Former President John Dramani Mahama while celebrating the unity, strength, and diversity of the African continent on the occasion of AU Day on Thursday, 25 May 2023, has said “Africa is where hope resides”.  

“Ours is a resource-rich and dynamic continent with a growing and vibrant youth population; full of endless potential and promise — a place with great prospects on the horizon for building the Africa we all want,” Mr Mahama stated in an AU Day statement.

He noted that the day provides another opportunity to honour visionaries like Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Emperor Haile Sellasie and Gamal Abdul Nasser who laid the foundation for the continental unity and promoted the ideals of Pan-Africanism.

He encouraged Africans to commend the many others who, in succeeding years, have strived to promote continental peace, development and integration, like Ghana did when under his presidency, with the implementation of a Visa-on-Arrival policy for fellow Africans.

While applauding the collective efforts of African nations to promote peace, development and integration, he urged Africans to also strive for the efficient implementation of the AfCFTA; and hope for Africans to be able to travel visa-free within our own African borders and explore trading opportunities with ease and comfort.

He said the advent of the coronavirus pandemic has laid bare the need for greater continental unity and cooperation.

He further described as “unacceptable” that amidst endless opportunities, intra-African trade remains the lowest among all the continents.

“We must work towards improving healthcare delivery, promoting disease prevention mechanisms and ensuring access to quality healthcare for our people. This will enable us to be better prepared to face health related challenges as we head into the future,” he noted.

In the spirit of cooperation, Mr Mahama said Africans must work together against political instability and dissident activities that may threaten our continent by strengthening security cooperation among member states. This includes addressing issues of corruption, human rights violation, unemployment, inequalities and general absence of rule of law that often serve as impetus for the enablers of instability.

He finally called for the empowerment of mothers, youth and women, eradicate poverty, promote sustainable development and create opportunities for all Africans and generations to come.