Ghanaian President Akufo Addo Tells African Leaders to Stop Being Beggars

The president of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, issued a wake-up call to all African leaders yesterday, stating that the region is ready to take up its proper place in the world.

Akufo-Addo stated that it is past time for African leaders to cease pleading with the developed world and focus on spending African money on the continent while speaking at the beginning of the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, DC.

He claimed that if Africa does the right thing, respect will come to them naturally and they won’t need to seek for it.

“Africans are more resilient outside the continent than inside. We must bear in mind that to the outside world, nothing like Nigeria, Ghana or Kenya, we are simply Africans. Our destiny as people depends on each other.

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The need to rebrand Africa 

Akufo Addo cautioned that anyone in a position of leadership in Africa must recognise an urgent obligation to make the continent alluring to its people by offering high-quality education and the skills necessary to operate the modern economy. 

To transform the stereotype of Africa as a continent plagued by disease, hunger, poverty, and illegal migration, we must cooperate.

“No matter where you come from, as long as you are black, you are African. We must make Africa conducive for progress and prosperity.”

He insisted that because the African leaders had run out of justifications, now is the time to bring about change, “we have the manpower, we should have the political will, it is time to make Africa work.

If we stop being beggars and spend African money inside the continent, Africa will not need to ask for respect from anyone, we will get the respect we deserve. If we make it prosperous as it should be, respect will follow.”

The 71st Secretary of State of the United States, Antony John Blinken, stated in his opening remarks that this is one of the very first activities of the Africa Leaders Summit because of the significance of the diaspora to the past, present, and future of both African countries and the United States.

He declared that the United States is committed to making sure that young people may continue to contribute their skills and labour to the good of people in the country and throughout the continent.

“We’ve got a number of programs that are doing just that programs like the Young African Leaders Initiative and through our economic development programs, like the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs program. Now, since its inception in 2019, that program has provided more than 5,400 women throughout Africa with the training and the networks that they need to start and to scale small businesses.”

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