The Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Andrew Mamedu, has called on Africans to take charge of the continent’s development agenda, emphasizing the importance of grassroots movements in driving transformation.
Speaking at the opening of a two-day Regional People Power Forum in Abuja on Monday, Mamedu stressed that Africa’s progress lies in the hands of its people, not external forces or military interventions.
“Africa must set the agenda for Africa’s development,” he said. “This can only happen when social movements put pressure on the political class to deliver on critical promises and sectors that can accelerate development, not just in our cities but also at the grassroots.”
Mamedu dismissed calls for military interventions, asserting that coup d’états are not the solution to Africa’s challenges. Instead, he urged the activation of citizen power through organizing and mobilizing, stating, “The power in people is more potent than the people in power.”
Highlighting ActionAid Nigeria’s commitment to transformation, Mamedu outlined the organization’s strategy to collaborate with social movements in resisting oppressive governments and policies that perpetuate poverty. Under its new Country Strategy Paper (CSP), Citizens Action to End Poverty and Injustice, ActionAid focuses on four key pillars: Organize, Act, Shift, and Thrive (OAST).
“In October, we facilitated the emergence of the Movement for Transformation of Nigeria (MOTiON), a coalition of social movement groups with a collective membership of about 30 million Nigerians,” Mamedu revealed. “ActionAid Nigeria is now a hub for social movement collaboration in West Africa, providing a platform for addressing critical social issues across the continent.”
Mamedu reaffirmed ActionAid’s mission to achieve social justice, gender equality, and poverty eradication. “We are working for a just, fair, and sustainable world where everyone enjoys a life of dignity, free from poverty and oppression,” he concluded.
The forum, which brings together social movements from across the region, aims to foster collaboration and empower citizens to drive change in Africa.
