"Let Africa evolve" says Zimbabwean Prez Emmerson Mnangagwa

Economic recovery and institution building are the challenges faced by all African countries today.

During a panel discussion organised by the Africa CEO Forum around the theme, When Leaders make History, the President of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa and former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, shared their experiences on the sustainable and inclusive growth of Africa in general and their own countries in particular.

According to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Africa's problem is "the failure of leadership". President Mnangagwa continued, saying, "Geographically, my country is far from Nigeria but that did not stop Nigeria from helping us when we needed it. It is this vision that we African leaders should share: mutual aid. Africa needs to learn how to manage its own problems, and this starts with the balance between leadership and institutions".

He believes that the executive, the legislature and the judiciary should be independent. Each must perform its mission freely and transparently, but play a complementary role.

The sustainable and inclusive growth sought by African countries is only possible if civil society and elected politicians operate without interference. "We have civilian organisations that come to our countries to support our people by building schools and health centres. It's their role and we welcome that. What we do not accept is that they interfere in our politics. You cannot come from outside and tell us who we need to put at the head of our country, think our politics for us. We must let Africa evolve," he said.

Zimbabwe has begun its economic recovery through the implementation of an agrarian reform process that enabled 367 families to gain access to land.

"We are attempting to evaluate the situation before launching reforms. But we have started land redistribution. This was one of the major problems that we had to solve in Zimbabwe. Today, we need a structure to fight famine and poverty. For now, we are giving our farmers the means to improve and increase production. The food shortage will be alleviated through this system," said President Mnangagwa, who also announced that women and young people will be given a prominent place in national decision-making.

Credit: African Media Agency