We are Committed to Africa’s Economic Transformation and Development-Prime Minister State of African Diaspora, Dr Louis Georges Tin Assures
By Raymond Enoch
The Prime Minister of the State of African Diaspora ( SOAD) ,His Excellency ,Dr .Louis Georges Tin, has said that the government and institutions of the State of African Diaspora is committed to promoting African economic transformation and Africa’s development Agenda
His Excellency Dr Louis Georges Tin made this disclosure while having an exclusive interview with Paradigm News
This exclusive interview touches on wide -range of issues that posed threat to African development today.
The Prime Minister of the State of African Diaspora (SOAD) Dr Louis Georges Tin in the interview spoke on several subjects of topical importance.
We have provided below in verbatim some issues of the economic development plans and initiatives of SOAD , Immigration challenges, Repatriation Questions, Youth and Women, Institutional Challenges and Mechanisms to address them and long terms objectives of SOAD , all for your readershp in order to capture the whole and fundamental essence of SOAD to Africa.
On emergence of SOAD, he revealed hat State of African Diaspora (SOAD) was unanimously adopted by African Heads of States and Government In 2003 and was launched in July 2018 as 6th Region of Africa. thus making , the people who left the continent one, two or three generations ago, or all the people whose ancestors were deported from Africa two, three, four centuries ago or more, because of slavery to see Africa as their region
He noted that SOAD region includes about 350 millions people.
with a mission to reinforce Africa economic , political and physical transformation through the Diaspora,
When asked of what is the State of African Diaspora ( SOAD) doing to bring about economic development in Africa and to also tackle brain drain so as to retain best manpower in the continent? His Excellency Dr Louis Georges Tin has this to say
” We have numerous development programs. The most important is the smart cities program. To date, we have signed more than 30 cooperation agreements to build cities in Africa, from Liberia to Madagascar, including Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, the two Congos, Tanzania, South Africa and many others. In each of these cities, there will naturally be housing, shops, markets, offices, schools, hospitals and so on. We have identified the land – that is the first stage; we have found the financing – that is the second stage; we are now in discussions with the central banks of the countries to ensure that the funds can be safely invested – that is the third stage. Soon, we will be able to begin feasibility studies and physical work. This program will create hundreds of thousands of jobs across the continent. This is an example of .the development the State of the African Diaspora is working on at the moment
On tracking brain drain he pointed out that
” We believe that all the development programs we are putting in place will require the expertise not only of Africans on the continent, but also those in the diaspora. For example, at the moment, we are building several medical complexes, which will include large hospitals (400 to 800 beds), with medical faculties, pharmacy faculties, nursing schools and so on. It is also a message to doctors and carers in the diaspora: we have modern infrastructures and decent salaries on the continent. You can now return home to care for your people while enjoying good material conditions. You do not need to stay out in the cold and be discriminate .d against all day long. Come back home” he asserted .
On African dependency on Foreign Aid for it’s development His Excellency Prime Minister of the State of African Diaspora asserted that ” Africa and the Diaspora have enough money to meet the needs of their people. Development aid is not aid. It is loans with double-digit interest rates. It is not the world helping Africa, it is Africa (forcefully) helping the world ; Africa developing the world, and the world under-developing Africa. We must put an end to this system. Instead of working with countries that once colonized the continent and enslaved its people, African leaders should work with the diaspora, because the diaspora is family. According to the World Bank, the diaspora sends USD 70 billion every year to the continent. This represents 13% of Senegal’s GDP, 26% of Liberia’s GDP and 70% of Sudan’s GDP. That is a lot of money. But we can do even better, and act even more autonomously and effectively. That is what we need to increase the level of interactions and cooperation between the African Union and the State of the African Diasp.ora”
Asked about the African Continental Free Trade Agreement ( ACFTA) and the SOAD contribution to the process, he asserted that “African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) as part of the Africa-Diaspora Summit we are organizing with the Parliament of the African Union, there will be a round table on finance, economics and trade. On this occasion, we will be presenting our chamber of commerce, and a number of other important initia.tives to promote trade, such as ports and railroads, for which financing is also available’ he assured .
On Youth and Women in the Continent , the Prime Minister said that
” Concrete example : one of our action programs is the City of Youth. This City will be run entirely by young people. This is unprecedented. Africa is the youngest continent. It is only natural that we should put our trust in our young people, and seek to give them more responsibilities.Another example, this time regarding women. At the moment, with our Minister in charge of Women’s Economic and Social Development, we are working on creating the Women’s Empowerment Bank. I do not want to say too much for the moment, but because women are discriminated against in so many ways, especially in the area of economy, we believe that fina.ncial empowerment is one of the best way to empower them in general” he said .
On tracking the question and challenges of immigration and African around the world he said that ” We are all affected by the thousands of people who die in the Mediterranean. Not to mention those who arrive in Europe or the United States, living in poverty, working in discrimination, and exposed to police and administrative violence. That is why one of our cities will be built in North Africa: it will be Haven, the City of migrants. We will say to travelers: you can cross the sea if you like, but we suggest you rest here. You will find free housing, accessible jobs, decent wages, and you will be able to help your families if you wish. So why go any further, taking unnecessary risks, when you can already find solutions for yourself and your loved ones in here in Africa ? he assured .
His Excellency Dr Louis Georges Tin barred his mind on repatriation when asked by our correspondent. He said that ” Repatriation is a very important agenda for us. In fact, the ministerial portfolio of the SOAD No. 2 in our government, Ms. Keturah Amoako, is « Restitution, Reparation, Repatriation and Restoration ». This shows the importance we attach to the subject. We have also created an initiative in this field with Julius Garvey, the son of Marcus Garvey, the father of the Back to Africa movement. It is a cruise, designed to enable people from the diaspora to visit the coasts of Africa, the areas from which their ancestors were deported. Our inspiration for this is the Black Starline, the company Marcus Garvey once created As another example, we advocated that Benin adopt a law in this area. It was passed and promulgated a few months ago. It provides that citizens of the historic diaspora, whose ancestors were deported as slaves, can now acquire citizenship in Benin. This law, which was passed unanimously, is a historic first, and we are proud to have been part of this initiative.
On challenges faced by SOAD on its engagements with international organizations on promoting African development, he had this to say “?African development issuesI have to say that the main problem of Africa is not exploitation, neo-colonialism, disease, war, poverty or global warming. All that is very real, of course. But in my view, the biggest problem in Africa is bureaucracy. It wastes a lot of our time. Any problem, no matter how serious, can be solved efficiently if it is dealt with quickly. But conversely, any problem, no matter how small, can become very serious if not dealt with in time. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the bureaucracy that reigns in many countries of Africa is the main enemy. You can overcome it, but you lose so much time. And time is money, and even a matter of life or death. While we are wasting time on bureaucracy, there are people who need care, and who end up dying. Administration is absolutely necessary, but in many ways, bureaucracy can become inimical ” he concluded .
His Excellency the Prime Minister of the State of African Diaspora Dr Louis Georges Tin spoke about the long term goals of SOAD and how Africans of good good will can connect with SOAD , he had this to say ‘ My aim is to promote African integration, and to work to ensure that within 50 years at most, Greater Africa, i.e. Africa and the Diaspora combined, will be the world’s leading power. This is absolutely realistic. It is never said, but do you know that Africa’s GDP is greater than India’s? Of course, Africa is made up of several countries, but we have the same population as India, 1.4 billion. So if India is the 5th world power, that means that Africa is already the 4th world power. And I have not included the subsoil or the diaspora in my calculation. When you are in 4th position, you are not far from being on the podium, a bronze medal, a silver ?medal, and soon a gold medal. Don’t you think so'”
