TIME100 Africa Impact Awards 2023 Red Carpet: What Is The biggest Issue Facing Africa Today?

TIME

Transcript

00:00 What's the most pressing issue facing Africa today?

00:02 Well, I work in tech, so of course I would say internet,

00:05 because without internet you can't necessarily innovate, right?

00:07 And I think internet is definitely coming,

00:09 but in terms of like broadband and speed, it's still lagging behind.

00:13 The most pressing issue facing Africa today is leadership.

00:16 Most of our leaders are average age of 64,

00:20 compared to an age of 19 on the continent.

00:22 So we need to get more young people into leadership.

00:25 We need to think unconventionally, apply radical thinking,

00:30 reimagine everything, and use technology to transform the continent of Africa.

00:34 We need to ensure that we have leaders that are invested in the people of the African continent,

00:38 leaders that talk about impact, but also not just the talk,

00:42 but actually the implementation of it.

00:43 I think, you know, governance, our leadership,

00:47 people who are put in places and seats in order to change our future.

00:52 We need leaders who really care about their country,

00:55 who are selfless, leaders like Mandela.

00:57 So I hope that's the only thing we need in Africa,

01:00 because we have everything, resources, talents, it's about leadership.

01:04 But it's all about the youth, it's the future.

01:07 My country, Somaliland, is one of the few countries in the world

01:11 that is not politically recognized, maybe because of that, doing so well.

01:17 But right now, at this very moment, because we are on the Red Sea,

01:22 because we have a long coastline, we are being targeted by those

01:27 who were at first dealing with piracy, and that has been stamped out.

01:33 So now it's human trafficking, smuggling,

01:37 and they're encroaching on Somaliland's coastlines.

01:41 There's still a lot of poverty, and I think we do need to do a lot of work in that area,

01:47 but it's definitely a group work, and we all need to come together

01:51 to find more solutions against hunger, poverty, and malaria.

01:56 The main challenge is resiliency.

01:59 How do we adapt? How do we prepare ourselves for future shocks?

02:04 And ensure that domestically and intrinsically,

02:07 we are strong enough to keep building.

02:10 We really need to make sure that the areas that are being destabilized

02:15 are actually restabilized, because whatever an issue happens,

02:19 especially like Sudan, Niger, Congo, wherever it is,

02:21 we see that there's regional instability.

02:23 And so I think we need to focus on regional solutions,

02:26 we need to focus on pan-African solutions.

02:28 The most pressing issue that Africa is facing right now is probably climate change.

02:32 I mean, 60% of our population are smallholder farmers,

02:36 and today they're still the most vulnerable to the effect of climate change.

02:40 They're still at the front lines, right?

02:41 So it is important that we step up and make sure that we support Africa

02:46 to continue being the global solution provider to environmental challenges,

02:50 and to also make sure that we position Africa as that solution provider

02:54 and the continent that is changing and shaping that narrative

02:58 of building resilience to the climate crisis.

03:01 If we do not break down gender norms and allow women to fly,

03:05 we're holding back our most powerful resource,

03:08 and that will be the most tragic thing of all.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended