Making multilateralism work for young Africans: A pan-African vision

On 25 May this year, Africa marked the 60th Africa Day commemoration, which found me in Addis Ababa, attending youth ministers meetings at the African Union Commission. Deliberations centred on how to strengthen African governments to better serve the interests of young Africans in an increasingly polarised, constrained and integrated world, one in which the forces of climate change, migration, gender-based economic inequities, racism and human rights violations persist in varying degrees and at the expense of collective progress.

At the just-ended 2023 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) High-Level Political Forum and 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, world leaders deliberated on the legitimacy and efficacy of the global governance architecture and issued a call to action to 'rebuild trust, reignite global solidarity, and accelerate action towards peace, progress and sustainability for all'.

In the past decade, we have witnessed increasing polarisation in the global order along political, ideological, racial and religious lines and a retreat from multilateralism, resulting in the rise of populism, isolationism, protectionism and unilateralism. We have also observed notable disparities in the attainment of the SDGs in the Global South, which threaten to undermine especially the aspirations of a bulging youth population.

The current generation of young Africans and their peers across the world are more integrated than ever before, thanks to improved access to the internet and mobile telephony.

Consequently, they have become a mouthpiece and extension of their domestic, trade and foreign policies. The Information Age has brought existing inequities in our societies to the fore, enabling the creation of hope, to the same extent that it can create a heightened sense of injustice and impatience for governments to deliver development.

Ahead of the 2024 Summit of the Future, to be co-chaired by Namibia and Germany, members of the United Nations have an opportunity to reflect on the post-SDG agenda and how to make the multilateral framework more effective and inclusive.

Rebuilding trust

There is a strong feeling among young Africans of delay tactics, inertia and unwillingness by powerful countries to enforce decisions taken by multilateral institutions that seek to protect, defend or intervene in ongoing humanitarian crises, such as in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan, where those most disproportionately displaced have been women and children.

This contradiction becomes more pronounced in the double standards exhibited in regards to the ongoing war in Ukraine, where those who call for the protection of a rules-based order are the perpetrators of unsanctioned military actions against other nations, as observed in the selective intervention of NATO in Libya. Multilateral institutions can only regain the confidence of young Africans by demonstrating their commitment to the principles of inclusivity, justice, fairness, mutuality and accountability.

Equitable representation

Africa is sovereign and thus must be treated as an equal. African countries have called for the UN Security Council to be reformed on more equitable terms. In March 2005, the African Union issued a proposal for reforming the UN, but for nearly 20 years, this request has been ignored by permanent members of the Security Council. The UN Security Council, where there are no African countries among the five permanent members each empowered to veto resolutions, epitomises this exclusion. Instead, a continent of 1.5 billion people, of whom approximately 60 percent are under the age of 35, must settle for rotating member seats. It is an injustice for African countries to only participate in negotiations about their own futures and on such unequal terms. A pan-African vision is based on the principle of equality of sovereigns.

Equitable flows of global trade and capital

As stated by His Excellency President Dr. Hage G. Geingob of Namibia in his address to the UNGA78, “with the onset of Covid-19, the number of people living in extreme poverty rose for the first time in a generation, demonstrating that at midpoint to the Global Goals, we face the stark reality that we will miss our goals and targets”.

The legacies of the slave trade, colonialism and apartheid are still felt psychosocially and socio-economically across Africa. Moreover, the terrifying gaps in income and wealth, a result of historic systemic exclusion and marginalisation of indigenous majorities, are a threat to global stability and harmony. The structurally skewed and inequitable flow of global trade and capital undermines accelerated development in the Global South, thereby sustaining and exacerbating inequalities.

The status quo begs the question: have colonial mindsets really changed altogether, or is it only the rhetoric and methods that have changed? Instead of brute force, powerful countries now use preferential trade and biased financing instruments to continue the repression of Africa. Global vaccine inequities during the Covid pandemic, referred to by President Geingob as 'vaccine apartheid', revealed at times, the selfish and interest-driven international system. A pan-African vision is based on the principles of solidarity and redress for historical wrongs.

Leading voices

There are rich experiences that Africa can and does share with the world. Drawing from our experience as a continent that struggled and triumphed over the evils of colonialism and oppression, Africa has proven her ability to self-determine and to lead, even as many African governments continue to consolidate democratic governance and advance socio-economic transformation for their citizens under the overarching Agenda 2063.

The fight against political and economic dominance and the pursuit of peace have rendered Africa a moral authority and leading voice for justice. Africans are reconciliators. Nations like Namibia and South Africa, among others, have, since their independence, shown the world how to promote unity in diversity, peace and reconciliation.

It is time to reimagine multilateralism and redesign international institutions to create a more effective global system that translates into collective security, global solidarity, shared progress, prosperity and peace for all.

The call to leave no one behind requires every individual to gauge and identify those most at risk of being left behind. The youth of Africa will inherit the social, economic, political and governance infrastructure of our continent. As we review the efficacy and legitimacy of multilateralism to deliver a more just and equitable world, we cannot do so at the exclusion and expense of Africa and the Global South. In the words of President Geingob: “By holding hands, we have it within us to build the world we want. A world where no one should feel left out”.

Daisry Obal is advisor to President Geingob on youth matters and enterprise development in the Office of the President, Namibia.