The Head, African Governance Architecture Secretariat of the African Union (AU), Salad Hammad, has called for a re-examination of the continent’s food, social and political systems as global conflicts appear to have exposed their weaknesses.
He expressed concern that a continent endowed with fertile lands and energetic youth still relies heavily on foreign countries for survival.
Mr Hammad said, for instance, the Russia-Ukraine war and the current ongoing US/Israel-Iran war have sadly exposed the continent’s weaknesses in food security and energy production, which ordinarily should not have been so.
He made the call yesterday in Accra at the Data for Governance Alliance Continental Convening 2026, organised by Afrobarometer Ghana, a civil society organisation (CSO).
The five-day convocation has brought together personalities and institutional leaders committed to strengthening democracy, governance, and accountability across Africa.
It is being supported by the German Development Cooperation (BMZ), GIZ, the European Union, and the German Embassy in Accra.
Data for Governance Alliance
Africa’s continental governance architecture is anchored in the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the African Governance Platform, which articulates an ambitious vision of a people-centred, prosperous, and peaceful continent.
It was born out of a pressing need to address three critical gaps standing in the way of achieving the goals set under Agenda 2063.
They are limited citizen awareness of Agenda 2063; Insufficient access to citizen-generated data for civil society organisations, and persistent challenges in tracking the implementation of the African Governance Platform’s commitments.
It is making quality data accessible, meaningful, and actionable, to bridge the distance between what African citizens experience and what African institutions decide.
Energy
Mr Hammad said currently, Africa was blessed with five giant oil-producing countries, yet demands made by fellow African countries were not respected due to lack of unity.
He said if the various charters of the Union were respected and implemented, those five countries should be able to solve the continent’s energy needs.
“When the United Nations (UN) introduces a treaty, Africa will always be the first to sign and ratify it but when the African Union introduces similar treaties, members are reluctant to sign into it,” he said.
Bridging the gap
The AU Head of African Governance Architecture Secretariat said it was important to find the nexus between peace, security and development to provide a better future for African children.
Currently, though, he said there was a disconnect between the youth and African leadership, most of whom were too old, who had changed their constitutions to cling to power without offering opportunities to the growing youth.
“It’s time to bridge that gap to provide hope for the youth on the continent.
He also pushed for the implementation of the African passport by 2030, as well as the free movement of people and goods.
Afrobarometer
A Senior Advisor, Afrobarometer, Prof. Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi, said data in the hands of African civil society was a powerful instrument for change.
He said civil society has long been the connective tissue of Africa’s democratic journey and has been the space where citizens organise, deliberate, and hold power to account between elections.
Prof. Gyimah-Boadi, a former lecturer of the University of Ghana’s Political Science Department, said the Alliance was made up of five distinguished consortium members.
With Afrobarometer as the lead institution, the Alliance comprises the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nairobi, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development, and Laws.Africa.
“The Alliance spans East, Southern, and West Africa, and covers the breadth of our continent with purpose and resolve,” he added.
It is to create a comprehensive ecosystem to drive African governance and sustainable development — from data collection to advocacy to policy influence.
