A new “Africa strategy” to be presented by the foreign ministry at the end of this month will include the policy as its core element, Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said in an interview with newspaper Politiken.

“This isn’t altruism or charity. For me, this is about protecting some key Danish interests. Europe is shrinking in terms of population size and our relative share of the global economy. We therefore also risk losing influence,” he said.

Rasmussen has long been an advocate for more African students in Denmark, in both his role as leader of the Moderate party and a senior minister in the coalition government.

He did not state how many additional African students in Denmark he envisaged and also confirmed the strategy would not specify a number but would include “an ambition to do more on the area”.

“We obviously can’t take on the task of educating millions of young Africans because we don’t have the capacity for that,” he said.

“But there is no doubt that if we can offer some of the brightest talents an education that, as it were, carries the Danish flag, this can create a network and a connection to us which can be capitalised on over time, both economically and politically,” he said.

Parliament last year increased the number of English-taught programmes at Danish universities, with the changes coming into effect in the coming years.

The Moderate leader suggested in the interview that the government would now seek to go further on this issue. However, it may need to convince opposition parties who voted for the existing plan to back a new increase in English-taught study places. 

Rasmussen, who recently visited Ghana, said there were currently thousands of Ghanaian students i China as well as many Ghanaians studying Chinese at Ghanaian universities.

He said that showed the importance of Denmark welcoming students from countries like Ghana to avoid being left behind.

The new government Africa strategy is scheduled to be presented over the coming weeks, news wire Ritzau reports.

It will comprise several elements including investment funds for Danish companies seeking to open businesses in Africa.