Kagame made the remarks today as he opened the 7th edition of the Africa CEO Forum, a two-day forum, held at Kigali Convention Center bringing together four Heads of States, ministers and over 200 CEOs from across Africa.
Other Presidents at the Forum include DR Congo’s President Felix Antoine Tshisekedi, Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé and Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde.
Kagame said Africa is on the right track of its unity after 44 African countries last year signed the African Continental Trade Area agreement that needs only one more ratification to come into force.
“One year ago, in this very room, 44 countries signed on to the African Continental Free Trade Area, and more have done so since. Just as importantly, the Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons was also adopted. The Continental Free Trade Area is on the cusp of coming into force. I understand that only one more ratification is needed. However, as we all know, this is where the hard work begins. So it is very timely, for us to gather here today, to discuss how to make the most out of this historic agreement, among other important issues. We only reached this point, because Africa came together with a strong unity of purpose, that is rooted in the rising aspirations of our young people, for a better future. That same spirit should drive us forward to success.”
“Whatever we try to do, even in terms of economic development, the result comes back to the politics surrounding it. If the politics is bad, everything else is bad. That is why open, responsive, and accountable governance is so critical,” Kagame said.
President Kagame highlighted the urgent need of change in the private sector.
“No one should be satisfied with business as usual. This is the right time for private sector leaders to reflect on what needs to be changed and improved on their end, as well. So that we have a situation where the private sector and the public sector will challenge and push each other to make more than progress,” he explained.
The United Nations projects that Africa will have the biggest workforce by 2050 with 1.1 billion working-age population, which Kagame said calls for hard work so that the statistic becomes no burden to Africa itself and the world in general.
“We don’t have any time to waste to do what is necessary, so that this statistic becomes Africa’s greatest asset, rather than a burden for our continent and the world. It is our responsibility to ensure that deeper integration translates into prosperity and well-being for Africa’s people,” he said.
“Overall, what we need is much more business activity, above all with each other so that we see the emergence of global African firms with continental scope and scale, which champion the interests and ambitions of our people,” he explained adding that “the public and private sectors must work even more closely together, to provide the education and training that will equip Africa’s young workers with the skills to excel in manufacturing, services, and technology.”
The key factor to achieve this, Kagame said, is the ‘mindset’ which he emphasized is not expensive.
“It might be difficult, but we can afford to effect it. Mindset has no price, yet nothing has greater value,” Kagame said.
The President of the Africa CEO Forum, Amir Ben Yahmed urged the African business community to work with commitment to help Africa reach the development others have attained. He said it is time for business people to seize opportunities offered by the AfCFTA.
“Business is like sports, it is a competition. Companies, countries and continents compete; but everywhere, setting targets, commitment and hardworking are key to success,” he said.
It is projected that projects worth US$1 billion will be financed during the 7th edition of Africa CEO Forum.
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