SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa has told Western leaders that Africans
are not beggars and should be treated as equals.
In a powerful address at the New Global Financial Summit in France on Friday, Ramaphosa voiced lingering resentment towards Western nations over their handling of African countries during the Covid-19 pandemic. ‘There have been times when we felt like we were beggars,’ President Ramaphosa began, his voice filled with both frustration and determi
nation. ‘I played a key role as chair of the African Union d
uring the Covid-19 period when we felt like we were beggars when it came to vaccine availability.’
He continued, painting a vivid picture of the unequal distribution of vaccines. ‘We felt that we needed access to vaccines, but the northern hemisphere countries
had bought all the vaccines in the world and they were hogging them. They didn’t want to release them at the time when we needed them the most. It felt like we were begging, waiting for scraps from their table.’
His speech touched upon several key points, highlighting the interconnectedness of climate change and poverty, the need for mobilising significant capital in developing economies, and the importance of cooperation between development banks and the private sector.
Ramaphosa advocated for independent directors on the boards of multilateral institutions like the IMF, promoting transparency and fair representation. He also called for a more equitable approach to the distribution of special drawing rights, emphasising Africa’s participation as equals in these institutions to avoid any perception of dependence or begging.
President Ramaphosa drew attention to unfulfilled promises made at previous conferences, highlighting the gap between commitments and actual implementation, and urged world leaders to honour their commitments with sincerity, stressing the need for action and tangible outcomes.
Practical infrastructure development, particularly the provision of electricity to the 600 million Africans currently without access, was another crucial aspect of President Ramaphosa’s speech. He proposed utilising the resources available, such as the Congo River, to generate substantial electricity through projects like the Inga Dam. He called for collective efforts involving multilateral development banks to fund the project, which could bring electricity to 12-15 African countries simultaneously. He believed that achieving such a tangible outcome would not only demonstrate the effectiveness of global summits but also encourage continued engagement.
Ramaphosa concluded his address with a hopeful outlook, expressing his desire for substantial progress in financial reform and the initiation of the Inga Dam project as a result of the New Global Financial Summit. He emphasised the importance of taking action and producing tangible outcomes to build trust and ensure the success of future summits.
