Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang delivered the keynote address at the 16th Oxford Africa Conference, emphasising the need for grounded, disciplined and people-centred leadership in navigating an era of global disruption.
Addressing a distinguished gathering of leaders, academics and innovators, she underscored that while Africa faces persistent challenges, the continent equally possesses the capacity, talent and resources to shape its own future through credible implementation, institutional resilience and long-term economic transformation.
She highlighted Ghana’s ongoing reforms aimed at stabilising the economy, reducing reliance on raw material exports and strengthening value addition, particularly in strategic sectors such as cocoa processing, as part of a broader shift towards sustainable economic architecture.
The Vice President further outlined key social and economic interventions, including the 24-Hour Economy policy and the proposed Women’s Development Bank, describing them as deliberate efforts to expand opportunity and integrate underserved populations especially women into the formal economy. She noted that empowering women with access to finance, skills and tools remains central to inclusive growth across the continent.
Touching on Africa’s future in technology and trade, she pointed to the transformative potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area, while stressing the urgency for Africa to lead in critical areas such as artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, energy transition and data sovereignty.
She concluded that Africa’s transformation will be defined not only by the scale of global disruption, but by the continent’s collective resolve to organise, lead and deliver results through ethical governance, strong institutions and policies that tangibly improve the lives of its people.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
