The UK’s aim is try to convince African countries that Brexit will bring trade benefits outside of the existing trade with the EU.

The problem for Hunt and his Conservative colleagues is Brexit is at an impasse in the UK with his party totally divided over what action to take next.

Prime Minister Theresa May’s proposal to enable the UK to leave the EU with a deal has already been heavily defeated three times.

But in the unlikely event that a Brexit agreement is made, the UK government is looking to boost trade with Africa which is why Hunt is visiting Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Kenya, which have five of the fastest-growing economies on the continent.

Foreign agenda

Apart from pushing post-Brexit trade links, Hunt is expected to highlight aspects of his personal Foreign Office (FCO) agenda, including highlighting the persecution of Christians, developing media freedom as a bulwark for nascent democracies and the link between climate change and threats to security, including mass migration.

With the UK set to leave the European Union, Mr Hunt said he wanted to work “within and alongside” African nations to tackle international threats and forge new opportunities.

However, there has been criticism that the UK government has been so distracted by Brexit that its perceived interest in Africa has been hyped to deal with a domestic political crisis.