The Sunday Mail
Dr Gift Gwindigwe
AFRICA Day was birthed to symbolise the determination of Africans to free themselves from imperialists’ domination and to particularly mark the extrication of Africa from the political claws of imperialism.
The commemorations trace the biographical journey that the continent walked, particularly the sojourning of Africa from the colonial period to the present post-colonial era.
The day can be traced back to 15 April 1958, when only a few African countries had attained independence, among them Ghana, Ethiopia, Liberia, just to name a few.
These countries’ leaders’ charismatic approach later led to the formation of the Organisation of African Unity on May 25, 1963 through the influence of Julius Nyerere (Tanzania), Kenneth Kaunda (Zambia), Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana) and Sekou Toure (Guinea).
Is the Celebration still necessary?
Africa Day commemoration is a momentous occasion to unequivocally reject colonialism in all its forms.
The current and future commemorations should address, attack and stop all the mutative forms of colonialism.
The continent’s present territorial boundaries were drawn at the Berlin Conference that sought to and successfully split Africa in a way that sowed seeds of division amongst clansmen.
The conference was aimed at escalating differences amongst a once united African people. Commemorating Africa Day is a way to exalt our roots on the foundational principles of our African belonging despite the processes of globalisation that further seek to put us asunder.
Through various celebrations that include public addresses, marches, musical galas and poetry, we will be taking stock of our origins.
More importantly, Africa Day commemorations animate us to our ancestry and our history.
We, in solidarity, walk down the same memory lane and seek to ignite hope for the continent, hope to recreate our identity and to re-present us as an able race.
Africa Day celebrations energise and empower us to face future challenges with fortitude against present threats (capital flight; climate change; poverty; civil strife and the ravaging Covid-19 pandemic).
Unity of purpose is achieved through upholding celebrations such as Africa Day because what affects South Africa also affects Zimbabwe, the rest of the SADC region and indeed the whole of Africa.
Freedom of Africa was achieved through the decolonisation project, which we must remember through Africa Day and therefore must uphold.
The multiplicity of political and economic problems unfolding before our eyes must be tracked and dealt with from an Afrocentric approach.
Let our thrust on Africa Day be to express that we won a war but we are now faced with a battle which we must face from a broader but collective African approach.
The end of juridical and territorial war marked the beginning of a major battle of a mutating concept of neo-colonialism and Africa must pull up her socks in the face of the bigger battle.
Health and culture
Nuanced challenges we face today can be dismantled when people are a united group. The current challenges brought by Covid-19 have further fractured our cultural milieu and present a direct challenge to our identity.
Covid-19 has brought a seismic cultural shift globally in general but specifically in Africa: the guiding principles of communalism have been rejected in the face of Covid-19.
There is a need for an Afrocentric health communication approach in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Through our united efforts as expressed through Africa Day celebrations, let the World Health Organisation (WHO) recognise and tap from our human and natural resources and put Africa on the map.
For example, Zumbani should be widely acknowledged as an African plant that has long back been recognised by our ancestors as fighting all colds.
Education and our cultural industries need to be recalibrated since they were initially meant to enslave the mind and bring docility in us; to alienate us, as espoused by Fanon and Ngugi.
On platforms such as Africa Day, let us collectively speak against the new world systems such as those that aim to reinforce Africa’s peripheral position in terms of development yet the very African resources are putting Europe at the centre because of new exploitative mechanisms.
Role of the Media
The media has a central role to play in disseminating information that repositions Africa as a productive and potential site.
Media should continue to take a leading role in re-presenting Africa as a continent that can equal Europe and Asia in all spheres.
The Africa Day commemorations should foster our Africanness, market and advance the brand that Africa is in all spheres.
Our need to collectively decimate all neo-colonial tendencies hinges on vibrant media industries that have a decolonial thrust.
The media institutions should expand but with a focus to place Africa at the centre of the globe.
Africa’s media landscape needs cultural and technological terracing so that they project and advance the Africa we are proud of, so that they delete the condescending reportage on Africa that has seen us self-inflicting injury to the African person.
To borrow from Sylvie Capitant, the role of media as instruments of democratisation, as watchdogs, and as voices of opposition, their involvement in electoral processes, and their injection of life into democracy by opening up forums for debate have made them key players.
It is through media platforms accessible to us as Africa, including our own, that we can unequivocally speak back to imperialism.
Africa Day commemoration is one such platform to address the political injustices inflicted upon Africa.
Dr Gift Gwindingwe is a lecturer and media specialist in the department of English and Media Studies at Great Zimbabwe University..
