{"id":114485,"date":"2026-02-07T16:00:46","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T16:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=114485"},"modified":"2026-02-07T16:00:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T16:00:46","slug":"africa-must-build-its-own-table-not-remain-on-the-menu-ace-anan-ankomah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=114485","title":{"rendered":"Africa must build its own table, not remain on the menu \u2014 Ace Anan Ankomah"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>3 Minute, 17 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
\n

Renowned lawyer and thought leader Ace Anan Ankomah, has issued a powerful call for Africa to dismantle internal borders, reclaim its agency in global affairs and urgently reposition itself in a rapidly changing world order, warning that continued fragmentation will consign the continent to perpetual vulnerability.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the Africa Prosperity Dialogues on Friday under the theme \u201cMake Africa Borderless Now\u201d<\/em>, Mr Ankomah argued that Africa\u2019s historical exclusion from global decision-making continues to shape its economic weakness, political insecurity and developmental challenges.<\/p>\n

Drawing parallels with the 1884\u20131885 Berlin Conference, where Africa was partitioned without representation, Mr Ankomah said the continent has long been treated as a \u201cmenu item\u201d rather than a participant at the global table.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor 104 days, the world\u2019s most powerful nations met in Berlin. Africa was not invited. Africa was not consulted. Africa was not represented,\u201d he said. \u201cAfrica was on the menu.\u201d<\/p>\n

He described the colonial-era borders imposed on Africa as a form of \u201ccontinental balkanisation\u201d that split communities, undermined economic viability and entrenched conflict \u2014 consequences that remain evident in weak markets, chronic insecurity and underdevelopment despite vast natural wealth.<\/p>\n

Mr Ankomah noted that even middle powers that once benefited from Africa\u2019s fragmentation are now grappling with the breakdown of the so-called rules-based international order, as global politics increasingly shifts towards self-interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is our lived reality,\u201d he said, adding that neutrality and passivity no longer offer protection in a world dominated by strategic competition.<\/p>\n

Borderless Africa, not fragmented sovereignty<\/p>\n

Turning to present-day Africa, Mr Ankomah criticised the contradiction of rigidly policing African borders while allowing external actors easy access to the continent\u2019s resources.<\/p>\n

Using the example of a short journey from Accra to Lom\u00e9, he highlighted the bureaucratic and logistical hurdles facing Africans under existing free-movement frameworks, despite decades-old regional protocols.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe police one another fiercely, yet open our doors wide to outsiders who extract our wealth with ease,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is not sovereignty. It is fragmentation masquerading as independence.\u201d<\/p>\n

He argued that the most damaging borders are not geographical but psychological \u2014 rooted in artificial national divisions inherited from colonial rule.<\/p>\n

Urgency of industrial transformation<\/p>\n

Warning that Africa risks missing both the Fourth and Fifth Industrial Revolutions, Mr Ankomah stressed that science, technology, digitisation and artificial intelligence are no longer optional but essential for survival.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfrica might have missed the first three industrial revolutions, but we cannot afford to miss this one,\u201d he said, describing technology as a \u201clifeline\u201d capable of helping the continent leapfrog historical delays.<\/p>\n

However, he cautioned against importing solutions designed for other societies, insisting that Africa must generate its own answers.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrains develop a nation, not natural resources,\u201d he said, lamenting the loss of innovation as research and student ideas are routinely shelved instead of commercialised.<\/p>\n

He called on African governments to actively support innovation by creating campus-based incubators, linking research to industry, protecting intellectual property and making science and engineering viable career paths.<\/p>\n

A call to action<\/p>\n

Mr Ankomah urged Africans to transform poverty and inefficiency into catalysts for decisive action, stressing that ideas alone are no longer enough.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfrica\u2019s ideas have always been here. What is missing is action,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He outlined a framework for sustainable prosperity rooted in self-reliance, scientific thinking and the development of industries that add value to everyday life.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do not need to be at someone else\u2019s table. We do not need to be on someone else\u2019s menu,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can and must build our own table. We can and must write our own menu.\u201d<\/p>\n

Concluding his address, Mr Ankomah challenged Africans to reject narratives of impossibility and assert confidence in their collective potential.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt must never be said that every major civilisation conquered poverty, except Africa,\u201d he said, urging the continent to answer lingering doubts not with promises, but with results.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfrica must not just rise. Africa must shine.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n \n
\n \n \"Happy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Happy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sad\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sad <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Excited\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Excited <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Sleepy\"\n <\/a>\n
\n Sleepy <\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n \n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Angry\"\n <\/a>\n
Angry<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n
\n \n \"Surprise\"\n <\/a>\n
Surprise<\/div>\n
\n 0<\/span>\n 0<\/span> %<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Renowned lawyer and thought leader Ace Anan Ankomah, has issued a powerful call for Africa to dismantle internal borders, reclaim its agency in global affairs and urgently reposition itself in a rapidly changing world order, warning that continued fragmentation will consign the continent to perpetual vulnerability.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16545,1972,16513,16557,1969,1910,16558,1883,117,16559,10,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-114485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ace-ankomah","category-africa","category-borderless","category-fragmentation","category-hp-news-3","category-international","category-menu","category-national","category-news","category-partitioning","category-politics","category-popular"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=114485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114485\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=114485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=114485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=114485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}