Vice President Prof Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has called on Africans to abandon dependency and take greater ownership of the continent’s development, saying Africa must move beyond having an “Africa we want” to building “an Africa we work for.”

She made the call in Kigali, Rwanda, during the African Mindset Reset Forum, where she joined a deep-dive conversation with Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, former Ethiopian Prime Minister and former South African President Thabo Mbeki.

Prof. Opoku-Agyemang said Africa’s development challenges required a different approach, particularly in how decisions are made and how future generations are prepared to address the continent’s problems.

“If we are trapped in a place where decisions are made for us, where you are only carrying out decisions others have made, then definitely there's only so far you can go.”

She said greater ownership of decisions would allow those responsible for implementing them to better understand their purpose and question whether they were producing the desired results.

“If you've been part of that formulation of that decision, you'll see where it should end. And then you will ask questions. Why are we here?”

The vice president said building capacity was, therefore, critical to changing the pattern.

“So I think that capacity building is going to be very, very important. And building the capacity differently from how we have inherited it.”

She also called for a different approach to educating young people, questioning whether Africa should continue raising its youth in the same way that produced the continent’s current challenges.

“So we are not raising our youth the same way that has brought us here. So how are we raising them differently?”

Prof Opoku-Agyemang said education should help young people move beyond simply responding to circumstances and become active participants in shaping change.

“How do we move from becoming a victim of this circumstance to an active, an agent of change?”

She acknowledged that pursuing such a shift would require courage and sacrifice, but stressed that decisions should be taken collectively rather than by individuals who believe they alone have the answers.

“Yes, it will take some courage, it will take some sacrifice, whatever. But you need to ensure that you are taking that decision, and you are not taking it because you alone think you, you are the only smart person to do it. No, you are taking it along with people who are going to work with you to realize that particular conclusion.”

She returned to the need to build capacity differently, saying otherwise Africa would continue to question its position and direction.

“Otherwise, we'll keep asking the question, why are we here? Why are we? Why are we here? Good question. Where should we be and what will it take?”