Former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo (R)
speaks at the Africa Leadership Forum, the first annual dialogue,
focusing on the continent�s pressing and strategic issues.
The Former leaders made the remarks at the inaugural meeting of the Africa leadership Forum 2014 yesterday in Dar es Salaam.
The leaders were of the view that because the content’s diversity
of it peoples and their many tribes, cultures and traditions is neither
acknowledged nor honoured, the result is the absence of social and
national cohesion.
They said for the same reason, there is widespread immobilization
of African national human capital that undermines social and economic
development of the continent.
Themed: ‘Meeting the Challenges of Africa’s Transformation’ the
forum brought together four former presidents including Thabo Mbeki of
South Africa, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Festus Mogae of Botswana and
the host Tanzania’s Benjamin William Mkapa to discuss ways in which
Africa can overcome challenges facing it.
Mbeki cited the civil war in Sudan that led to the secession of the
South and the continuing conflicts in both Sudan’s, the civil wars in
Liberia, Sierra Leone and the conflicts in the Eastern DR Congo as real
examples of the mismanagement and lack of acknowledgement of diversity
on the continent.
He proposed on the effective involvement of members of the academia
to make critical and logical interventions to help define Africa’s
response to her pressing strategic issues as it was during the 1960s and
1970s where there was African intelligentsia in Universities throughout
the continent.
“When we speak of diversity of African societies in the context of
the African nation state, we speak of a nation constituted of people who
have various sectional identities to their common national identity,”
he said adding,
“For the all around success of our nations, there must be
cultivation and entrenchment of a common sense of national identity and a
shared destiny and this depends decisively on the proper management
diversity,” he added.
He said that successful management of the continent’s rich
diversity requires that all citizens, regardless of their sectional
identities, feel that they have the political capability to determine
the destiny of their nation through inclusive and legitimate processes.
“Also, all socio-economic development initiatives, affecting all
elements of human development initiated by states, should be organised
in a manner that the resultant material benefits are shared by all
citizens across their sectional identities,” he urged.
Mbeki emphasized the need for good leadership as a critical and
important aspect for the realization of the objective; proper management
of diversity.
On his part, Festus Mogae of Botswana observed that the African
continent is full of resources but instead of Africans, the developed
nations benefit just because Africans are not ready to work together, he
said.
“Not only governments but even the private communities in the continent do not want to work together,” he stressed.
Speaking over leadership in the continent, Mogae said that the
continent needs committed leaders to transform past failures into
lessons that will govern solutions for the future.
Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria called for dedicated implementation of
the various proposed and already introduced initiatives and programs.
According to him, there have been a lot of developmental
initiatives by African Presidents but they have mostly failed due to a
lack of commitment in implementation.
The African Leadership Forum also brought together a selected
number of key influential leaders and thinkers across the continent,
including leaders from the business sector, civil society and academia.
Earlier, the host, retired President Benjamin Mkapa described the
forum as a platform upon which the continent may deliberate and come up
with comprehensive and sustainable solutions to the challenges facing
the African people.
He maintained that the potential of the continent is infinite but
its human resource is underutilized plunging the other factors of
production into a recessive downfall.
He urged leaders in their various levels and capacities, both in
public and private sectors as well as the general citizenry across the
continent to make the best use of advice given by the forum as well
thought out guidance from experienced leaders and patriots of the
continent.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
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