Trump also mused about the vast continent’s opportunities and challenges, saying he had many friends going there to “get rich”.
“Africa has tremendous business potential,” he said. “I have so many friends going to your countries, trying to get rich. I congratulate you. They’re spending a lot of money.
“For American firms it’s really become a place that they have to go — that they want to go.”
Trump also announced that he was dispatching US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley to Africa “to discuss avenues of conflict and resolution and, most importantly, prevention”.
South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma and Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari were among the leaders at the lunch.
WATCH | Where in Africa is 'Nambia', Mr Trump? Twitter has a field day
US President Donald Trump referred on Wednesday to the non-existent country of 'Nambia', during a lunch with leaders of several African nations amid the United Nations General Assembly.
Trump mistakenly referred to Namibia as 'Nambia' twice: once in the opening of his speech and a second time as he spoke about the country's health system, which he described as "increasingly self-sufficient" (skip to 2:45 in the video above).
Social media users, predictably, were quick to jump on the faux pas.
Trump also mused about the vast continent’s opportunities and challenges, saying he had many friends going there to “get rich”.
“Africa has tremendous business potential,” he said. “I have so many friends going to your countries, trying to get rich. I congratulate you. They’re spending a lot of money.
“For American firms it’s really become a place that they have to go — that they want to go.”
Trump also announced that he was dispatching US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley to Africa “to discuss avenues of conflict and resolution and, most importantly, prevention”.
South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma and Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari were among the leaders at the lunch.