At the same time as it was participating in the construction of the global development agenda (Agenda 2030) Africa was busy constructing its own development agenda (Agenda 2063). A critical look at the two reveal that they both address similar development challenges including gender inequalities, poverty, environmental pollution and degradation, climate change, access to essential services (water, education, health and housing), infrastructure development, peace and serenity etc.
It is also worth noting there are also differences between the two agenda; for example while Agenda 2030 is based on 17 Goals Agenda 2063 is based on priority areas for action.
To create synergies between two agenda that are based on different approaches on foundations is as tricky as playing chess over a bottle of Vodka! There are other differences such as those related to institutional arrangements and evaluation regimes.
It is these similarities and differences that force some of us to ask ourselves these questions:
Why did Africa find it necessary to take part in the design of two closely – identical development agenda? What was or is the added value? What would have happened if Africa under the African Union stuck to its own home grown agenda and ignore the New York – bred Agenda? Would the rest of the world move on and ignore Africa or would it come running and embrace the African development agenda?
How will AU member states implement two development agenda that have two different timeframes, different goals, targets and indicators for measuring progress?
What will be the situation in September 2030 when the international community get together to formulate the 3rd Global Development Agenda because by then there will remain 33 years for Agenda 2063? How will these be taken into account?
How will Africa inform its people about two different development agenda while time has shown us how difficult it is to create awareness amongst our people due to several factors including low level of education, poverty and lack of finance? How many Africa rural communities are aware of Agenda 2063 or Agenda 2030? Why are we bombarding them with two heavy agenda and expect them to participate actively in their implementations?
These questions need answers otherwise as Africa we our performance may be less than our performance during the MDGs era; by then we had only one agenda and we still did not develop to the level that we had envisaged!
Apart from the challenge posed through participating and implementing two development agenda Africa need to address some anti-development hurdles that it has imposed on itself; for example why are each African country so obsessed with issuing visa to non citizens? What has prevented us from having a visa free African Union? Why are we praising the Schengen States visa arrangement for simplifying our entry into their countries and yet we impose visa on each other when we come back home? How can we develop if a young entrepreneur from Tanzania or Togo is required to secure visa before entering another African country to explore investment potentials in that country and yet we offer incentives to an entrepreneur from Europe or US or China to enter our countries without much ado?
Another self imposed hurdle that Africa needs to remove with immediate effect is the thinking of each country in Africa to have its own national airline. Why can’t we pull together our resources and expertise and establish one powerful African Airline? Is it not a collective shame when a person from one African country who wants to fly to another African country has to fly first into Europe or the Gulf before reaching another African country? Why do we think it is only possible to establish an African peace keeping force but not an African Airline or Shipping Line?
Another self imposed obstacle is our reliance on foreign funding for our economic development. Our reliance on foreign assistance is the main reason why in both the MDGs and SDGs there were/are specific goals on partnerships (MDG 8 and SDG 17). But really do we need foreign aid from example to construct regional roads that can connect all our countries like in European Union? For example it is approximated that the road from Lome Togo to Mombasa Kenya is only 7000 kilometres long. It is a 7 day journey if each day one drives 1000 kilometre! This road will cross several African countries – Togo, Cameroun, Nigeria, Congo Brazzaville, DRC, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya! Surely these countries alone have more resources needed for construction of such a road! We do not need a penny from anywhere!
These are a few examples of self imposed hurdles!
Will we really develop by 2030 or 2063?
Dr Yahya Msangi
