Accra: President John Dramani Mahama has renewed calls for Africa to pursue economic independence through industrialisation and value addition, warning that political freedom without economic transformation remains incomplete. Speaking at the opening of the Africa Trade Summit at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra on Wednesday, President Mahama criticised Africa's long-standing dependence on exporting raw materials while importing finished goods, describing the model as exploitative and outdated.
According to Ghana Web, President Mahama argued that the continued export of unprocessed commodities such as cocoa, timber, and minerals represents a modern form of colonialism that denies African economies jobs, technology, and revenue. He emphasized that Africa must reject an economic model that consigns the continent to exporting raw materials and importing finished goods, labeling it as a new colonial arrangement designed to keep Africa in poverty.
President Mahama stressed that Africa's industrialisation must be anchored in value addition and beneficiation, with a focus on manufacturing and agro-processing as critical components for inclusive growth. He highlighted that manufacturing and agro-processing have the potential to create jobs, raise incomes, deepen skills, and anchor inclusive growth, while noting that Africa currently accounts for less than two percent of global manufacturing.
Using cocoa as an example, he pointed out that although Africa produces the bulk of the world's cocoa, it captures only a small fraction of the value generated from the global chocolate industry. This model, he stated, has deprived African economies of jobs, technology, and revenue for decades.
President Mahama also noted that Ghana is taking deliberate steps to shift away from a commodity export-dependent economy by promoting domestic processing, reducing imports, and increasing export earnings. He added that similar efforts across the continent offer hope for economic transformation.