Thirty six influencers, journalists and artists representing all regions of Africa and the Diaspora have joined forces to rewrite the continent’s history and champion a future of African unity and regional integration.
In a historic assembly on Thursday at the African Union (AU) headquarters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, the influencers, journalists and artists vowed to renew their commitments towards creating a borderless Africa.
“Integration is more than policy; it is about people experiencing freedom across their own continent. Influencers have the power to make this real for millions of Africans,” said Fred Ngoga, Senior Advisor for International Partnerships at the African Union Commission, in his keynote speech.
Hardi Yakubu, Coordinator of Africans Rising Movement, challenged the continent to move beyond historic grievances.
”We can no longer complain about what the Berlin conference did 141 years ago, yet we have the power to undo what 13 men sat down to do,” he said.
They signed what is called the ‘Addis Ababa Influencers Declaration on Borderless Africa.
Further strengthening this momentum, the creation of the Borderless Africa Fund was announced to promote and support advocacy, awareness campaigns, and Borderless Africa initiatives across the continent, providing crucial resources to the movement.
The committed storytellers, influencers, and journalists vowed to honour the declaration by shaping the African narrative with dignity, rejecting stereotypes, sensationalism, and fear-mongering.
They pledged to use their platforms to highlight African achievements, expose injustices hindering freedom of movement, and engage governments and regional bodies with factual, people-centred advocacy.
Their vision for a borderless Africa is bold, a continent where every citizen can move, live, and dream freely; where the African passport is universally accepted with visa-free travel guaranteed, air travel is affordable, and intra-African trade thrives.
MG/as/APA