Forging Arab-Africa Partnership for Recovery, Resilience and Sustainable Development - BADEA

25 January 2023

Former President of the Republic of South Africa Mr. Kgalema Motlanthe and Former First Lady Madame Gugu Motlanthe, shared the stage with African and Arab leaders from the public and private sectors; members of the United Nations (UN); NGO’s; and civil society, at the 2023 Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) High-Level Summit in Dubai, UAE, on 12 January 2023.

The theme for the 2023 BADEA summit was FORGING ARAB-AFRICA PARTNERSHIP FOR RECOVERY, RESILIENCE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

BADEA was established in 1974 by the Arab countries as a multilateral development bank with the purpose of strengthening economic, financial and technical cooperation between the Arab and African regions for shared prosperity. To achieve this, over the past years BADEA have contributed to financing economic development in African countries, stimulating the contribution of Arab capital,investment and technical assistance to support development across the continent.

Former President Kgalema Motlanthe delivered the keynote address on the topic: “The challenge of transformation in Africa. Lessons from the last decades".

Executive Trustee of the Kgalema Motlanthe Foundation (KMF) Mrs Gugu Motlanthe, shared the roundtable Panel Discussion with Former President of Mauritius Dr. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, and Chief Scientist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Dr. Ismahane Elouafi. Their respective presentations were on the topic: "Social pressures resulting from the various crises: inflation; food security; and healthcare".

Gugu Motlanthe told the panel that the Kgalema Motlanthe Foundation has as one of its focuses, the training and development of youth and a bias towards women in Africa.

“In our work, we push for public education to be treated as the greatest asset in the country which has to be strengthened and viewed as a pathway to opportunity. There is so much talent in the youth of Africa, so often unexplored and not invested in.

“As I listen to youngsters, I get the sense that they think we, adults, think leadership is about commanding and controlling masses. It is not so, for the 4IR generation, who occupy their time on intelligent machines, the central ingredients that go hand in hand are: innovation; learning; analytics; agility; a global mind-set; cultural tolerance; diversity; and the ability to manage conflict.

She said that the Foundation believes in the universal promise that, even if you do not start out with much, if you work hard, educate yourself and your children and do what you are supposed to do, you will be able to build a life of dignity for yourself. “ And also, believing in a trust compact with the state, that if we contribute to society in our working years, we are ensuring that the next generation is able to benefit and we also benefit again, when we are old.”

She also spoke about wellbeing and the need for increasing spend on healthcare in Africa. Affordability is also an issue and to this end she said that the Foundation has started advocating for agriculture to be one of the subjects at school and they now train learners on how to look after the soil practically.

Speaking about unemployment and the role of banks in keeping people out of the economy she said, “A lack of access to social services and poverty has to be, one of the worst social miseries that can be inflicted on any human being. Unemployment is a scourge in Africa. Data from the African Development Bank tells us that while Africa has the youngest population, with 200 million people aged between 15 and 24, it has a disheartening unemployment rate. We need to begin to interrogate the type of work available to those looking for work. There are numerous studies that refer to the ‘working poor’ – working class people and living below the bread line.

“Banks just don’t fund our African innovations. Everything in the system is done to keep ordinary people out of the mainstream economy. The requirements are stringent and not meant to accommodate new entrants.

“The youth, who have all the ideas and innovations, are forced to turn to venture capitalists who capture the bulk of the venture for seed capital and in the end become, the real owner of the venture. If you are lucky, as youth, you can end up with 30% in your own venture. The risk is also great to eventually being diluted completely. It is really tough out there. The empowered continue to capture the economy. Banks need to do better – there are returns – we are not asking for charity.”

Motlanthe also raised the issues around women and the need for empowerment and self- determination.

TDS