Experts advocate education for Africa’s leadership, capacity development

The Africa Caucus of the Kennedy School of Government and the Harvard African Law Association at the 2023 edition of its Africa Development Conference (ADC) emphasised leveraging education to enhance leadership quality and drive capacity development in Africa.

The conference, themed “Reimagining Africa’s Growth on Our Terms”, was held recently at Harvard in Cambridge and featured speakers including Mahamadu Bawumia, the vice president of Ghana; Jumoke Oduwole, Special Adviser to the President of Nigeria on Ease of Doing Business; Mfon Ekpo, CEO of The Discovery Centre, Claver Gatete, the new Permanent Representative of Rwanda to the United Nations; and Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang; Ghana’s former Minister for Education,

During the event, Ekpo joined Opoku-Agyemang and Adelaide Siaw-Agyepong, founder of the Liberty American School to discuss how Africa could rise to its education challenges and opportunities post the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Ekpo, in her presentation, stressed the urgent need to reimagine education on the continent. “Although COVID affected the form and structure of education, it boosted the spirit and the original intent of education which was to draw out, elicit or evoke learning and investigative thinking in solving our continent’s pressing problems,” she said.

“Education is one of the core root sources of qualitative leadership hence Africans seeking to change the reality of our people must first play the long game of intentional education; it is stealth in its working, but it is tangible in its effect,” Ekpo added.

The Africa Development Conference is a student-led event at Harvard University that convenes, students, and practitioners to highlight and explore critical issues related to the African continent’s development.

The conference also had a panel discussion and networking sessions, allowing participants to engage with experts and leaders. Topics included Africa’s potential in international trade, transitioning to a green economy, leveraging unique opportunities, and reshaping Africa’s global market image.