Reshaping Africa’s narrative

Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria, on the challenge of meeting the needs of Africa's young people

With 200 million people aged between 15 and 24—and that number set to soar by 2050—Africa has the youngest population in the world. But the challenge of prioritising the needs and dignity of these young people, through providing education, jobs, and healthcare, is all-consuming in nature.

With the overall investment gap to provide these opportunities standing at close to $1.8 trillion, it is a dynamic that is influencing all facets of the continent’s outlook, economically, politically and socially. And it is an issue not limited to just one country.

This challenge must be reflected in the commitment of the private sector. Africa’s rapidly-expanding population, accompanied by increasing urbanisation, is creating attractive opportunities for both domestic and international investors. Efforts must be made to ensure that the next decade for Africa is driven by private sector interest: we need to see private investment scaling up, particularly in manufacturing and infrastructure, and we need to see that African agendas are central to the investment story on a global scale with international participation and interest.

Within Africa, we must look internally and take advantage of the resources, talent and knowledge we already have in abundance. African countries must rely on the resources within Africa and must look to African countries before approaching Western or Asian partners to ensure that African capital is driven by African priorities. To create the right conditions to make this possible, the goals of local African investors must be aligned with the priorities of the government.

Businesses and governments need to have trust and assurance that goals for development are adequate and just. Meanwhile, internationally, it is imperative that the global community view African opportunity through the lens of investment rather than aid, with attractive rates of return, noteworthy economic resilience, and a strong wave of innovation across the continent.

When it comes to talking about global issues, Africa—quite often—is missing. But last week marked a significant shift in this state of affairs, with the launch of the Concordia Africa Initiative in London. By providing an international platform through which to elevate African voices and priorities on a global scale, the convening put Africa in the driver’s seat and paved the way for African leadership to remain at the forefront of stimulating private sector investment on the continent.

The African continent is rich with diversity and potential, but sustainable and inclusive progress must be built from the ground up and, crucially, be African-led. And this is precisely what last week’s 2019 Concordia Africa Initiative sought to do. Convening African cross-sector stakeholders, it provided a safe, diplomatic space to explore economic growth and opportunities for innovation on the continent.

It is not usual for global forums to provide a place for African leadership to be at the forefront of private sector investment, but I thank Concordia for seeing the value in creating such a platform and for making sure Africa is placed where it should be placed. I look forward to participating in future Concordia programmes and see a ripe potential for African leadership to have a place in an international dialogue about the continent’s future.

To learn more about Concordia, visit www.concordia.net