Mo ibrahim
By Mo Ibrahim
Posted Sunday, October 20 2013 at 11:28
Posted Sunday, October 20 2013 at 11:28
In Summary
We need, in fact, to move decisively away from both Afro-optimistic and Afro-pessimistic headlines towards Afro-realism.
There is much to celebrate in this important
year for Africa – the 50th anniversary of the founding of the
Organisation of African Unity. Our continent is the fastest growing
economically. Global attention has rarely been greater or more positive.
The organisation’s creation marked a watershed in
Africa’s history and development. Its anniversary provides an
opportunity to reflect on progress over the last half century and to
focus on what needs to be achieved in the future to meet the bold
ambitions of its architects.
This week my Foundation published the 2013 Ibrahim
Index of African Governance (IIAG), which we hope can inform this
discussion. The results, which allow us to examine trends back to 2000,
shine a light on the state of governance across the continent and the
important challenges we face over the coming decades.
The IIAG shows us that Africa has achieved
progress in many key areas. It reveals that 94 per cent of people on the
continent live in a country which is better governed now than 13 years
ago. Impressive gains have been made in terms of sustainable economic
opportunity, gender, health and education. This is welcome news.
Tempting as it is, we must resist jumping to
overly simplistic or optimistic conclusions about Africa and the
direction it is heading. We have to guard against the “Africa Rising” or
“The Hopeful Continent” headlines just as in the past it was wrong to
dismiss Africa as a “Basketcase” or a “Hopeless Continent”.
We need, in fact, to move decisively away from both Afro-optimistic and Afro-pessimistic headlines towards Afro-realism.
To truly understand our vast continent and to help
drive effective and sustainable governance improvements, reliable and
accurate data is essential. It is also something which has been lacking
across many African countries. The IIAG, with almost 90,000 data points,
is helping to fill this information gap and reveals that governance
trends in Africa are both complex and diverse.
Firstly, while the overwhelming majority of
Africans have enjoyed improved governance since the turn of the century,
we must not forget the six per cent of Africans who live in countries
where governance has deteriorated. Madagascar, Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau,
Somalia, Libya and Mali remind us that the positive overall trends
experienced by most of the continent are not shared by all.
Secondly, while improvements have been seen within
the IIAG’s categories of Human Development and Sustainable Economic
Opportunity, smaller gains have been made in the category of
Participation & Human Rights. Even more worrying, Safety and Rule of
Law scores have shown year-on-year declines since 2010.
The IIAG’s data suggest that the underlying
factors driving recent declines in Safety and Rule of Law include
increased threats to safety of the person, worsening social unrest and a
rise in incidents of human trafficking. These findings are simply
unacceptable. They should sound a clear warning signal that we may be
looking at a future with fewer regional conflicts but increased domestic
social unrest and violence.
Thirdly, despite overall progress on the
continent, there is a widening difference in performance between the
best and worst governed countries on the continent and the ‘haves’ and
the ‘have-nots’. Mauritius’s score, at the top of the table, is more
than ten times that of Somalia at the bottom.
There is a crucial lesson here. By working
together more closely, best practice – including which policies,
structures and approaches are most effective for a country and its
citizens – can be shared. Sharing is in the African spirit. It is
embedded in our communities, through our local businesses, villages and
family networks. But the truth is that over the last fifty years
Africans have not shared enough of our knowledge, our data or even our
goods with each other.
Today traditional donor aid is diminishing. The reliance on
foreign partners to buy our commodities and send us financial resources
has to come to an end. Africa is rich enough to stand on its own feet,
but more work needs to be done. There can be no sustainable African
unity without building strong cohesion and solidarity within the
continent. We will not meet the hopes of those who called for African
unity 50 years ago without it.
Overall then, an honest assessment of the
continent as supported by the 2013 IIAG should note Africa’s many
achievements, but it should also include a pragmatic acknowledgement of
the distance we still have left to go. The IIAG tells us that the
outlook is mixed and that neither Afro-pessimism nor Afro-optimism does
justice to modern Africa.
Mo Ibrahim is the founder and Chair of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation.
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
SOURCE: THE CITIZEN
