2023 Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, engaged with diverse African nationalities as he honoured an invitation to speak at the African Development Conference at Harvard Law School in Boston, Massachusetts, United States (US).
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| Peter Obi with various African nationalities at Harvard Law School in Boston, Massachusetts, United States (US) |
At the Conference, the former Governor of Anambra State talked about Africa’s “current challenges and paths toward progress”.
Obi said: “I was honored to accept an invitation to speak at the African Development Conference at Harvard Law School in Boston Massachusetts, USA, where I engaged with various African nationalities and discussed our current challenges and paths toward progress.
“During my address, I drew an analogy between Africa and China, the largest economy in Asia, to illustrate why Africa has not achieved universal success. Despite sharing remarkable similarities, such as China’s 9.6 million km² land area compared to Africa’s 30.3 million km²,
“Africa has yet to realize its full potential. Both China and Africa have populations of about 1.4 billion people, with Africa boasting a slightly younger and more productive demographic. In 1994, both regions were in low categories of the Human Development Index (HDI),
“with comparable GDP per capita figures. However, while China has since progressed to the high HDI category with a GDP per capita of $12,500, Africa remains in the low HDI category with a GDP per capita of around $2000.
“China now enjoys over 90% secondary school enrollment and healthcare access, while Africa lags behind with a 28% enrollment rate and less than 50% healthcare access. Sadly, about half of Africa’s population lacks access to medical care.
“I concluded by emphasizing the urgent need for leaders with proven credibility, character, competence, capacity, and compassion to guide Africa toward a brighter future. Responsible governance and accountable leadership are essential to transition Africa
“from its current state of underdevelopment to a higher level of prosperity. This is my vision of the New Africa we are all committed to building.”
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