Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala, a Presidential Candidate for the African Development Bank, has emphasized that Africa must shift its focus from seeking international aid to harnessing its own resources for sustainable development.
Speaking in an interview on Starr FM, she underscored the need for the continent to reduce its dependence on foreign assistance and instead leverage its vast natural and human resources.
“……I think that we [Africa] could spend a lot of time arguing that we should get more resources but I think the truth is also obvious that we never going to get rich from the aid.
“We were never going to get rich from aid so why don’t we start talking about what we have,” she stated. Tshabalala highlighted the immense potential within African nations, particularly in their people.
“I mean if you look at the wealth of Ghana, it’s people. Skilled, bright and hardworking; that’s the most single important asset that any country has.”
Beyond human capital, she pointed to Ghana’s abundant natural resources, including gold and oil, as evidence that Africa possesses the means to build a self-sufficient and prosperous economy.
“But then you go beyond that, you look at Ghana’s gold, oil, natural resources, so that seems to me that we [Africa] have the wherewithal to actually refocus our attention on developing ourselves and reducing international reliance,” she added.
