Julius Nyerere's Four Ingredients for Development and Africa's Post-independence Performance (original) (raw)

This article reflects on Julius K. Nyerere's four necessary ingredients for development: people, land, good policies and good leadership. The concepts of land and policies are understood broadly: ,":hereas land includes all natural resources, policies embrace constitutions, party manifestos, acts ofparliament, government white papers and blue prints, and other similar legal and guiding documents. Defining development as the net value that humans add to life, the article argues that in the past half-century, Africa has hadplenty ofpeople and land, but little ofgood policies and good leadership. The needfor Africa to stand on its ownfeet andproduce real development is emphasized and proposed as something within reach by 2050, if Africa provides for itselfgood policies and good leaders. The article concludes with an appreciation of the confidence with which generations of Africans in the 1950s, 19605 and 1970s leapt into the uncertainties of political independence, something that is compared to a boy who, at initiation in traditional Africa, assumed manhood and embraced its rights and duties. Current generations ofAfricans need a similar confidence, the conclusion says, in order to assume responsibility for the continent's development. All that is needed are policies and leaders that can help turn Africa's abundant human and natural wealth into real value that is added to life.