President John Dramani Mahama has urged African countries to break away from long-standing dependence on foreign aid, insisting that the continent must take responsibility for its own development and future.
Reflecting on his address to the Zambian Parliament on Thursday, February 6, President Mahama said Africa can no longer depend on declining humanitarian assistance and must urgently adopt a self-sustaining development path.
“Humanitarian assistance has gone down. Africa cannot continue going cup in hand begging for that kind of support. We need to pull ourselves together,” he said in an interview with Joy News .
The President explained that his address was intentionally designed to provoke a shift in thinking among African leaders and to promote the ideals of the Accra Reset, which emphasises unity, regional cooperation and collective action.
“I chose to give a speech that rallies Africa together based on the objectives of the Accra Reset so that we can come together and make collective decisions,” he stated.
He noted that Africa’s long-term prosperity depends on stronger collaboration, particularly in trade, natural resource management and coordinated economic planning. According to him, working together will help African nations stabilise their economies, enhance their global bargaining power and reduce reliance on external support.
President Mahama stressed that only through unity and self-reliance can Africa free itself from aid dependency and fully take control of its place in the global system.
