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Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has underscored the need for Africa to take urgent action to transform itself economically to sustain its people.
With a continent of approximately 1.2 billion people and approximately 60% young, Dr. Bawumia believes that Africa is at a crossroads, so it is necessary to work as a team to achieve an economic transformation for the betterment of people .
Speaking at this year’s virtual Ghana International Petroleum Conference (GhipCon 2021), with the theme “Positioning Oil in Africa for the AfCFTA”, which was held on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, Dr. Bawumia argues that if young people are unemployed and hungry, the continent is at risk of becoming an economic catastrophe.
As part of the steps to accelerate development and empower Africa’s youth, the vice president says Africa needs to boost and expand its internal trade and reduce how much it trades with Europe, the West and Asia.
Dr. Bawumia revealed that Africa trades about 85% with the world and only 15% internally. “This contrasts sharply with trade between the EU with 67%, Asia with 61% and 47% in the Americas. This situation must change if we are truly committed to the economic transformation of Africa ”.
He urges all African leaders to let the COVID-19 pandemic be a wake-up call, as Africa had to rely on the West for everything, including vaccines.
“The COVID-19 pandemic and the interventions of Africa’s leading suppliers is a wake-up call to African nations to cooperate more in building a self-sufficient continent.
“We should cooperate in the development of regional assets, including refineries and logistics assets, to achieve the economies of scale necessary for commercial viability. This boosts productivity and puts our capable young people to work, which in turn preserves and enhances their dignity, ”he adds.
According to him, the AfCFTA is said to be the world’s largest free trade zone with a market of around 1.2 billion Africans and this will give Africa a GDP of 2.5 trillion dollars and is expected to reach 29 trillion dollars by 2050 if intra-African trade expands.
