The President John Dramani Mahama has urged African leaders to unite to spark the continent’s renaissance its people have long yearned for.
He said Ghana’s touted economic turnaround would be meaningless if the continent did not see any progress.
“However, admirable Ghana’s turnaround story is, we cannot be a jewel in the dirt. We must work together as Africa. We must knit together the patchwork of success stories,” President Mahama said.
He stated this in Davos, Switzerland, yesterday, at a high level Accra Reset on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.
The initiative, being championed by President Mahama, seeks to introduce a bold and actionable framework designed to fundamentally transform the global governance architecture, ensuring it is fit-for-purpose in a turbulent, post-SDG era.
According to President Mahama, too many African countries were dependent on others for security, health and education systems.
He said despite supplying the world’s critical minerals, Africa captured almost none of the value.
President Mahama also noted that when HIV/AIDS ravaged the world two decades ago; it was African leaders who pushed for the creation of the Global Fund, which saved millions of lives in Africa and across the world.
With the US cutting funding for the United Nations and other global organisations, he underlined, the world faced an unpredictable future.
“This is why Africa must be responsible for its destiny,” President Mahama stated.
He further indicated that Africa faced a pandemic of unfulfilled potentials; where millions of young people had no jobs, and health systems that collapsed at the first crisis and economies that extracted resources but built nothing lasting.
“If we could mobilise the world to fight a disease, why can’t we mobilise to fight poverty, dependency, and systems that keep brilliant young Africans locked out of the future,” he said.
Mr Mahama noted that in “This fast-changing world, we are entering an era where countries must compete, innovate, and build or be left behind.”
Africa’s brilliant and hungry young people who are running out of patience, he emphasised, were watching and its leaders must act fast and decisively.
To this end, President Mahama stated that the continent’s leaders must invest in the skills of its young people, build together, industrialise and be accountable to the people.
“The Accra Reset is building the architecture for a new kind of cooperation, one where Global South countries didn’t just receive programmes but co-design them with partners and didn’t just attract investment but shape it around priorities,” President Mahama explained.
Moreover, he mentioned that it behoves the African leaders to leave a continent where young people didn’t risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean, because they had no opportunity at home.
“We want to leave systems that work, industries that thrive, and nations that stand tall. Ghana can’t do it alone. Africa can’t do it alone. This is a call to every leader. If you believe in a world where prosperity is shared, not just based on narrow interests, join us,” President Mahama declared.
“If you believe the Global South deserves partnership, not pity, join us. If you believe the next chapter of human progress will be written in Accra, Nairobi, Kigali, Abuja, and Cairo, join us. The Accra Reset is not seeking permission. We’re building momentum,” he rallied.
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
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