Sanibonani! Dumelang! Good Afternoon! Habari! Jambo Africa!
The future of KwaZulu-Natal and the future of our country is intimately tied to the future and wellbeing of our beloved continent and people of Africa.
The vision of African unity that was espoused by our founding fathers and founding mothers today finds expression in the Vision Statement of the National Development Plan (NDP), which says:
Who are we?
We are Africans.
We are an African country.
We are part of our multi-national region.
We are an essential part of our continent…
We have learned a great deal from our
complex past; adding continuously to our
experience of being African.
It was on this day, 58 years ago, that African leaders met in Ethiopia to establish the Organisation for African Unity which is now called the African Union.
The founding of the OAU was motivated by the deep desire for unity in Africa and to inspire and help other African countries in their fight to attain independence from the yoke and bondage of colonialism.
In his inaugural speech delivered at the opening of the OAU in Ethiopia, Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah boldly stated: “So many blessings must flow from our unity [and] so many disasters must follow on our continued disunity.” It was also President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanzania who emphasised that, “Unity will not make us rich, but it can make it difficult for Africa and African people to be disregarded and humiliated.”
Unity of the African continent remains a crucial weapon in the fight against poverty, underdevelopment, and neo-colonialism.
African unity is our only pathway to triumph over diseases, pandemics, natural disasters, and wars.
The establishment of the OAU was inspired by African leaders’ irresistible and indomitable quest for the continent’s liberation from the grip of the colonial masters who treated Africans as subhuman and sojourners in the land of their birth.
In his historic 1963 Speech at the founding of the OAU, Dr Kwame Nkrumah issued a stern warning to African leaders and African people. His caution almost six decades ago, is still important today as it was then. He quipped that: “Our people supported us in our fight for independence because they believed that African Governments could cure the ills of the past in a way which could never be accomplished under colonial rule. If therefore, now that we are independent, we allow the same conditions to exist that existed in colonial days, all the resentment which overthrew colonialism will be mobilised against us.”
On Africa Day, we call on all leaders of the African continent to restore the promise of African independence by putting the interests of African people, especially the poor and the vulnerable, above everything else.
We call on the youth of the continent to unite and add their voices against the plunder of African resources by imperialists who work with selfish elites without any regard to those who are wallowing in poverty and want.
As we sing the African Union Anthem, let us again rededicate ourselves to making Africa the Tree of Life.
Indeed, let us give Africa the best we have. It is in the hands of this generation to give meaning to the dream of the 21st century to be truly African century which honours human dignity and advances justice, peace, and development.
Brothers and Sisters, the African Union theme for 2021 is “Arts, Culture and Heritage: Levers for building the Africa we want.” This is also the theme for Africa Day.
There can be no doubt or debate about the role of arts, culture, and heritage in development. Development does not occur in a vacuum. It is people who drive development. The colonialists were very much aware of the power of the arts and culture in their project of subjugation. They understood that in order to defeat us, physical conquest had to be accompanied with psychological conquest. They had to make us hate ourselves and make us feel inferior by undermining our culture and heritage to justify the evil colonial project.
To make us perpetual slaves, they undermined traditional authority and in our case, even ubukhosi. Our history was presented as a history that only began with the arrival of Europeans on the African continent. They saw themselves to be on a mission to civilise “backward” and “uncultured” Africans. It was important for them to make the conquered populations hate their skin colour, customs, and African spirituality.
As the Black Consciousness leader, Bantu Biko would later eloquently put it: “The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed'.
The revolutionary Frantz Fanon also observes in his book, The Wretched of the Earth, that “Colonialism is not satisfied merely with holding a people in its grip and emptying the native’s brain of all form and content. By a kind of a perverted logic, it turns to the past of the people, and distorts, disfigures and destroys it”.
We cannot attain the dream of the African Renaissance and the dream of the African Century if we do not place the arts, culture, and heritage at the heart of identity formation and development. It was Amilcar Cabral who argued that there can be no economic renaissance without a cultural revolution. Our generation still has the task to write an Afrocentric history which does not begin with slavery or colonialism. We must continue to support the calls of the youth for a decolonised education. And we must invest in the arts and our artists.
In the dark days of the struggle, the arts were an important weapon in fighting colonialism and apartheid. In this regard, I am reminded of the late President of Guinea, Ahmed Sekou Toure who said
“To take part in the African revolution it is not enough to write a revolutionary song: you must fashion the revolution with the people. And if you fashion it with the people, the songs will come by themselves.”
We are eternally grateful to him for having hosted many Pan Africanists in his country, including our beloved Miriam Makeba and the Black Panther leader, Kwame Toure, formely known as Stokely Carmichael.
Today, Africa continues to be known and respected globally for its arts, culture and heritage. We have artists, writers, painters and musicians who have put the continent on the global stage for their distinguished works.
In this regard, please allow me to congratulate South African sculptor and poet, Professor Pitika Ntuli, for recently winning the Global Fine Art People’s Choice Award in Paris. We are proud of this son of the soil and we fully support his Exhibition called, “Azibuye Emasisweni”.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, which is negatively affecting the economies of the globe; arts and culture can be harnessed as a vehicle to drive Africa’s economic recovery and growth post Covid-19 pandemic, especially in tourism.
Africa’s conducive weather conditions attract tourists and visitors across the world who enjoy spending leisure time with friends and families in our continent.
If used constructively, our pride in African heritage and culture can be a source of economic prosperity for the continent.
African arts, culture and heritage is closely connected to our African identity – it was there long before colonialism invaded our shores. Africa is famous for its historical and heritage sites which predate colonialism like Mapungubwe in South Africa, the Great Zimbabwe, Timbuktu in Mali, Carthage in Tunisia, the pyramids in Egypt , Ethiopia, and Sudan. Africa’s heritage forms part of World Heritage Sites. Our cultural heritage remains untapped and we can utilise it and tourist attractions to resuscitate and recover the economy of the continent, post Covid-19.
We are aware that Covid-19 has had a devastating effect on the cultural industries and our performing artists. The South African government and our provincial department of arts will continue to offer support to cushion artists on the impact of Covid-19. Our efforts as government cannot be sufficient given the huge need. We call on the South African private sector to also act in a patriotic manner and support our artists.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Africa was and still is a force to be reckoned with.
Internationally renowned African author and motivational speaker, Idowu Koyenikan, is proud of his African roots, culture and heritage. He writes:
Most people write me off when they see me.
They do not know my story.
They say I am just an African.
They judge me before they get to know me.
What they do not know is the pride I have in the blood that runs through my veins;
The pride I have in my rich culture and the history of my people;
The pride I have in my strong family ties and the deep connection to my community;
The pride I have in the African music, African art, and African dance.
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Our leaders at the African Union have crafted a blueprint for the future of our continent through Agenda 2063. Agenda 2063 is a plan to attain:
o A prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development
o An integrated continent, politically united and based on the ideals of Pan-Africanism and the vision of Africa’s Renaissance
o An Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law
o A peaceful and secure Africa
o An Africa with a strong cultural identity, common heritage, shared values and ethics
o An Africa whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth, and caring for children
o Africa as a strong, united and influential global player and partner
These are no longer just words. Day by day, Africans all over the continent are making this vision materialise, brick by brick.
As we speak, our continent is already advancing African integration and promoting intra-African trade through the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) which will allow us as Africans and the world to reach Africa’s more than a billion people.
It is high time we spread the red carpet to welcome trade agreements that will hasten economic development and prosperity of Africa as a continent.
We are pleased to report that as KwaZulu-Natal, we will on Thursday sign a memorandum of Understanding with Afrexim Bank to support local SMMES and export-led growth.
As we celebrate Africa Day, we are positive that the economic prosperity of the continent will go a long way in silencing the guns that our continent is known for. If we work together as African leaders, it is possible to realise the aspiration for a peaceful and secure Africa.
Fellow Africans, through unity we can build an Africa whose development is people-driven and relies on the potential of her people - especially women, the youth and children.
To realise this aspiration, it is important that we do away with human trafficking and women abduction that put our continent in a bad light.
Africa’s care for children will go a long way in eradicating the problem of child war soldiers, children who are supposed to be at school but because of wars are roaming the streets and forests of Africa carrying guns.
Economic development and prosperity of the continent will alleviate the plight of our young people who leave Africa in droves in search of greener pastures in countries that formerly colonised Africa. It is disappointing to witness our young people boarding boats and planes destined for first world countries, only to come back to the continent in coffins.
Others risk their lives by swimming in shark-infested seas in an attempt to run away from wars that have become a pandemic set to destroy Africa.
Let us celebrate Africa Day by paying homage to our women – by putting an end to rampant forced child marriages that rob our girls of their childhood and future.
Ladies and gentlemen, Africa Day is celebrated the world over by all who claim their roots in Africa, but we are concerned by selective activism displayed by our African brothers and sisters in the world when an African brutally loses life in foreign shores.
Recently South Africa suffered a terrible blow when Lindani Myeni, former club rugby player who hails from eSikhaleni near Richards Bay, was brutally slain by Honolulu police in Hawaii, in the USA.
The deafening silence from our brothers and sisters in the USA and the diaspora leaves a lot to be desired. On this Africa Day, as we seek answers to Lindani Myeni’s hostile killing, we appeal to the Black Caucus, Black Lives Matter, Reverend Jesse Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr III and Reverend Al Sharpton to help us find closure in this heart-breaking matter.
Let us use Myeni’s death as a rallying call for unity and solidarity among African brothers and sisters across the oceans, to condemn the violence and brutality inflicted on our African brothers and sisters plying their trade in foreign shores.
If we can achieve this unity and solidarity with Africans across seas, our 58th celebration of Africa Day would not have been in vain, it would have borne the fruits of unity it was meant to bear when our leaders founded the OAU in 1963.
Fellow Africans, on this auspicious Day in which we celebrate Africa Day, let us unite to fight xenophobia or Afrophobia which is a raging fire poised to raze our continent to the ground, if not extinguished timeously.
Let us forge African unity by opposing the scourge of xenophobia whenever it reveals its ugly and destructive face in our communities and all over Africa.
We call for leadership among all people living in this province.
We call for African solidarity and the respect for the rule of law by all people.
Let us work together to build an Africa that is at peace with itself and the world.
Happy Africa Day.
Nginifisela usuku oluhle lobu-Afrika.
Ngiyabonga