Africa needs leadership that provides vision, proper governance, and strategic planning—leadership that enacts policies to incentivize the private sector toward productivity and innovation, while also organizing and coordinating such activities to fit within the meticulous scheme of a broader developmental agenda.
The diaspora, in partnership with locals, should be major players, as they bring technical skills, experience, and capital that are as yet untapped and would help catapult this agenda forward.
The right people, the right vision, and political will can achieve what seems impossible. Look at China: mired in poverty up until 1970, then through the reforms of Mao Zedong and the economic initiatives of Deng Xiaoping, they achieved the seemingly impossible by lifting over 800 million people out of poverty. For perspective, 800 million is:
-Almost twice the entire population of ECOWAS (~424million)!
-Almost 8 times the population of the DRC (~106million)!
-About 54% of the entire African continent (~1.48 billion)!
Let that sink in and do its work!
Imagine this: just two leaders, Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping (supported, of course, by many others), and around 800 million people ascended from poverty—equivalent to more than half of Africa’s current population.
So, don’t tell me that visionary political leadership isn’t essential for Africa’s development today. Without it, the continent is going nowhere! Simply put, in Africa, no amount of private sector activity can fully compensate for the absence of genuine political leadership! Like weights on a scale, both sectors must complement each other and be responsibly balanced for collective progress.
That is why Africans of goodwill today must no longer stand aside, but earnestly organize and mobilize themselves, electorally take possession of their countries, and appoint the best from their midst who naturally embody visionary leadership!
Africa needs a new breed of political lions—leaders who understand the assignment of our time, have a love and commitment to the welfare of the people, and protect their interests. Lions of visionary leadership, ambitious strategic planning, and firm political will, ready to energically drive the wheel of Africa’s development forward!
Onward & Upward!
~Dr. Ikenna Ezealah
Nation Upbuilding 