Africa-Press – Ethiopia. Descendants of Africa’s most influential liberation leaders called for renewed African unity, cooperation, and visionary leadership, arguing that the continent stands at a decisive crossroads in 2025.
The descendants, alongside government officials, academics, and students, gathered at Ras Mekonnen Hall at Addis Ababa University (AAU) for a high-level panel, exploring Ethiopia’s historic and ongoing role in the continent’s liberation struggle.
Opening the panel, AAU Interim President Samuel Kifle emphasized that Africa continues to grapple with both internal challenges and external pressures, yet 2025 presents a critical turning point.
He noted that the continent must choose between asserting itself as a relevant global power or remaining fragmented among 54 states.
Samuel stressed that renewed collaboration, guided by the wisdom of past generations, is essential for Africa to realize its aspirations for peace, prosperity, and global leadership.
“The wisdom passed down from our forefathers teaches us that united we stand, win, and prosper,” he said, underscoring that Africa’s greatest achievements have always come through collective action.
Tesfahun Gobezay, Government Communication Service State Minister, on his part, highlighted Ethiopia’s central role in the Pan-African movement, noting that the presence of liberation leaders’ descendants at AAU is monumental.
He added that countries achieve extraordinary developmental milestones when they work together across differences of race, region, and background.
Africa’s future success, he said, “will depend heavily on cooperation across the continent,” pointing to the immense potential for mutual development and understanding.
Samia Nkrumah, daughter of Ghana’s founding President Kwame Nkrumah, called attention to Africa’s demographic strength, 1.3 billion people on the continent and another 300 million in the diaspora.
She urged young Africans to recognize the transformative power of such unity. “If 125 million Ethiopians can build the Renaissance Dam, imagine what 1.6 billion Africans can do,” she said.
Nkrumah also encouraged the youth to reclaim their history as a source of courage while confronting new adversaries including poverty, unemployment, underdevelopment, economic domination, and dependency.
Moussa Ibrahim Gaddafi, nephew of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and Executive Secretary of the African Legacy Foundation, also underscored the responsibility of the new generation, particularly African scholars and students, to carry forward the legacy of cooperation, resilience, and collective vision that defined earlier leaders.
He called for deeper collaboration among African states to build practical economic partnerships and advance a unified development agenda.
He reaffirmed the mission of the African Legacy Foundation is to defend the legacy of past leaders, revive a shared continental vision, and inspire a new generation to confront poverty, division, and economic dependence with unity.
Throughout the panel, participants emphasized the importance of integrity and responsibility among Africa’s youth, as well as the duty of leaders and elders to guide the next generation.
They also called for strengthening Afro-centric education across the continent, insisting that Ethiopia, given its unparalleled liberation heritage, must remain a central pillar of Pan-Africanism.
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