A Continent Blessed, Yet Its People Denied
By Her Excellency Dr. Fatima Maada Bio, First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone and President of the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD)
Today, our continent, Africa, stands as a testament to a painful and persistent paradox. We are cradles of civilization, endowed with unimaginable wealth beneath our soils and in the hearts of our people, yet so many of our children go to sleep hungry. We are generously blessed with vast reserves of diamonds, gold, iron ore, bauxite, and oil, alongside the renewable gifts of sun, water, and fertile land . Why, then, does this immense natural resource wealth far to translate into tangible prosperity for the vast majority of our people? This is not merely an economic question; it is a moral imperative that defines our time.
The challenges we face are deep-rooted and complex. We have, for too long, been trapped in a cycle where resources are extracted and exported as raw materials, only to be sold back to us as finished goods at multiplied costs. This model has left us with a “staple trap,” dependent on exports of a few mineral resources and vulnerable to the volatile winds of global commodity prices . As one of my esteemed colleagues at the Economic Commission for Africa aptly stated, “We cannot eat diamonds or bauxite” . Other regions with fewer resources have transformed their economies by adding value to what they produce. The question we must confront is, why not us?
The following table summarizes the core challenges at the heart of this paradox:
Challenge Manifestation Impact
The “Staple Trap” & Lack of Value Addition Exporting raw materials (iron ore, diamonds) instead of processed goods (steel, jewelry) . Loss of potential revenue and jobs; economy tied to volatile commodity prices .
Infrastructure Deficit A massive funding gap of $130-$170 billion annually for energy, transport, and digital infrastructure . Hinders trade, industrialisation, and competitiveness; costs Africa 2% in annual GDP growth .
Governance & Illicit Financial Flows An estimated $90 billion escapes Africa annually through illicit financial flows . Deprives national treasuries of funds needed for health, education, and public services .
Limited Domestic Resource Mobilization Low tax-to-GDP ratios and domestic savings; in Sierra Leone, only 3% of GDP is from domestic savings .
Limits investment from within; perpetuates dependence on foreign aid and borrowing .
Debt Distress More than half of African nations face debt distress, with external debt exceeding $1 trillion . Cripples fiscal space, as nations borrow just to repay previous loans .
A Blueprint for a Transformed Future: Our Path Forward
Acknowledging these challenges is only the beginning. The future we seek for our children will not be built on diagnosis alone, but on decisive action. We must move beyond rhetoric and embrace a bold, actionable blueprint for transformation.
1. From Raw Materials to Value Addition: We must industrialize and add value to our resources on African soil. The era of simply digging and shipping must end. This means building refineries for our oil, processing plants for our minerals, and cutting facilities for our diamonds. A continental steel strategy, for instance, can link our upstream iron ore resources with downstream manufacturing, allowing us to build our own infrastructure . The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is our crown jewel in this endeavor, creating the continental market needed to support these local industries and build resilient regional value chains .
2. Unlocking Our Own Wealth: Domestic Resource Mobilization: We must look inward to finance our future. Africa already holds over $1.1 trillion in domestic capital from pension funds, insurance funds, and sovereign wealth funds . We must create the credible, transparent frameworks to channel this capital into building our roads, power plants, and ports. Furthermore, by strengthening our tax systems and leveraging digital financial services, we can bring the vast informal economy into the fold. This will mobilize domestic savings and taxes, which are the most sustainable source of investment for our development .
3. Building the Backbone: Integrated Infrastructure: Our development is crippled by a lack of interconnected infrastructure. We need integrated energy systems that connect nations and power our industries, not just individual households . We need a third wave of port and railway development, like the Lobito Corridor, that prioritizes private capital and connects hinterlands to regional trade routes . Investment in digital public infrastructure—the technological backbone of digital ID and e-payments—is no longer a luxury but a necessity for transparency and accelerated regional integration .
4. Governance, Transparency, and Investing in Our People: Good governance is the non-negotiable foundation for all this progress. We must combat the illicit financial flows that drain $90 billion from our continent annually . This requires robust institutions, fiscal discipline, and unwavering accountability. Concurrently, we must invest in our greatest asset: our people. This means prioritizing education, as my government’s Free Education Project has done for 1.8 million students in Sierra Leone , and healthcare, to ensure a healthy, skilled, and dynamic workforce that can drive our transformation .
A Call to Conscience and Concerted Action
The paradox of plenty does not have to define Africa’s destiny. We have the tools, the resources, and the growing political will to rewrite our story. As the newly elected President of the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD), I am committed to ensuring that the voices of women and girls are at the very heart of this transformation. They are not just beneficiaries of development; they are its most powerful agents and architects.
Let us move forward with courage and unity. Let us ensure that the wealth beneath our soil translates into prosperity for every man, woman, and child on our continent. The time for action is now. Together, we can, and we will, turn our blessed plenty into shared prosperity for all.
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