The process of democratic governance is rooting itself all across the African continent.
This is the view of 13 African leaders as contained in a report released on Monday at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg.
Speaking at the launch of the report, titled African Leaders: State of Africa Report 2004, Wits’ head of international relations, Prof John Stremlau, said proof of this can be found in President Thabo Mbeki’s recent State of the Nation address.
”When you look at the president’s speech when talking about progress in the African continent, you will see how he starts by mentioning the success stories first, then Zimbabwe and other countries.
”This is revolutionary to get an African head of state criticising others. That would have never happened before,” said Stremlau.
The report was launched in conjunction with the Boston-based African Presidential Archives and Research Centre in the United States, headed by a former American ambassador to Tanzania, Charles R Stith.
The centre conducted the research with the universities of Ghana, Wits and Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania.
Stith said the report provides an insight into the aspirations and issues that are important to African leaders.
He said the participating countries were chosen according to ”the significant strides made in terms of democratic governance and the development of their economies along free-market lines”.
In the report, each of the 13 leaders assesses the contemporary trends and developments in their own countries.
The report quotes Mbeki highlighting the redistribution of 444 000ha of land in the five years leading to the end of 1998 as among the South African government’s successes.
”In three years since then, the number has increased by 600 000ha … while the number of houses built or under contraction currently [2003] stands at 1,2-million,” Mbeki said in his assessment.
In April, 11 of Africa’s former African heads of state will meet at Wits to discuss how to bring back intellectual property to Africa.
Wits spokesperson Shiroma Hassima said the former presidents, who all belong to the African Presidential Roundtable club, will attend a one-day conference also focusing on how to change Western media coverage about Africa.
She said these will be leaders from Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania and Zambia.
Cape Verde and Mauritius will be represented by two of their former heads of state.
”Once presidents are out of the office, it doesn’t mean their contribution to the development of the continent should stop,” said the former ambassador. — Sapa