AFRICA

Massive Marches Planned Across Africa to Promote Borderless Continent

Africans Rising movement is spearheading a campaign on Borderless Africa with massive marches organised in countries across the continent to promote the ideology.

A statement at the weekend said: Preparations are in top gear to hold the Borderless Africa Convening from the 23rd – 25th May, 2024 in Lusaka, Zambia. The convening is a 3 day hybrid conference that will bring together all campaigners and stakeholders across the continent and diaspora who work in diverse ways towards the realization of a Borderless Africa.

According to the statement, the hybrid gathering will also give an opportunity for Africans everywhere to participate, engage and share their contributions.

The three days will majorly feature discussions and strategies pertaining to ratification and enforcement of the AU Protocol on the Free Movement of People, the benefits of abolishing visas in Africa and will end with a mammoth march as a continental call for free movement of Africans in Africa, one currency and one passport, the statement revealed.

The statement said: “In the same vein, there will be continent-wide Marches for Borderless Africa organized by Africans on May 25th (African Liberation Day) across several countries in Africa and other territories across the world to urge more countries to ratify the African Union’s Protocol on Free Movement and bring visibility to the Borderless Africa Campaign.

“This will be one of the many activities organized that week starting from 20th to 26th May as a continuation of last year’s annual mobilization to continue to push the vision of an Africa where Africans can move around their own continent without the current border restrictions in place under a broad theme of “A Borderless Africa for All Africans”.

“In addition to the theme, other activities will be organized under any of these two sub-themes:

“Pan-African Solidarity with African Countries Affected by Conflicts; Climate and Environmental Justice , Gender Justice, and Economic Justice.”

Borderless Africa is a decentralised, people-owned campaign with an aim to push for the free movement of Africa people and goods in Africa. The overall goal of this campaign is to achieve an Africa where Africans can move around our own continent without the current border restrictions in place, for better trade, job creation, solidarity and economic development.

The campaign pushes for the ratification and implementation of the African Union Protocol on Free Movement of Persons in all African countries. Despite the progress made in regional integration initiatives, there remains an urgent need to eliminate borders that stifle growth and impede the movement of people and goods.

The African Union adopted a Protocol on Free Movement of Persons in 2018. As of 2023, only four (4) countries had ratified the protocol while it requires 15 ratifications to come into force. The AfCFTA has been widely recognized as a significant step towards fostering economic integration and boosting intra-Africa trade.

However, progress is slow. With the large membership that Africans Rising has, we are able to mobilize to promote the realisation of the initiative.

Activities such as the People’s Petition, marches, concerts, football matches among others have been some of the activities organized as part of the campaign. More than 20,000 signatures have been collected through collaborative efforts by members of Africans Rising in 30 African countries and the diaspora.

Michael Olugbode in Abuja