Former President John Agyekum Kufuor has attributed Africa�s challenges to bed leadership, describing some leaders as assuming the reins of governance by chance.
�The real bane of our problems is leadership. Some leaders tend to come to office by chance. In local parlance, we say they came to office by heart.
�If we get the right leadership, we would have good governance, inclusive government and we would be sincere with each other and create the enabling environment. The secret is right leadership,� he said.
He made the observation when he introduced the main speaker, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria�s Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy and former President of the World Bank, during a lecture themed, �What Must Africa Do To Claim The 21st Century�, organized by the Kufuor Foundation at the Accra International Conference Centre.
Africa�s Wealth
President Kufuor said Africa should not suffer as she is doing now when she sits on a trough of wealth, from natural to human resources.
Africa is today being courted by China, America and Europe, he said, adding that �our concern should be about a groomed leadership, sharpened acumen to stand eye to eye with others. Once we realize this the African Union�s call for partnership will be achieved. Without it however, we would be thrown back to neo-colonialism which we do not want.
Genesis Of Foundation
Tracing the history of his foundation, Mr. Kufuor said it was established to tap into the experiences of achievers like the principal speaker, Mrs. Ngozi and a former Head of the German Central Bank, whom he said had agreed to be a director of the foundation.
�We want to know how such achievers did it. We want to pry into experiences,� he said.
Since the establishment of the foundation over a year ago, he said a flurry of invitations had come to him from across the world to �interact in the service of mankind. Sometime I wonder if I have not bitten more than I can chew,� he said.
He acknowledged the gesture of the authorities of the University of Ghana in donating a land for the establishment of an auditorium to host international personalities who would come to deliver lectures at the behest of the foundation.
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