Renowned Pan-Africanist and anti-corruption crusader Professor PLO Lumumba has called on African countries to reduce their dependence on foreign powers, saying the continent is yet to fully realise Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah’s vision of a self-reliant Africa.

Speaking at NkrumahFest 2026 in Nkroful in the Ellembelle District of the Western Region, Prof Lumumba said Africa’s reliance on foreign countries for medicines, food, technology and even its global narrative remained a major challenge.

He said Dr Nkrumah’s vision went beyond Ghana’s independence in 1957, stressing that the former president wanted African countries to unite and take control of their political and economic destiny.

“Ghana was free, but the independence of Ghana meant nothing if the rest of Africa was not free,” he said.

According to Prof Lumumba, Dr Nkrumah understood that Ghana’s independence could not be separated from the liberation of the wider African continent.

He noted that Ghana subsequently became a centre for African liberation movements, attracting political leaders and intellectuals from across the continent and the diaspora.

Prof Lumumba said Dr Nkrumah’s Pan-African agenda also focused on ensuring that Africa could provide for itself rather than remain dependent on external powers.

He cited healthcare and agriculture as examples, questioning why African countries continue to import basic necessities.

“When we are sick, we do not make medicine to cure ourselves,” he said.

He said the same problem existed in food production, industrialisation and technology, arguing that Africa must move from being largely a consumer of foreign products to becoming a producer.

Prof Lumumba also raised concerns about Africa’s reliance on foreign media organisations to tell the continent’s story.

He said Dr Nkrumah’s vision of a Pan-African press was intended to give Africans greater control over their own narrative.

The Kenyan scholar further pointed to conflicts, terrorism and youth migration as signs that Africa still had significant work to do.

“There is work to be done,” he said.

He urged African leaders and citizens to create opportunities that would enable young people to build their futures on the continent.

Using the internet and a drone at the event as examples, Prof Lumumba said Africa’s growing use of technology had not been matched by sufficient local manufacturing.

“We look forward to the day when it will be different,” he stated.

He said Dr Nkrumah’s legacy should not be limited to annual commemorations but should inspire practical efforts to improve healthcare, food security, technology, energy and African unity.

“We are not here just for an annual jamboree. We are here because we know that the work that was started by Kwame Nkrumah is incomplete,” he said.

NA/VPO