By Anderson Ojwang
Previously, before the formation of United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA), local governments were not real actors in development in Africa and played the least role in the continent’s economic growth.
The Founding Secretary General of UCLGA, Mr. Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, described the formation of the organization as a milestone in addressing common Africa’s development issues.
Mbassi, who is the outgoing Secretary General, said previously the continent was divided and operated along colonial legacy organizations which denied a common approach to development in Africa.
“Our members operated within colonial legacy organizations such as English, Portuguese and French organizations. We were divided and followed colonial relics. We had to wake up and unite for a common purpose which is development,” he said.
Speaking in an interview in Kisumu City, Kenya, Mbassi said the organization was aimed at breaking the barriers and giving solutions to Africa’s development agenda.
He said the organization has been at the forefront of development issues on the continent and has hosted the AFRI Cities conferences in the continent which have been a turning point.
“We now speak with one voice. We meet as Africans and we are no longer divided along colonial relics. We have a common approach to Africa’s development,” he said.
He said the organization has provided strong advocacy to get decentralization and devolution at the heart of the continent.
“In 2005, during the founding congress in South Africa, we strove to work for the unity of Africa and development from the grassroots. We adopted the bottom-up approach and not the top-down approach to development,” he said.
Mbassi said the organization has realized various achievements including putting local governments on the map to be recognized as developmental actors.
“We have realized financial and administrative achievements for the last 20 years. We have succeeded in giving local governments the convening powers.
This has enabled us to hold several AFRI Cities conferences with Kenya having hosted two editions, in 2006 in Nairobi and 2022 in Kisumu,” he said.
He said the organization is the rallying point to discuss local government contributions to development and growth on the continent.
Mbassi said the organization has made strides after they concluded a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the African Union to get local governments to be part and parcel of the AU agenda.
“We have drafted the Africa chapter on values and principles of decentralization, local governance and development. It was adopted by Heads of State of Africa in 2014 at a conference in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea,” he said.
Mbassi said at the conference they created the High Council for Local Authorities as an African Union organ so that the voice of local governments is heard and considered.
“We targeted empowerment capacity of the Local Government Academy to provide training and exchange of experience,” he said.
Mbassi said Africa is one of the implementing partners of an initiative of the UN Secretariat called Building Climate Resilience for the Urban Poor.
“This initiative is championed in Africa by Kenya’s President William Ruto. The aim is to build resilience for 150 million people across Africa. Already 20 countries are part of the program and the hub is in Nairobi, Kenya,” he said.
Mbassi said despite the success stories, the organization has faced several challenges ranging from financial constraints to lack of economic literacy among the population.
“Financial constraints have forced us to go through crises because of the magnitude of what is to be delivered, but we have been able to steady the ship,” he said.
He said there was need to ensure that local governments deliver on their mandates, investments and how to use the creativity of the African people.
“We must build our economy to sustain job creation and use emerging new technologies. We must participate in building a peaceful environment,” he said.
The outgoing Secretary General said cooperation in local government was the way to improve mutual comprehension, enhance trans-border cooperation and help in the integration of the continent’s economic agenda through a bottom-up approach.
Incoming Secretary General Dr Francois Menguele said he will build on the foundations already set to make the organization a success and to charter Africa’s development agenda.
He said despite the African continent being endowed with vast wealth, the ability to transform this opportunity has been negated by lack of economic literacy.
He said population is the basis of wealth creation and it is unfortunate that 90 percent of the African population lacks economic literacy.
“For realistic growth and development, economic literacy is important to help transform what we have in the physical environment into wealth. That is why a literate population is a vehicle to wealth creation and growth,” he said in an interview.
He said wealth was a transformational power and acquisition of skills will allow for the exploitation of the physical wealth present on the continent.
Menguele said through economic literacy it was possible and easy to turn the potential into wealth for the continent.
“We have the skills and capacity to see the potential. We are surrounded with wealth. But we have a situation where our youths leave the continent because they think there is nothing to gain. It is called lack of the eye to see the potential in Africa,” he said.
