Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, vice president of the Republic of Ghana, has lamented the inability of Africans to deal with everyday issues.
He claims that the continent’s incapacity to solve issues is largely a result of its mentality of impossible.
“In my view, the greatest bane to the development of Africa is our inability to solve the basic problems of the absence of unique identity for our population, functioning property address systems, financial inclusion, payment systems, efficient public service delivery, etc. that underpin our economic activities. For many years after independence, we have been trying to transform our economies without data and transparent systems. Without data and systems, African countries cannot participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
“The truth is that we have for long been shackled by an impossibility mindset that is probably the result of the experience of years of slavery and colonialism. We don’t believe in ourselves,” Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia shared over the weekend.
The Vice President expressed these ideas while serving as a guest speaker at Harvard University’s African Development Conference at the Harvard Law School.
Dr. Bawumia thinks that Africa has capacity and has to start tackling its problems.
“for us to realize our full potential and set ourselves apart we need to break the shackles of impossibility mindset and embrace the mindset of possibility. African countries can do what the advanced countries have done and more. It is possible,” Bawumia stressed.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia also discussed his thoughts on the subject of envisioning Africa’s development on our terms.
He also said that the transformative potential of technology lies at the core of this idea.