By Jerrywright Ukwu

Although Pan-Africanism has many and varied definitions espoused by different scholars and intellectuals based on the pioneering vision of thought leaders like W.E.B Du Bois, Marcus Garvey and Malcolm X, among others, and arguably the most prominent promoter of the concept in Africa in the 20th century, the late Kwame Nkrumah, there is one fundamental consensus about the socio-political ideology: The driving force behind it is forging a common heritage for all Africans, and by extension, the Black race all over the world.

In other words, Pan-Africanism, in its pristine conceptualisation by the late Ghanaian leader, Dr Nkrumah, and others before him, speaks to the unification of the sovereign nations on the African continent and its offspring dispersed across the world’s other continents, such as in the Americas, West Indies, the Caribbean, Europe, e.t.c.

Even in its latter-day evolution, sifting through decades in the hands of many postcolonial thought leaders, intellectuals and African ideologues, the ideology has not departed from its founding premise: Forging a common identity for the Black race worldwide. Regrettably, though, the main fundamentals of achieving the needed unification remain as elusive as they were in the past in the face of existential challenges confronting Africa as a continent and all Black people globally.

For Dr Nkrumah, Leopold Sedar Senghor of Senegal, Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Patrice Lumumba of DRC, and many other pre-independence African leaders and intellectuals who embraced pan-Africanism even at considerable risk to their fledgling political careers and their kith and kin abroad who suffered reputational and sometimes physical threats from their host countries because of their stance on pan-Africanism vis-a-vis agitation for equality for the Black race,  demand for social justice, inclusion and integration, among others, beyond the decolonisation of Africa from imperialist forces who partitioned the continent into different conclaves for their economic, political and military gains for decades, the independent countries on the continent and all people of Black progeny must be united across board to actualise their manifest destiny as a people of shared heritage, free from external control and manipulation.

It is no coincidence that the founding of the defunct Organisation of African Unity (OAU) by then 32 independent countries as of 1963 was to foster African unity with Pan-Africanism as its cornerstone - the organisation, headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, whose formation was led by Nkrumah and Haile Selassie had as some of its key aims promotion of political and economic integration among member states and to eradicate colonisation and neo-colonisation from the African continent.

For myriad reasons beyond the remit of this article, OAU could only substantially achieve its lofty aims after its transmogrification into African Union (AU) in 2002. The late Libyan leader, Muammar Gadaffi, was one of the biggest promoters of the transition. Gadaffi mainly wanted the continent to become the Unified States of Africa, fashioned after the United States of America. Unfortunately, he could not realise his grand ambition before dying in the Libyan crisis in 2011. 

Despite its many interventions and spirited efforts to engender organic unity vis-a-vis economic and political integration, free exit and entry of Africans as well as goods and services, and the elimination of bilateral and multilateral trade barriers, among others, on the continent through several regional mechanisms such as AfCFTA, AU, like its paternal progenitor, OAU, has yet to actualise this much-sought unification for reasons that look identical to the ones that hamstrung the defunct OAU from achieving the same purpose. 

Be that as it may, it is quite a subject of exhilarating irony that despite the exciting objectives of Pan-Africanism and the various channels to achieve such, plus the sterling contributions some notable women of African ancestry made to the decolonisation project, abolition of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, e.t.c.

Women need to be at the front burner for themselves

Theodora Boateng, founder of Female Factor, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) based in Accra, Ghana, says in the modern world, African women should leverage digital platforms for empowerment in Pan-Africanism.

“African women must implement strategies to amplify their voices and foster empowerment,” she said.

She said the strategies should include representation and visibility of Black women, using hashtags, campaigns, and online discussions, collaborating with influencers and advocates and sharing educational content and challenging stereotypes. 

Black women in the diaspora are not any materially different from their counterparts who reside in Africa when it comes to the sort of political, economic, cultural and even religious subjugations they are subjected to by the patrons of patriarchy and enablers of racial prejudice who see themselves as those divinely ordained to lead while the Black women’s lot essentially, in most cases, is to obey and follow like zombies. 

Be it in political leadership or economic management; it’s rare to find Black women on the continent and abroad holding prominent and commanding positions because of the impediments consciously and unconsciously stacked against them. And where Black women are found performing leading socio-economic roles, their numbers are usually far and in between. Yet, as gleaned from the lens of history, Black women have been found to have made significant contributions to the advancement of the Black race either on the African continent or elsewhere in areas such as academics, sports, political leadership, economic management, military, music, arts, e.t.c. 

Benefits of an empowered Black woman

QueenEsther Iroanusi, a Political and Development Adviser at the Norwegian Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria, says, “embracing the goals and ideas of Pan-Africanism is vital in the drive to change the stereotype and negative narrative,” adding that “one way this can be achieved is by advocating for more nuanced reports and stories about women and amplifying their efforts in tackling global challenges.”

She noted, “The media plays a major role in convincing the rest of the world about Black women and the continent in general.”

“An intentional attempt to promote Black women in a positive light will go a long way in changing the narrative,” she added.

Empowering Black women entails allowing them complete and absolute control over their choices and living with the consequences of such decisions, just as Black men do. That way, they’ll take responsibility for their actions and feel like humans without impositions. In summary, it’s about equal rights and justice for all, regardless of the gender of the person involved. It is important that gender parity is incorporated into the philosophy of Pan-Africanism and implemented.

Iroanusi called for partnerships and collaboration among Black women and African media to achieve gender parity.

Her words: 

“In a continent reliant on the media, particularly the Western media, for news, a collaboration aimed towards a common goal – amplifying women’s voices and celebrating Black women achievers – would make a positive impact on the way that Black women are seen around the world. A simple case of having Africans tell their own story.

“Besides partnerships and intentionally telling positive stories, it is also important that these positive narratives are told in a way more digestible and understandable for young readers, and they adapt to diversity in today’s world.”

Whichever it is, for the total unification of the Black race devoid of gender discrimination or imbalance, which is the climax of pan-Africanism, the intentional empowerment of Black women must be considered an absolute necessity.