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ON May 25 Africa celebrated Africa Day. Looking back into the annals of history， the celebration serves to commemorate the founding of the Organization of African Unity （OAU） in 1963. The OAU has since morphed into the African Union （AU）. Africa Day marks the time that all members of the organization come together to forge a common bond and collective approach to the raft of challenges facing the continent.
The call for unity in Africa is a perennial one and the core values of Pan-Africanism encouraging the solidarity of Africans worldwide have not changed. Africa Day is a celebration not only for people on the continent， but also to unify and uplift all people of African descent worldwide. Yet today we see Africans who move about the continent， or flee to Europe and other destinations， seeking refuge from their countries where economies have all but collapsed， conflicts rage， and persecution is the order of the day. They live between a rock and a hard place.
More than five decades after the ideology of African unity drew breath， xenophobia is more prevalent today than at any time in the continent’s past. Recent events in the whirlpool of intolerance in South Africa have shown that， not to mention the scores of refugees perishing on a regular basis while fleeing to European shores in substandard boats from a collapsing Libya.
When the musical performances， speeches and cultural events have long faded into the ether， what does Africa Day really mean to Africans？ Do Africans in Nigeria， the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Burundi feel the need to celebrate continental unity when they live in fear？ Do the millions who scramble for survival on less than$1 a day， most of those youths， rejoice in Africa Day while they watch corrupt leaders continuing to enrich themselves year after year？
Economists say several countries in Africa are among the fastest growing economies in the world. Yet how does that translate down to the oppressed women， struggling small business owners and seedless farmers？ As long as the levels of governance in Africa are as impoverished as the voiceless millions and governance does not match people’s aspirations， Africa Day will ring hollow. Africa’s finest collective moment was gaining independence from the yoke of colonialism. Where has that collective spirit gone？ It surely still lives in each African heart， as the tourism posters often tell us - “I don’t only live in Africa， Africa also lives in me.”
It is time for strategic dialogue and meaningful action on a continent where taking responsibility and being accountable have become as rare as its rhino horns. The phrase “African solutions for African problems” is bandied about whenever a crisis occurs - but in the same breath， there is the call for intervention from the West. Africa is capable， has the resources and the talent. But until there is commitment from the continent’s leaders to genuinely make meaningful improvements in the lives of their people， putting this objective before their own welfare， the glory， pride and dignity of Africa will continue to remain available only to a privileged few and Africa Day will remain significant only as a date on a calendar.
The call for unity in Africa is a perennial one and the core values of Pan-Africanism encouraging the solidarity of Africans worldwide have not changed. Africa Day is a celebration not only for people on the continent， but also to unify and uplift all people of African descent worldwide. Yet today we see Africans who move about the continent， or flee to Europe and other destinations， seeking refuge from their countries where economies have all but collapsed， conflicts rage， and persecution is the order of the day. They live between a rock and a hard place.
More than five decades after the ideology of African unity drew breath， xenophobia is more prevalent today than at any time in the continent’s past. Recent events in the whirlpool of intolerance in South Africa have shown that， not to mention the scores of refugees perishing on a regular basis while fleeing to European shores in substandard boats from a collapsing Libya.
When the musical performances， speeches and cultural events have long faded into the ether， what does Africa Day really mean to Africans？ Do Africans in Nigeria， the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Burundi feel the need to celebrate continental unity when they live in fear？ Do the millions who scramble for survival on less than$1 a day， most of those youths， rejoice in Africa Day while they watch corrupt leaders continuing to enrich themselves year after year？
Economists say several countries in Africa are among the fastest growing economies in the world. Yet how does that translate down to the oppressed women， struggling small business owners and seedless farmers？ As long as the levels of governance in Africa are as impoverished as the voiceless millions and governance does not match people’s aspirations， Africa Day will ring hollow. Africa’s finest collective moment was gaining independence from the yoke of colonialism. Where has that collective spirit gone？ It surely still lives in each African heart， as the tourism posters often tell us - “I don’t only live in Africa， Africa also lives in me.”
It is time for strategic dialogue and meaningful action on a continent where taking responsibility and being accountable have become as rare as its rhino horns. The phrase “African solutions for African problems” is bandied about whenever a crisis occurs - but in the same breath， there is the call for intervention from the West. Africa is capable， has the resources and the talent. But until there is commitment from the continent’s leaders to genuinely make meaningful improvements in the lives of their people， putting this objective before their own welfare， the glory， pride and dignity of Africa will continue to remain available only to a privileged few and Africa Day will remain significant only as a date on a calendar.