Her Majesty Olori Atuwatse III with Elevate Africa team and Ghanaian delegation
Conveners of the Elevate Africa Annual Convening 2026 have called on African leaders and businesses to take greater responsibility for shaping the continent’s future by promoting homegrown solutions, investing in talent and remove barriers that affect regional integration.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the Elevate Africa Convening 2026 which will start today Wednesday, October 28 and end on Thursday October 29, 2026 in Accra, Co- Founder of Elevate Africa, Her Majesty Olori Atuwatse III, said the initiative sought to amplify African solutions through the media, convene leaders across sectors and develop the continent’s human resource base.
She explained that the organisation’s initiative focused on amplifying solutions, bringing leaders and creators together, and investing in talent through fellowships designed to strengthen leadership, innovation and narrative transformation aimed at addressing development challenges.
“If we really want to elevate Africa, we cannot elevate her independent of her talent,” she said, stressing the need to equip young Africans with the skills and confidence to contribute to the continent’s development.
She said Africans must change how they speak about themselves and their continent, adding that the continent had solutions to its challenges but needed to rethink how those solutions were developed and implemented.
Olori Atuwatse III also highlighted the country’s historical role in advancing Pan-Africanism, the vision of the country’s first President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, who linked Ghana’s independence to the liberation of the entire African continent.
She said Ghana’s contributions to the Year of Return, reparatory justice and continental integration made it an appropriate location for discussions on Africa’s future.
The Director of Diaspora Affairs at the Office of the President, Kofi Okyere-Darko (KOD), said Ghana remained committed to strengthening ties with the African diaspora and advancing reparatory justice for people of African descent.
He disclosed that the government was preparing to begin another phase of granting citizenship to members of the diaspora, with consideration also given to individuals who demonstrated a commitment to the country’s development.
He said the process would seek to attract people willing to contribute meaningfully to the country rather than those interested only in acquiring citizenship.
For his part, Prince Moses, Director of Strategy and Adviser to the Chairman of the Africa Prosperity Network (APN), Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, said Africa’s development depended partly on dismantling barriers that restricted the movement of people, money and goods across the continent.
He noted that despite Africa’s market of more than 1.5 billion people and a combined GDP exceeding US$3.4 trillion, intra-African trade accounted for only about 15 to 16 per cent of total trade.
He, therefore, called for visa-free travel, interoperable payment systems and the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) protocols to facilitate trade and strengthen the creative economy.
Mr. Moses added that achieving a borderless Africa required practical action by governments, businesses and citizens to translate existing continental agreements into tangible benefits.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah