Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
A former Commonwealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, has said that to restore the dignity of the black man and ensure the continent gets its deserved respect in the commity of nations, African leaders must make fighting corruption as well as inclusive governance a priority.
Speaking in Abuja at the fifth annual lecture of retired and serving foreign service officers under the auspices of the Association of Foreign Relations Professionals of Nigeria (AFRPN), the ex-diplomat advised that leaders on the continent should wean themselves off the whims of Europe and other centres of power.
He argued that having completed the historic struggle for freedom and independence in Africa, he believed there were three main challenges facing Africa today.
“The challenges are ensuring governance for peace and stability in the individual sovereign states; pursuing national development, including through effective collaboration among the African states.
“ And playing commensurate role in global affairs so that the continent which contains over 40 per cent of the world’s crucial resources can bring its influence to bear, thereby restoring to the black race its dignity and respect that have been grievously undermined by the legacies of the trans-Atlantic slave trade,” he stated.
He therefore called upon African leaders to firstly, ensure that the politics and governance in their countries are so inclusive and corruption free as to promote peace and stability and secondly to eschew the psychology of instinctive subservience to Eurocentric and other centres of power outside Africa.
“Thirdly, (they should) move beyond the rhetoric of African unity and cooperation, to focus on practical initiatives for their national development supported as necessary by more effective African institutions, including especially the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank and the Afrexim Bank.
“And fourthly, to focus on asserting with greater confidence, individually and collectively, Africa’s role in global affairs, thereby ensuring ‘as was recently humorously put by President William Ruto of Kenya, that African countries are at the table and not in the menu of global dining,” he stated.
Describing foreign relations as an indispensable part of state policy, he explained that the AFRPN has the capacity to provide expertise to the government and those interested in the formulation and operation of the country’s foreign policy ideas.
He eulogised a former President of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki, who was a guest of honour at the event, recalling how both of them met in the heat of the fight against apartheid.
In his welcome address, the President of AFRPN, Dr Gani Lawal, said that with Nigeria’s democratic trajectory and rapid advancement of globalisation, the government cannot afford to neglect to play an active role internationally.
He pledged that the AFRPN will extend its hands of fellowship to other departments that handle governmental activities across the frontiers of the nation, particularly some that are domiciled in its missions abroad.
Lawal explained that it was important to partake in the organisation’s practical diplomatic nuances and protocol training programmes which are essential in dealing with members of the public both at home and abroad for synergy.
“We know for a fact that there already exists sufficient documentation in foreign policy crafting and practice. The recent expert codification of our foreign policy thrust is a testimony to this fact. What is missing now is the strategy of implementation in a rapidly changing global environment.
“We in the AFRPN recognise that the process of implementing foreign policy requires people, technology and clear understanding of context and environment.
“We therefore submit that training in all ramifications is an essential ingredient in the implementation of our foreign policy, economic development and governance,” he pointed out.
