Melania Trump to embark on first solo major international trip

(Image credit: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)

published 1 October 2018

On Monday, first lady Melania Trump will leave on a five-day journey through Africa, stopping in four countries during her first big international trip on her own.

She will start in Ghana on Tuesday, then visit Malawi, Kenya, and Egypt. She will focus on child wellbeing, and will go to hospitals, shelters, and schools to promote her "Be Best" initiative.

Earlier this year, President Trump reportedly referred to African countries as "shitholes," and because of comments like this, the first lady has "got some heavy lifting to do on this trip," Judd Devermont, the Africa program director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told The Associated Press. "And it's a little bit unfair because that's not what a first lady's trip should be about."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.