AMID the controversial aid withdrawal by the United States (US) President Donald Trump, the Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has challenged African leaders to look inward for funding opportunities for the continent.
Okonjo-Iweala, a doctorate holder and developmental economist, said this at the Heads of State and Government breakfast dialogue of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia at the weekend.
She noted that Africa needed to change its mindset and see opportunities in the seeming challenge posed by a pause of billions of dollars in global funding from US for health and education projects across the world.
“African leaders must attract investment and mobilise resources to survive contemporary social and economic realities that come with the policies of the Donald Trump presidency,” she said.
She added, “Africa really needs to change its mindset about access to aid. We should begin to see it as a thing of the past. Our focus should be on two key areas – attracting investment and mobilising domestic resources.”
She cautioned Africa against exporting its mineral resources but rather exploring ways to ensure such resources are turned into finished products to further boost the continent’s job opportunities, self-sufficiency, and economy.
“The only way Africa can finance itself is by growing our economies, trading more, and adding value to our products. At the WTO, we are working to identify and remove trade barriers that prevent African nations from exporting value-added goods competitively,”
Okonjo-Iweala also called for the recapitalisation of Africa’s multilateral development banks to enable them to fund key developmental projects on the continent.
Besides, she suggested that Africa’s pensions domiciled in foreign accounts were enough to drive growth on the continent if invested locally.
She explained that $250 billion in pension funds owned by nations on the continent could be deployed to engender development.
“The biggest pension funds are in South Africa, followed by Nigeria, Kenya, Morocco, Botswana, and Namibia. These resources are hugely significant, and we need to find ways to tap into them,” she stated.
US aid withdrawal
Recall that Trump administration has endorsed the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which funds several educational and health projects worldwide.
One of Trump’s appointees, Elon Musk, world’s richest man who heads Trump’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) had recommended dismantling USAID which Trump promptly approved.
USAID was set up in the early 1960s to administer humanitarian aid programmes on behalf of the US government.
For six decades, USAID has built its reputation as the world’s premier international development organisation by partnering with more than 100 countries to strengthen communities and improve lives.
Last week, Scott Perry, US Congressman representing Pennsylvania, accused the agency of funding terrorist organisations such as Boko Haram and ISIS.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues.