Africa has a leadership crisis, and the youth must set us free – Duncan-Williams

Nicholas Duncan-Williams, general overseer, Action Chapel International, has charged matriculants of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) to develop their leadership skills to liberate the continent from poverty and underdevelopment.

The continent suffers from a leadership crisis resulting in increasing youth unemployment despite its rich natural resources.

Duncan-Williams said Ghana, for instance, has been programmed in a way that allows “foreigners to come and work, make a lot of money and wealth and eventually take everything away.

“I am told Ghana and Cote d’ Ivoire produce more cocoa than any other country and sell it to the international market, making a little over US$ 4 billion considering the huge world market value,” he said.

The general overseer said this at a matriculation thanksgiving service held for about 5,000 students who were admitted for various graduate and undergraduate programmes at the University. He said, “we need to have leaders who are selfless and visionary and are willing to serve.”

The Netherlands’ centre for the promotion of imports from developing countries (CBI), said global industrial chocolate market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 4.3% between 2002 and 2026, reaching an estimated market value of about €61 billion in 2026.

That, he said, is the reason the young generation needs to be trained and nurtured into visionary leaders to change the narrative.

Duncan-Williams said Ghana ought to have a national agenda and vision that every political party and all stakeholders are committed to.

“Once you come into office as a government you are not permitted to do anything but carry out the national agenda. We execute this agenda for at least ten years uninterrupted,” he stated.

He said until that is done “we will go nowhere and continue to be at the peripheral when it comes to global economics.”