Pretoria – As the country celebrated Africa Day, KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu has emphasised the need to ensure unity among Africans.
“The continent observes this day as a celebration of African Unity at home and in the diaspora, and as a moment to recommit ourselves to work towards the full integration of Africa,” said Premier Mchunu.
Speaking at the opening of the African Renaissance Conference held in Durban on Monday, Premier Mchunu said the recent acts of violence against foreign nationals living in the country went against everything society stands for and undermined the progress done as a continent in building unity and integration of countries and economies.
He warned that when violence manifests itself due to intolerance and discrimination against other human beings on the basis of their origin, humanity is the loser.
“As we look into the role of entrepreneurship in the development of our continent, we must not limit this to economic entrepreneurship but extend it to social entrepreneurship that will advocate for tolerance education and search for lasting solutions to the prevailing challenges of migration,” said Premier Mchunu.
As the 21st Century unfolds, Premier Mchunu said, the country is faced with a different set of challenges and opportunities.
“Our major task now, is to achieve development and eradicate poverty, which holds back the aspirations of the people to fully realise the fruits of independence and freedom. Poverty is the singular greatest challenge of this century. It erodes all necessary capabilities for those entrapped in it to enjoy a life of dignity.
“Our search for solutions and any set of interventions we make, must be centred on education as a tool that can enable individuals and communities to extract themselves from poverty,” he said.
The Premier also noted that there are areas of potential investments that need to be harnessed.
“Countries like China, India, Russia, Brazil and the gulf states are bringing in fresh capital and massive infrastructure development. With all this growth, we still have certain prohibitive challenges. These are at a level of soft infrastructure like education and social services which are poorly developed,” the Premier said.
The two-day African Renaissance Conference, which started on Monday, forms part of the 17th annual African Renaissance Festival taking place from 23 - 26 May at Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre.
The conference programme will focus on entrepreneur development with some emphasis on the youth.
It will also promote and maximise the opportunities for the youth that are available through obtaining college and university bursaries to international institutions. – SAnews.gov.za
