A bold continental journey has been launched to champion Africa’s unity, free movement, and economic self-reliance. The initiative, fully endorsed by the Government of Ghana, seeks to highlight the urgent need for visa-free travel, intra-African trade, and a stronger “Africa First” agenda.
In a briefing at the Black Star Square before departure, the campaigners—led by former Member of Parliament Ras Mubarak—announced plans for a 163-day road trip, covering about 40,000 kilometers across Africa. The journey will include scheduled meetings with African heads of state as well as press engagements in every country visited.
According to Ras Mubarak, the objective is to encourage both governments and citizens to embrace a borderless Africa and push for a single continental currency.
He emphasized that such unity would unlock vast opportunities for trade and job creation.
“If Ghana alone decided to provide food for Lagos, a city of 30 million people, the impact on job creation would be immense. Likewise, if Nigeria supplied sugar to the continent, or Zambia focused on poultry production, Africa would not need to import what it already has in abundance,” he said.
Mubarak added that Africa has no business importing poultry from Asia or fertilizers from Europe when Zambia and Morocco already lead in their production. The real obstacle, he argued, lies in the artificial barriers created during colonialism that still fragment the continent.
“It is currently easier for an African to travel to Europe or Turkey than to move between African regions due to visa restrictions. We must prioritize Africa first. Just as America pursues America First and Europe guards its borders, Africans must unite around an Africa First agenda,” he declared.
Speaking before their departure to Lomé, Togo, Chief of Staff Mr. Julius Debrah described the initiative as commendable, noting that it would strengthen Africa’s position in the global market.
“With the introduction of AfCFTA and all, whatever we need to do to draw the attention of Africans to come together as one people and become a bigger, larger market is something commendable. As a government, we naturally support the idea of drawing the attention of the entire world to African unity and possibly achieving visa-free movement for all of us,” he said.
Mr. Debrah also stressed the importance of safety during cross-border movements, recalling his own experience as a former West African tour operator.
“I urge you to be very security conscious. These days the world has changed, and you must pay close attention to security requirements and checkpoints,” he cautioned.
The road campaign is being made possible through sponsorship from several institutions, including the National Investment Bank, Ghana National Gas, Ghana Cocoa Board, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, Stanbic Bank, GLICO, NLA, GIPC, Afrimix, and others, with additional support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Office of the Chief of Staff.
The journey’s first stop will be Lomé, Togo, on August 18, before continuing through Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa), Angola, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Central African Republic. The final leg will cover Chad, Niger, Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, before concluding in Ghana.
Story by Osman Abadoo
