Africa's independence is hollow without economic sovereignty and accountability

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and President William Ruto on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit in Moscow on October 29, 2026. [AFP]

Africa’s independence often mocks itself. If foreigners were to speak loudly about our farcical sovereignty, we would accuse them of racism. Africa has a peculiar talent for publicly performing its embarrassing contradictions.

We are the continent that celebrates its heroes of independence with the razzmatazz of magnificent speeches and national day spectacles. But the next day, we board flights to faraway places, clad in a beggar’s linen. We hold solemn ceremonies and lay wreaths at the feet of the men and women who dared to imagine a continent free from foreign domination. We invoke sovereignty, dignity, self-determination and the right of African peoples to define their own destiny.