Africans should take responsibility for their future

I had the privilege of participating in Prime Minister Patrick Achi (Côte d’Ivoire’s) seminar at Harvard titled “Unlocking Africa’s Potential through Development.” This seminar profoundly challenged my previously held beliefs regarding the causes of Africa’s underdevelopment. Until now, I had firmly believed that colonialism, neocolonialism, tribalism, cultural backwardness, the local inability to add value to raw materials, a lack of export orientation, and the practice of holding currency reserves in Western countries, such as France, were the primary reasons behind Africa’s developmental challenges. However, Prime Minister Achi, who has led one of Africa’s most significant nations, contested these widely accepted views. He argued that these explanations do not fully account for why the continent has lagged in its development journey compared to other regions. As the seminar nears its conclusion, I find myself inspired to reevaluate my role as an Entrepreneur focused in Africa and the collective agency of Africans in determining our continent’s future. It raises a critical question: Are we, as Africans, the real obstacle to our progress, and should we take greater responsibility rather than attributing our challenges to external and theoretical factors? The insights from this seminar have been truly eye-opening.