Working for the good of the continent

The process to accelerated continental integration with the view to enabling Africa to play its rightful role in the competitive global economy has been chequered and slow.

There is also no denying the fact that addressing the multifaceted social, economic and political problems within the continent will require working in unity and with a concerted approach.

But reaching these goals has not come easy, many decades down the lane.

Last Tuesday marked the 22nd African Union (AU) Day. Commemorated on 25th May, every year, it is a day set aside by the AU to reflect on efforts made by the various member states towards unity and the rapid development of the continent.

The launch of the union in Durban, South Africa, on July 9, 2002 was motivated by the desire for the continental organisation to unify the 55 member states.

Indeed, the AU Day presents a platform to celebrate some landmark achievements of the union on various issues, such as peace and security, continental integration, women and youth empowerment, the eradication of diseases, among others.

The day is also an opportunity to reflect on the major challenges the continent is facing, the successes of the AU since 2002, the progress made and possible solutions to these challenges.

Furthermore, it offers an occasion to promote the union and its activities all across the African continent and the world through its regional offices and missions abroad. It is also a moment to renew commitments aimed at realising the Africa we want, as embedded in the Agenda 2063.

We at the Daily Graphic would first want to congratulate all member states of the AU on the various roles they have played to bring peace, stability and economic progress to the continent.

In spite of these successes, we are not oblivious of some of the challenges that continue to suppress not only efforts at unity but also set the clock of progress backwards. These are challenges Africa must surmount at all cost.

Some of these obstacles to progress are the pockets of military takeovers, such as the one in Mali, where a former military leader has taken over power, and on the day the eyes of the world were on the continent; election disputes, the activities of rebels and jihadist extremists and the lack of trading among member states. These are critical issues in which the current crop of African leaders must take keen interest and address quickly.

Against this background, we support the call by the continental body for further reflection, notably on the challenges impeding continental integration, growth and the total eradication of poverty, as well as the pockets of conflict that still exist on our continent.

This year, given the prevailing COVID-19 related circumstances that organisations such as the AU are grappling with, it is important to share knowledge on how to overcome the global pandemic.

Currently, Africa is at the crossroads, as it is now at the centre of development concerns in which its leaders have been involved for 50 years and for which the current crop of leaders are striving to find a happy outlet through which the continent will be able to play a role on the world stage. We need more decisiveness and deliberate actions to curb one of the factors limiting Africa’s economic growth — corruption.

While we celebrate this auspicious occasion, we call on leaders on the continent to walk the talk to bring corruption to an end and promote peace, not war. We have reached a critical stage in our journey to ensure economic emancipation and eradicate poverty, diseases, needless deaths and hardship from the continent.

But achieving this will require hard work and working together for the greater good of the continent.

It is time to demonstrate to the rest of the world that the African is, indeed, capable of managing his own affairs, as declared many decades ago by Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah.

To achieve the dream of becoming a continent that does not depend on aid but partnership will also mean putting our house in order and getting our priorities right.

Finally, it is our wish that all member states of the AU would stay true to the ideal of the union and work towards achieving the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.