TIME100 Africa Impact Awards 2023 Red Carpet: What Is The biggest Issue Facing Africa Today?
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00:00 What's the most pressing issue facing Africa today?
00:02 Well, I work in tech, so of course I would say internet,
00:05 because without internet you can't necessarily innovate, right?
00:07 And I think internet is definitely coming,
00:09 but in terms of like broadband and speed, it's still lagging behind.
00:13 The most pressing issue facing Africa today is leadership.
00:16 Most of our leaders are average age of 64,
00:20 compared to an age of 19 on the continent.
00:22 So we need to get more young people into leadership.
00:25 We need to think unconventionally, apply radical thinking,
00:30 reimagine everything, and use technology to transform the continent of Africa.
00:34 We need to ensure that we have leaders that are invested in the people of the African continent,
00:38 leaders that talk about impact, but also not just the talk,
00:42 but actually the implementation of it.
00:43 I think, you know, governance, our leadership,
00:47 people who are put in places and seats in order to change our future.
00:52 We need leaders who really care about their country,
00:55 who are selfless, leaders like Mandela.
00:57 So I hope that's the only thing we need in Africa,
01:00 because we have everything, resources, talents, it's about leadership.
01:04 But it's all about the youth, it's the future.
01:07 My country, Somaliland, is one of the few countries in the world
01:11 that is not politically recognized, maybe because of that, doing so well.
01:17 But right now, at this very moment, because we are on the Red Sea,
01:22 because we have a long coastline, we are being targeted by those
01:27 who were at first dealing with piracy, and that has been stamped out.
01:33 So now it's human trafficking, smuggling,
01:37 and they're encroaching on Somaliland's coastlines.
01:41 There's still a lot of poverty, and I think we do need to do a lot of work in that area,
01:47 but it's definitely a group work, and we all need to come together
01:51 to find more solutions against hunger, poverty, and malaria.
01:56 The main challenge is resiliency.
01:59 How do we adapt? How do we prepare ourselves for future shocks?
02:04 And ensure that domestically and intrinsically,
02:07 we are strong enough to keep building.
02:10 We really need to make sure that the areas that are being destabilized
02:15 are actually restabilized, because whatever an issue happens,
02:19 especially like Sudan, Niger, Congo, wherever it is,
02:21 we see that there's regional instability.
02:23 And so I think we need to focus on regional solutions,
02:26 we need to focus on pan-African solutions.
02:28 The most pressing issue that Africa is facing right now is probably climate change.
02:32 I mean, 60% of our population are smallholder farmers,
02:36 and today they're still the most vulnerable to the effect of climate change.
02:40 They're still at the front lines, right?
02:41 So it is important that we step up and make sure that we support Africa
02:46 to continue being the global solution provider to environmental challenges,
02:50 and to also make sure that we position Africa as that solution provider
02:54 and the continent that is changing and shaping that narrative
02:58 of building resilience to the climate crisis.
03:01 If we do not break down gender norms and allow women to fly,
03:05 we're holding back our most powerful resource,
03:08 and that will be the most tragic thing of all.