President John Dramani Mahama has cautioned that Africa’s pursuit of true sovereignty is increasingly compromised by what he refers to as a “triple dependency” on external entities for security, social services, and the extraction of essential minerals.
In his address to the Zambian Parliament on Thursday, February 5, President Mahama noted that numerous African nations remain entangled in structural dependencies that hinder their ability to forge independent and sustainable development pathways.
“A significant number of African nations are ensnared in what I term a triple dependency — reliance on external entities for security decisions, reliance on donors for health and education frameworks, and reliance on suppliers of essential minerals while deriving minimal or no value,” he articulated.
He indicated that this trend has considerably weakened Africa’s sovereignty and obstructed the continent from fully leveraging its abundant human and natural resources.
The President characterized the scenario as a “pandemic of unfulfilled potential,” highlighting escalating youth unemployment, fragile health infrastructures, and extractive economic models that yield wealth without fostering domestic capacity.
“Consequently, Africa is confronted with a distinct pandemic — the pandemic of unfulfilled potential. Millions of our youth remain jobless, health systems are precarious, and economies extract wealth without enhancing capacity,” he remarked.
President Mahama called upon African leaders to address these truths with transparency and to implement policies centered on self-sufficiency, value addition, and inclusive growth.
He stressed the necessity for the continent to move away from dependence on raw material exports and to instead focus on industrialization and strategic partnerships that are advantageous to African economies.
He also referred to his recent speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he discussed the Accra Reset Initiative as part of efforts to realign Africa’s development agenda and redefine its growth trajectory.
In spite of the difficulties, President Mahama conveyed a sense of hope regarding the future of the continent.
“History demonstrates that a crisis can enhance determination, and therefore Africa must seize control of its own fate,” he stated.
President Mahama is currently in Zambia for a three-day official visit intended to bolster bilateral relations and enhance collaboration between Ghana and Zambia in essential sectors.
