By Stephen Asante
Accra, Sept. 02, GNA – The All-African Movement Assembly (AAMA), the largest gathering of Pan-African movements, activists and human rights defenders, is advocating that the continent works assiduously to ensure self-dependency.
It was important that the continent shrugged off the colonial politico-social and economic legacies and mindset militating against the sustainable growth of the continent, the activists stated.
“We need to critically look at the issues that bind us together as people with a common destiny for our own good.” Ms Samia Nkrumah, President of the Kwame Nkrumah Pan-African Centre (KNAC), said while addressing the AAMA 2024 in Accra.
The three-day Assembly was on the theme, “Towards Pan-African Solidarity – United We Stand, Divided We Fall”, and organised under the auspices of Africans Rising, a Pan-African movement.
It provided the platform for assessing the collective mandate of the people in the quest for peace, unity, justice and dignity among Africans.
Some topics discussed encompassed protecting and expanding civic space in the digital age, climate, ecological and economic justice, ownership and control of the African economy, modern-day slavery and discrimination, advancing gender justice and feminism.
The Assembly also deliberated extensively at concrete steps towards reparative justice for the crimes committed by the Western world during the trans-Atlantic slave trade, the free movement of Africans across the continent and building the democratic spaces.
A concept note, underpinning the Assembly, and a copy made available to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), elaborated the rapid shrinking of the civic space, with an increasing crackdown on dissent, harassment, abductions and killings of activists in many African countries.
Ms Nkrumah reiterated the need for collective dialogue and unified action for reforms as the continent continued to be plagued by the recurring development challenges, which had in recent time sparked mass protests by the citizenry in many countries.
Without the political will, proactive measures and unity of purpose, the continent would continue to wallow in her present predicament – poverty, conflicts, mounting debts, unemployment, corruption, among others – she cautioned.
According to Ms Nkrumah, the daughter of Pan-African icon and Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the vision lit by the founding fathers of the African Union (AU) ought to be reignited.
The concept that the African had the ability and resources to ensure self-rule without necessarily depending on the Western world and donor agencies for survival was still relevant in contemporary times, she emphasised.
Ms Nkrumah said it was worrying that the continent had consistently exposed herself to exploitation and dictates by the Western world due to the inactions of the people, especially the leaders.
“How are we going to get out of this? We need to build our infrastructure, we need to build our industries, we need to change, transform the colonial structure of our economies,” she advised.
The KNAC President also called for the resourcing and strengthening of the African Defence Force to deal efficiently with the varied conflicts, including the mounting violent extremism and terrorism, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Mr Hardi Yakubu, the Movement Coordinator, Africans Rising, echoed the need for African leaders to give serious attention to assenting the Protocol on the Free Movement of People.
Ms Kim Poole, a Diasporan African and performing artist, appealed to the AU to expedite action to ensure a free-visa entry for Diasporans visiting countries on the continent.
GNA