President John Dramani Mahama used the closing remarks of his Accra Reset side event in Addis Ababa to synthesise wide-ranging proposals for African economic sovereignty, from conflict-free mineral certification to pan-African payment systems, and called for the urgent implementation of frameworks that have languished in discussion for too long.
The high-level gathering, titled “Accra Reset’s Addis Reckoning,” brought together government officials, private sector leaders, international partners, and civil society representatives on the sidelines of the 39th African Union Assembly of Heads of State to chart an action-oriented path toward African prosperity.
“DRC is at the epicentre of the resource curse, and so when we talk about the Accra Reset and natural resource sovereignty, then DRC is right at the core of what we’re talking about,” President Mahama stated.
He highlighted the call by DR Congo’s Minister for Foreign Trade, Julien Paluku Kahongya, for certification mechanisms to distinguish between minerals extracted for the benefit of the Congolese people and those that fuel ongoing conflicts.
“When he talks about the certification of their minerals, Great Lakes certificates for their minerals, to be able to know what minerals are extracted generally in the interest of the people of DRC and those that are extracted due to the wars, then I guess he makes a very good point,” he noted.
The President drew attention to global complicity in the DRC’s suffering: “The world has closed its eyes to the carnage in the DRC because it needs the coltan, the tantalum, and all that to power the digital devices and systems we have.”
A recurring theme throughout the President’s remarks was the urgent need for intra-African payment systems that eliminate dependence on third-party currencies, a point he attributed to the Secretary General of the African Continental Free Trade Area, Wamkele Mene’s intervention.
“One of the issues he raised was why, as an SME in Accra or Ghana, I want to export my goods to my compatriots in Kenya, and yet, I must convert my local currency into a third-party currency, then exchange it again to pay my colleague SME in Kenya,” President Mahama recounted.
“So, the Pan-African payment and settlement system is a thing whose time has come, and with urgency. I should be able to ship my goods to Kenya and get paid in Cedis rather than a foreign currency. That’s something we need to work on.”
This emphasis on payment infrastructure aligns with the Accra Reset’s broader vision of creating economic systems that serve African interests rather than perpetuating dependency on external financial architecture.
While acknowledging historical challenges in moving goods and people across Africa, President Mahama painted an optimistic picture of emerging continental connectivity, crediting private sector initiatives.
He praised ASKY Airlines for connecting West African cities and Ethiopian Airlines for serving almost every African country, contrasting this with the challenges travellers faced in the past.
President Mahama also highlighted new maritime services, including reefer vessels redistributing cargo along the West Coast from Dakar to Douala, and a proposed ferry service to transport trucks and cargo between major ports from Accra to Lagos to Monrovia.
“Once supply and demand are in place, the logistics will follow,” he observed, expressing confidence that commercial imperatives will drive continued improvements in continental connectivity.
The President warmly acknowledged a UK representative’s contribution to the discussion, emphasising her observation that African prosperity serves global interests.
“He says, when Africa prospers, Europe prospers. That’s true. Africa’s prosperity is not a threat to anybody in this world. Africa’s prosperity will consolidate world prosperity. And it will be a positive for this world, not a threat.”
These framing positions the Accra Reset not as a confrontational initiative but as a pathway to mutual benefit, in which Africa’s development contributes to, rather than detracts from, global economic health.
President Mahama expressed appreciation to Egypt’s minister for foreign affairs, Badr Abdelatty, whose remarks he said, “transported me back to the time of Kwame Nkrumah,” praising the “true Pan-Africanist” spirit of the intervention.
However, the President repeatedly returned to the theme of urgency, echoing concerns about the gap between Africa’s ambitious frameworks and actual implementation.
“We come with the decisions. We agree. We do the frameworks. What is missing is urgency and implementation. We take time. And we behave like time is waiting for us,” President Mahama said, articulating a frustration shared across the continent.
He concluded with a clear challenge to participants and the broader African leadership.
“As we said, this is the Addis reckoning. From Addis, we must stop talking and start implementing,” he declared.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Presidency, Republic of Ghana.
