Are borders holding Africa back?

Africa has 83,000km of land borders. Many of these borders are a colonial hangover: arbitrarily drawn, ignoring geography, ethnic groups and political entities. But the Pan African dream of iconic presidents like Kwame Nkrumah and Thomas Sankara has yet to materialise.

In this week’s episode we ask is it time to rethink red lines on maps? Or do we need to concentrate on dismantling different borders? The borders holding back trade, collaboration and mindsets? In this week’s episode, our host Claude Grunitzky talks to:

Samba Bathily a self-made Malian businessman. He’s launched ventures in over 18 African countries, including Akon Lighting Africa, a renewable energy initiative he worked on with Samba and the American-Senegalese artist Akon. Samba is also a huge champion of the African Continental Free Trade Area, a free trade agreement between 54 African countries.

Mutemi Wa Kiama is an activist from Nairobi, Kenya known for campaigning against aid in the shape of international loans. He’s also part of the Africans Rising initiative, a continent-wide NGO which campaigns for a fair global trading system, and action to combat climate change. 

Kah Walla is a Cameroonian politician and entrepreneur and was the first woman to stand for president in Cameroon in 2011. Walla hails from the Anglophone region of Cameroon, which has been affected by a separatist movement since 2016. 

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