The New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) is an African blueprint for development produced in 2001 by the founding fathers: Presidents of Nigeria (President Olusegun Obasanjo, South Africa (President Thabo Mbeki), Senegal (President Abdoulaye Wade) and Algeria (President Abdelaziz Bouteflika).
The NEPAD blueprint was deemed necessary because of the various problems and developmental challenges facing the African Continent; earning it the appellation, "the Dark Continent".
Years after colonialism retreated to its European Homeland, the African continent continues to battle seemingly irresolvable challenges such as incessant conflicts, sit tight and corrupt rulers oppressing a massively poor and illiterate people, electoral fraud and electoral violence etc. Policies where made on paper but not in the field; while the people starve, the elite get fat. Politics was played by rent seeking elite and became a zero sum game: "the winner takes all" kind of politics. This is seen in recent elections in Kenya, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Cote d'Ivoire and Congo Democratic Republic etc.
Politics is still viewed by the elites and their followers (electorate) as a war(over scarce resources). Thus, with the exit of colonialism, a new form of oppression took its place: oppression by the indigenous elites. This quickly disenchanted the masses and military coup plotters quickly overthrew the false Nationalists in revolutionary style and with popular support. Military rule, unfortunately for most Africans, never freed the Masses; it merely put oppression in Military uniform as Military governments generally were as corrupt as their civilian counterparts or even more so. Hence, Africa remains in a continuous state of flux and sociopolitical conflict that investors (both local and foreign) easily distrust. This is the reason why development appears impossible and out of reach.
All hope is not lost, however, given that once there is life, there is hope. This collective hope is currently embodied in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of the United Nations Organization (UNO) .This projects a deadline (the year 2015) for the attainment of development based on eight areas of concentration:
1. Eradicating extreme hunger and poverty.
2. Achieving universal primary education.
3. Reduction of child mortality.
4. Improved maternal health.
5. Combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.
6. Ensuring environmental sustainability.
7. Developing a global partnership for development
8. Promoting gender equality and empowering women.
The NEPAD ought to be a localization of the MDGs but few countries have provided details of how implementation is to be carried out.So, some seven (7) years since NEPAD's inauguration, investors are yet to know what is expected of them, what the host Governments have to offer and when such projects should be in the implementation schedule or timeline.This causes a loss of confidence in the programme and is a great hindrance to its actualization
Gender empowerment is the key to developing because it is an established fact that "whoever develops the woman, develops a nation".Gender empowerment simply means social, economic and political development of the woman. This is a human right of the woman and is at the heart of the Millennium Development Goals because all other goals rely chiefly on the achievement of gender empowerment. This is explained later on in this article.
The development process usually starts from childhood and is attained in adulthood. Without good primary education, there can be no parity of representation in parliaments or in the workplace .This means that education is the key to women liberation. Current figures show success in developed countries and failures in underdeveloped countries.This has some correlation with the standard of education and its availability in an affordable scale. This means that underdeveloped countries must take serious commitments in the educational sector and developed countries must consolidate on gains made.
Women cooperatives should be encouraged to open industrial schools with easy access to microfinance for girls and women. Businesses such as online jobs (using recycled computers and other ICT), agriculture and cottage industry should form a multiple stream of income which enables the diversification of the economy and the creation of numerous jobs. This should involve a shift system with time management, in order to maximize asset utilization. This business model can also be backed by tax cuts, bonds and grants from Governments, Faith based organizations, corporate bodies and Non Governmental organizations and should concentrate chiefly on rural based women: given that a majority of African women live in the rural areas. The project should also extend to the tertiary level of education: using cooperative education (working and schooling at the same time). This provides extra funds that enable schools and universities provide free education while increasing the standard of education by encouraging the entrepreneurial spirit. The Information Communication Technology benefits must be leveraged optimally. For example, mobile banking can penetrate rural areas easier than real bank branches. Thus, mobile banking and ecommerce should be encouraged in rural areas with tax rebates to participating banks.
The effect of developing the educational system is the reduction of extreme poverty (through industrial revolution) and the resultant conflict over scarce resources. This enables capacity building, the emergence of true democratic leadership and global partnership. Also, by achieving universal primary education, we eradicate extreme hunger and poverty with manpower development based on the grassroots' blueprint. This positively affects resource management thereby preventing conflicts. With this economic empowerment of women, improved maternal health is attained and there is a reduction of child mortality while combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases and ensuring environmental sustainability. The empowerment of women should therefore be paramount in the design of development programs like NEPAD. Policy makers must recognize and utilize this pattern if development is to be achieved: obviously, empowered women will not engage in prostitution, hard drug abuse (HIV/AIDS) and drug abuse or leave their environment unkempt (malaria resistance and other diseases). Empowered women would not patronize quacks and will feed themselves and their children adequately (maternal and child healthcare).
So, the simple solution to Africa's woes would be developing the women in order to develop the country (or continent). The success of this project depends to a large extent on global partnership: if women groups abroad also have access to tax free funds, this can provide funds for African development while reducing greed and avarice currently wreaking the family structures and values of the Western world. This is mutually beneficial; given that such funds develop technology capabilities that reduce trade deficits using new markets development strategy. This partnership can also back up the counterterrorism efforts of the African High Command (AFRICOM) by building alliances between Muslims and Christians. This can trace the enemies' path from Egypt to its final destination:Iraq.
Finally, encouraging self help projects and volunteering amongst the womenfolk is the only way to ensure their freedom. It is better to teach them fishing than to catch them one. Self respect and actualization could lead to less frustration and conflicts. This could reorient the people of a continent filled with hatred for their brothers and sisters and we can become a continent of peace by the grace of God.
