Africa’s Agenda 2063 demands disciplined execution, not just vision

By Abdelmonem Fawzi

AFTER attending eight African Union summits since 2015 and spending 16 years with UNICEF, Lawalley Cole, executive director of the Coalition on Media and Education for
Development Africa Forum (CAFOR), has decided to author a book that bridges
aspiration and action.

Titled ‘Reclaiming African Agency in the
Decade of Acceleration: AfCFTA, Fiscal Sovereignty, and the Future of Agenda
2063’, this work draws from Cole’s deep immersion in continental policy spaces.

He first encountered Agenda 2063 as a
living aspiration: an urgent, unfolding dialogue among African leaders, policymakers, educators, and practitioners determined to shift the continent from reacting to global forces to shaping its own path.

Over three decades in education policy,
communication for development, and institutional reform, Cole has witnessed
Africa’s evolution from externally imposed frameworks to cycles of hope and
frustration.

At AU summits, he observed leaders
wrestling with trade integration, security threats, youth unemployment, and fiscal challenges.

Beyond the plenary halls, candid corridor
talks revealed a shared anxiety about execution.

Adopted in 2013, Agenda 2063 marked a
pivotal shift. It was Africa’s declaration of “The Africa We Want” – rooted in Pan-African solidarity.

For Cole, its true power crystallised through his work in education and institutional systems.

He argues that transformation starts with
people: quality schooling, relevant skills, and institutions that empower meaningful economic and civic participation.

His UNICEF tenure in fragile and
reform-minded settings hammered home a core truth: policies alone do not change societies.

Lasting impact demands capable
institutions, accountable governance, and systems that deliver in classrooms.

Education is the foundation of resilience,
participation, and stability.

Through roles with the Association for the
Development of Education in Africa, the African Development Bank, and UNICEF,
Cole saw Africa’s youth potential thwarted by systemic barriers.

The demographic dividend risks becoming a
liability without education aligned to economic needs.

Agenda 2063’s call for an “education and
skills revolution” struck a personal chord.

At CAFOR since 2018, Cole has aligned
efforts with the AU’s vision, emphasising education, innovation, cultural
identity, and governance in a collaborative, non-partisan way.

Leading organisational renewal in Addis
Ababa, near the AU Commission, reinforced that continental progress requires
internal discipline.

His reflections have sharpened into tough
questions: Why does intra-African trade lag despite AfCFTA progress? Why do
debt burdens erode fiscal sovereignty? Why does illicit capital flight persist?

The book combines economic modelling,
political economy insights, institutional theory, and comparative analysis with Cole’s
on-the-ground experience.

Its core message: Africa’s challenge is no
longer missing frameworks, but disciplined execution.

Agenda 2063 is visionary but operationally
demanding.

The Decade of Acceleration (2024–2033) will
decide if Africa secures fiscal sovereignty, turns AfCFTA into an industrialisation driver,
links higher education to innovation, bolsters governance, and negotiates
globally as one.

Success could mark a historic turning point
in structural transformation, while failure risks relegating it to inspiring but unfulfilled rhetoric.

Cole offers this work as both rigorous
analysis and open invitation to build institutional coherence, reclaim fiscal
autonomy, and integrate education with industrial policy.

The Africa we want remains within reach. It
demands courage, coordination, and unwavering execution to make it real.

Abdelmonem Fawzi is a writer and expert on international relations.