A University of Ibadan don, Prof. Olayinka Akanle, has decried African disunity, urging Africans to strengthen cross-border relationships and work together to give the continent greater influence in global affairs.
Akanle of the Department of Sociology made the call while delivering a birthday lecture organised in honour of the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Prof. Rasheed Olaniyi.
Speaking on Africa’s development, global power relations and Pan-Africanism, Akanle argued that Africa’s problems should not be attributed solely to the Global North, saying Africans must take greater responsibility for the continent’s future.
‘Africa itself needs strong leadership to punch above its weight for the world to take Africa seriously,’ Akanle said.
The Professor of Development Sociology cited China’s rise from a relatively poor, less powerful country to a major global power as an example of how countries can increase their influence through strategic leadership and collective strength.
According to him, African countries need to develop the capacity to exert greater influence rather than depend on the Global North for solutions to the continent’s challenges.
Akanle said Pan-Africanism should not be viewed only through the activities of governments and continental institutions, arguing that ordinary Africans also have a responsibility to strengthen relationships across the continent.
‘My Africanism today cannot be left to leaders at the macro level. You cannot look at the continental index; you are the African human of today,’ he said.
He urged Africans to examine how they treat fellow Africans, including their interactions across borders and online.
He said his experiences mentoring and maintaining relationships with people from different African countries demonstrated the importance of building stronger people-to-people connections.
‘The future of Africa lies with Africans treating themselves and with strength as people of one destiny rather than people of different destinies,’ Akanle said.
He added that while stronger national institutions remained important, Africans would have greater leverage when they acted collectively.
‘We hold more leverage when we come together,’ he said.
Akanle also argued that the challenges confronting Pan-Africanism had gone beyond the physical borders created during the colonial era.
He said Africans must pay attention to the social, political and psychological dimensions of borders, including xenophobia and discrimination among Africans.
According to him, the emergence of social media has created another dimension to the problem, with Africans sometimes directing hostility towards fellow Africans online.
‘The border today is beyond physical territory,’ he said, adding that the future of Afrophobia could increasingly involve ‘algorithms and the social media networks’.
The celebrant, Prof. Rasheed Olaniyi, also raised concerns about restrictions on movement within Africa, particularly the difficulties Nigerians face when travelling to other African countries.
Speaking on Africa’s long history of mobility, Olaniyi questioned the needless obstacles that hinder movement across the continent, noting that Africans have been mobile since ancient times.
‘Africans are highly mobile people, not just in contemporary times, but also since ancient times. So how far can we go with our international passport, and where can we go?’ he asked.
Olaniyi, recounting his experience travelling to Ethiopia for an international conference, said Nigerians faced difficulties obtaining visas to the country.
‘In fact, you cannot pay for an Ethiopian visa in Nigeria. You have to pay in dollars, and you have to pay twice. You pay one before you go in dollars, and then when you get there, you get another. That is for Nigerians,’ he said.
He further questioned the extent of visa-free movement available to Nigerians within Africa outside the ECOWAS framework.
‘How many countries can a Nigerian enter without a visa? Outside the framework of ECOWAS?’ Olaniyi asked.
He urged young Africans, particularly students, to pay greater attention to migration issues and to use social media to demand answers to challenges affecting mobility across the continent.
‘These are questions that we need to ask, especially our younger ones, our students. We need to raise questions on social media, especially about migration problems, because it has affected the lives of many Nigerians,’ he said.
Olaniyi said addressing such challenges was important to the broader pursuit of African unity and the ideals of Pan-Africanism.
In his closing remarks, Olaniyi expressed appreciation to those who attended the birthday lecture and supported his journey, including his family and members of the University of Ibadan community.