making it the nexus from which American and Chinese tracks will diverge. The people of Kapiri Mposhi are, quite literally, facing a fork in the road, and the path they choose will have real consequences for the Sino-American race for influence…

During a Senate floor speech in May, Senator Jerry Moran emphasized Kansas’s legacy of global agricultural leadership: “A call to feed the world has been answered by many Kansans, and farmers, and ranchers.” This observation reflects a broader strategic reality: since the 1950s, Kansas has played an integral role in the United States’ efforts to provide life-saving food to communities around the world…

The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC) hosted its annual 2024 Tribute Celebration, with a packed bipartisan crowd of nearly 800 business, military, NGO, and political leaders, including current and future Administration officials and Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle—to highlight the imperative of U.S. leadership in building a better world and a stronger, more prosperous America…

The USGLC is proud to have a wide and deeply engaged coalition of government, business, military, faith, and humanitarian leaders committed to building a safer and more prosperous world for all. This month, in celebration of Military Appreciation Month, we are shining a spotlight on three of our USGLC state leaders, the impactful work they are carrying out as part of our Armed Forces, and why leading globally matters locally…

President William Ruto of Kenya is visiting the United States this week, in what will be the first state visit in 16 years by an African president. The trip is meant to signal the strength of U.S.-Africa relations, which has suffered recent setbacks due to security realignment in West Africa…

The USGLC is proud to have a wide and deeply engaged coalition of government, business, military, faith, and humanitarian leaders committed to building a safer and more prosperous world for all. This month, in celebration of Arab-American Heritage Month, we are shining a spotlight on two of our Advisory Committee members, the impactful work they are carrying out in their communities, and why leading globally matters locally…

Last month, the USGLC celebrated International Women’s Day by hosting a roundtable with Walmart and the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). The event focused on educating and engaging leaders in Arkansas on the importance of development and diplomacy, while highlighting the work of Walmart and EXIM to empower women abroad and create jobs for workers here at home…

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in China this week – his second visit in less than a year – meeting with senior officials to further the commitments made by Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping at the Woodside Summit last November on counternarcotics cooperation…

When African leaders convene for the 37th annual African Union (AU) summit on February 17-18 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the world will be watching for signs about the future of the global economy, security, and health, and the role Africa plays in all of this.