Africa Day calls for Africa to rise to the occasion
FIRST president and prime minister of Ghana Kwame Nkrumah once said: “Africa is a paradox which illustrates and highlights neo-colonialism. Her earth is rich, yet the products that come from above and below the soil continue to enrich, not Africans predominantly, but groups and individuals who operate to Africa’s impoverishment.”
This couldn’t be far from the truth. For many years, Africans have lacked the knowledge and passion to cement themselves on the global stage.
We have read in the past and continue to do so about how resources and minerals such as gold, diamonds, oil as well as some aspects of local culture have been appropriated by some Europeans from their rightful owners, leaving them nothing to show for it.
But alas, over the past decade, Africa Day – marked every year on May 25 – has gained prominence as many musicians, politicians, artists, innovators, scientists and scholars have used this day to establish who they are, and in the same breath have all made their unique contributions towards improving the continent.
For South Africa, this year’s Africa Day is significant in that the country earlier this year assumed the role of being chair of the AU.
The theme the AU has adopted in 2020 is: “The Year of Silencing Guns”.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has spoken of how important it is to “make a contribution to promote peace and security in our collective effort to Silence the Guns. Through the AU Peace and Security Council, the AU Commission and the collective membership, we will focus our efforts on conflict resolution across the African continent, especially those experiencing protracted conflicts”.
He also said: “As Africans living in this new era, we shoulder the greatest of responsibilities, to ensure that Africa’s wealth does not become her poverty; that her blessing does not become her curse; and that our endowment does not become our downfall. It is to us that the task has fallen to build an Africa that is prosperous and at peace with itself.”
Ramaphosa’s sentiments mean that the continent and its leaders should rise to the occasion and help transform the lives of their people instead of focusing on amassing wealth.
Going forward, Africans no longer need dictators, but leaders who will, in the thick of things such as Covid-19, provide good direction.