**The African People’s Alliance: A Reality to Build and Expand**
“Africa must unite,” proclaimed Kwame Nkrumah, a visionary call that has resonated over the decades, but whose actualization remains a major challenge. In this new year 2025, the announcement of the removal of visa requirements for African passport holders at the borders of the five pioneer countries – Rwanda, Seychelles, Gambia, Benin, and Ghana – deserves celebration, certainly, but also calls for in-depth reflection on the real scope of this advent in the pan-African trajectory.
At first glance, the decision of Ghana, Nkrumah’s homeland, testifies to a commendable progress towards the free movement of people. However, this progress is weakened by the damning observation that only five of the fifty-five nations of the continent have embraced this fundamental principle. This leads us to question not only the effectiveness of Pan-Africanist policies, but also the willingness of African leaders to transcend national interests in favor of a collective vision. To better understand the nuance of this situation, a comparative analysis of the European model of free movement could prove enlightening.
The Member States of the European Union, after decades of conflict, have built an integration framework that facilitates trade and mobility. The European experience shows that deepening integration requires communicating the observable benefits of political initiatives. In Africa, however, there is a persistent perception of fear and hostility towards other nations, inherited from colonial history and artificially drawn borders. Fear of the “other” often blocks integration initiatives.
In 1963, the creation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) aimed to strengthen cooperation between African states. However, nearly sixty years later, the OAU has been replaced by the African Union, a development that, despite its great ambitions, has sometimes struggled to translate commitments into concrete actions. The statistics provide a stark picture: while intra-regional trade represents only about 15% of trade in Africa, it reaches 70% in Europe. Furthermore, according to the UN, one in two Africans cannot travel within their own continent without having to face administrative constraints.
While Pan-Africanism is often mentioned in speeches, its materialization in the daily reality of Africans still seems to be a distant utopia. It is imperative to realize that true Pan-Africanism is not only a question of verbal solidarity, but also of concrete actions. In this, the example of President Félix Houphouët-Boigny illustrates a fundamental lesson: openness to the world and the reception of other cultures do not necessarily lead to a squandering of national identity, but can enrich society. This openness should be a model to follow for other leaders, as a handful of African nations already do.
One of the questions that arises is: what is preventing states from taking the step towards a visa-free travel system for all African citizens? Between the historical legacy of intra-African rivalries, the politics of fear and exacerbated nationalism, there is a palpable gap between pan-Africanist aspirations and current geopolitical realities. At the same time, more successful models of regional cooperation in Africa, such as the East African Community (EAC), where free movement initiatives are already in place, offer valuable lessons.
While looking back can generate a sense of disillusionment, it is essential to cultivate hope and the spirit of innovation through common initiatives that promote mobility in Africa. This could involve the creation of regional university exchange programs or economic partnerships, promoting synergies between states and raw materials for mutual benefit.
The dawn of 2025 thus offers African leaders an unprecedented opportunity: that of renewing their commitment to a true Pan-Africanism, which would not be a simple phrase to be repeated in a speech at a summit, but a reality for each of us today. By adopting a more welcoming posture and an open border policy, these countries could transform this vision into a lasting promise.
In light of this reflection, the road still seems long for Africa to reach its potential. However, with the collective commitment of nations, Nkrumah’s dream of a united and resilient Africa could well come true. These pioneering countries of today could become examples of a future where sharing and mutual aid are at the heart of the continent’s dynamics. Africa, where shepherds once moved around without constraints, has a unique opportunity to rewrite its history.