- Morocco became the first African country to reach the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup.
- Kenya and Lesotho’s smooth transition of power set an example for democracy.
- The African Free Trade Agreement got off to a promising start.
As the year 2022 draws to a close, in Africa, it was not all gloom as there were many feel-good developments across the continent.
Some of them covered by News24 sought to do away with the age-old stereotypes that Africa was a dark continent marked by civil war, disease, political instability, flagrant corruption, hunger, and anarchy.
Fresh on people’s minds was Morocco’s football World Cup achievement as the fourth-best team at the tournament.
It was the first time an African country got that far, despite some of its top football talent in the diaspora playing for 14 non-African states.
Germany, France, Qatar, Belgium, Switzerland, and Portugal are the five teams that had the most talent of African origin.
Politically, one of the single most notable achievements was fulfilling a part of the African Union’s (AU) “silencing the guns” agenda which seeks to create a peaceful continent by 2063.
The civil war in Ethiopia’s Tigray was a case in point.
Widely seen as the biggest war on earth, bigger than Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the AU’s cessation of hostilities agreement signed in Pretoria in November was timely.
The signatories are now implementing the set road map.
The restoration of social services in Tigray as well as access to relief aid is ongoing but with minor setbacks.
Kenya and Lesotho both saw a smooth transition of power without political violence.
READ | US Africa Summit: Felix Tshisekedi avoids meeting to discuss instability in eastern DRC
In the case of Kenya, the elections were high stakes, considering one of the candidates, political journeyman Raila Odinga, has in the past been involved in elections with violent outcomes.
It was also worth noting eventual winner William Ruto, between 2011 and 2013, was charged by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity: murder, deportation or forcible transfer of population, and persecution.
With two candidates who could explode, violence did not materialise, plus outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta has taken a leading role as a statesman across Africa.
His role in the cessation of hostilities in Ethiopia and efforts to bring about peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the sake of the Eastern African Community could set a good example for other future former presidents.
In Lesotho, the victory of arguably the richest man in the kingdom, Sam Matekane, received international admiration.
Since 2010, Lesotho had been southern Africa’s coup and instability capital.
Matekane has vowed to move ahead with electoral reforms prescribed by the Southern African Development Community to avoid a political crisis in the future.
In total, elections were held in 13 African countries this year from local to presidential polls.
Democracy is still the preferred choice of governance in Africa, despite the dark mark left by coups.
According to Afrobarometer “seven in 10 Africans [69%] say that democracy is preferable to any other kind of government”.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is finally taking shape.
ALSO READ | US firms pledge billions in African investment – and are ‘just getting going’
It is an agreement that promotes wider and deeper economic cooperation, and it aims to attract investment, boost trade, provide better jobs, reduce poverty, and increase shared prosperity in Africa.
In 2022, under the AfCTA, Kenya exported car batteries and tea.
Rwandan coffee beans found their way into West African markets.
The AfCTA is the biggest free trade agreement in the world with 54 signatories (all African).
But Covid-19 had slowed down its development.
The failure of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act policy that ends in 2025 presents AfCTA with another growth window.
ALSO READ | Zambia was Africa’s top stock market in 2022 – it climbed 12% in dollar terms
For instance, if intra-African food trade and production proved to be successful, as envisioned under the AfCTA, billions of dollars spent on purchasing food from outside of Africa could be reinvested in agro-processing businesses.
African countries spoke with one voice on most global affairs.
At COP27 in Egypt’s resort town of Sharm El Sheikh African leaders called for an end to a “climate injustice” because the continent contributed less than 4% of global carbon emissions but pays one of the highest prices for global warming.
“The time has come for Africans to take our destiny into our own hands,” said Ali Bongo Ondimba, the Gabonese president, at the Africa Climate Week which was held before COP27.
There was a lot more good to come out of Africa but those memories mentioned above were outstanding.
The News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained herein do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
