Nigeria’s former President, Olusegun Obasanjo says lack of funds or resources is not the main challenge limiting Africa’s development but the inability to harness available resources.
Obasanjo who was represented by the Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations, Professor Abdoulaye Bathily at the launch of an Independent Task Team on Equitable and Universal Access to Vaccines and Vaccination in Africa by the Coalition for Dialogue On Africa, in Edo state, Nigeria, explained that Africa must harness available resources to provide customized home grown solutions to address challenges in the continent.
The former President advocated for measures to reverse the trend whereby the best brains in Africa migrate abroad instead of staying home to solve local problems.
“Many of our researchers, doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers are constantly being drawn out of the continent to serve in other continents. They use their intellect to serve the needs of other continents, and most times without being duly credited or acknowledge for their intellectual investments, while our own health systems are underdeveloped. “
Obasanjo said Initiatives such as the Coalition for Dialogue on Africa, CoDA would go a long way to support and encourage professionals to stay home and contribute to finding solutions to the continent’s problems.
“The initiative we are launching today is one of those initiatives that will help Africa look inwards to identify and channel available resources to areas where they are needed... Africa will be able to encourage and retain its talents and support them in finding solutions to its age-long healthcare challenges,” Obasanjo stated.
The Coalition for Africa’s Development (CoDA) with President Olusegun Obasanjo as the current Chairman of the board, is an independent arm of the African Union that identifies and discusses issues related to the continent ‘s development in a global context.
PIAK
