Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma ( L) with some officials
African governments have been urged to develop deliberate policies, especially on industrialisation to achieve the transformative goals of the continent.
Speaking at the 3rd edition of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2025 in Accra, Chairperson of Africa Prosperity Network (APN), Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said industrialisation is the hallmark that will propel the continent towards development.
“If we do not own the means of production, if we do not prioritise industrialisation, we’ll remain where we are and keep exporting jobs,” she said.
Dr. Dlamini Zuma, who is also the former chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission said Africa’s industrialisation agenda cannot also be realised without a deliberate effort to improve infrastructure.
She also stated that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) would also offer opportunities for the continent’s 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of more than 3.4 trillion dollars creating jobs and revenue through the export of raw materials.
“Africa must move beyond being an exporter of raw materials and become the manufacturer of the future. We have all the minerals that the world needs, but we give them to the world without using them for our development,” she added.
Dr. Dlamini Zuma who described infrastructure as the lifeblood of any economy therefore asked African governments to invest, connect, and integrate.
“It is the digital highways that connect our young entrepreneurs to global markets, and the bridges that unite Africa as one economic force,” she stressed.
She further said Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD) which has over the years become a premier platform to drive regional integration, intra-Africa trade, and sustained investment has not just spoken but has acted citing Students’ Compact, developed with partners such as the Africa Continental Free Trade Secretariat, the United Nations Economic Commission, (UNECA) and the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP among others as one of the landmark achievement.
The Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2025 which brought together scores of Ghanaians, foreign diplomats, experts in various fields, and political heads was held under the theme, “Delivering Africa’s Single Market Through Infrastructure: Invest, Connect, Integrate.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah