Tony Elumelu, chairman of United Bank for Africa (UBA), has called on African countries to move beyond what he described as a “victim mentality” and focus on attracting investment, creating jobs, and driving innovation across the continent.
Gatekeepers News reports that Elumelu made the remarks on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit held in Nairobi, Kenya, and jointly hosted by France and Kenya.
“What we need in Africa in the 21st century… we need massive private global capital coming into Africa,” Elumelu said in an interview with AFP.
“Anyone that can help us address this is welcome in Africa,” he added, referring to partners from the United States, France, the Middle East, Russia, and China.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who attended the summit, recently appointed Elumelu to the Africa-France Impact Coalition, an initiative designed to strengthen trade and investment ties between African and French businesses.
During the summit, Macron announced a €23 billion investment package for Africa. According to him, €14 billion will come from French public and private sector entities, while African investors are expected to contribute €9 billion.
Macron said the investments are projected to create about 250,000 direct jobs across Africa and France.
The summit, however, witnessed protests in Nairobi, where a small group of demonstrators attempted to force their way into the venue while accusing France of “neo-colonialism.” Authorities later confirmed arrests were made.
Reacting to the criticism, Elumelu dismissed the narrative and urged Africans to concentrate on the future rather than dwelling on the past.
“We should stop this victim mentality. We should be cognisant of the history, our history, but more importantly, we should commit to the future,” he said.
“We should, to a large extent, let the past be. President Macron was not born 100 years ago, this is a new age. And I commit to his commitment to Africa, and I believe he’s sincere.”
The businessman also stressed the urgent need for improved infrastructure and economic opportunities for young Africans.
“What our young entrepreneurs need in Africa is improvement in access to electricity, creation of mass transportation system, security, and ease of doing business,” he said.
“These are the things that are important. They need jobs, they need improved access to electricity, they need to join the internet… the AI bandwagon.
“What is important is providing this enablement, this infrastructure requirement, so that our young ones can take off.”
Among leaders present at the two-day summit were Bola Tinubu and Aliko Dangote, alongside several African business executives and heads of state.
