Minister for Foreign Affairs Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has called on African leaders to adopt a new leadership paradigm that ensures the continent’s vast natural resources are translated into opportunities for its growing youth population.

He said Africa must move beyond existing frameworks for conflict prevention and resolution and confront the deeper social and economic conditions driving instability, poverty and migration.

Mr Ablakwa made the call when he addressed the African Union Executive Council’s 26th Extraordinary Session on Conflict Resolution and Prevention in Angola.

He acknowledged the investments African countries have made in conflict prevention mechanisms, including the African Union Peace Fund, but said greater attention must now be paid to changing the mindset and approach to leadership on the continent.

“We have pursued all these AU paradigms and protocols and convened meetings to recapitalise the Peace Fund. But perhaps what we should begin to recapitalise, in all humility, is our heart and our mindset,” he said.

Mr Ablakwa urged African leaders to demonstrate greater tolerance, compassion and vision in addressing the underlying causes of conflict.

“Can we be more tolerant of each other? Can we be more compassionate? Can we be more visionary about the root causes of conflict?” he asked.

He cautioned that increasing financial resources for peacebuilding would have limited impact if leaders failed to change their approach to governance and conflict prevention.

“We can have $1 billion, $10 billion, $100 billion in a Peace Fund, but it will mean nothing if we do not change course, if we do not adopt a new leadership paradigm,” he said.

Youth migration crisis

The Foreign Affairs Minister also drew attention to the growing migration crisis involving African youth, citing a report by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) which recorded the deaths of more than 2,180 young Africans in the Mediterranean last year while attempting to seek better opportunities abroad.

He said the figures should serve as a wake-up call for African leaders to address the economic conditions pushing young people to risk their lives in search of opportunities outside the continent.

Mr Ablakwa called for a renewed commitment to job creation, industrialisation and genuine decentralisation, alongside a more equitable distribution of Africa’s natural wealth.

He argued that the continent’s abundant natural resources, including diamonds, gold, bauxite, oil and gas, must be harnessed to create sustainable opportunities for its young population.

According to him, tackling the root causes of instability and migration requires African leaders to rethink how the continent’s resources are managed and how the benefits of economic growth are distributed.

He maintained that a new leadership approach, focused on opportunity creation and equitable development, would be critical to addressing the challenges confronting Africa’s youth.