President John Dramani Mahama has called on Ghana and the rest of Africa to chart a new course of self-reliance amid declining global aid and rising protectionist trade policies by major economies.
In an interview with TIME Magazine, President Mahama described recent U.S. aid cuts as a “wake-up call” that, although challenging, present an opportunity for Africa to pursue genuine economic independence.
“All I did was to tell our Finance Minister to make adjustments … so we have covered it with our budget,” Mahama said, referring to the $156 million Ghana lost in USAID funding for health, education, and governance. “We’re fine, but not so in some other countries. It teaches us to be self-reliant.”
The aid reduction, which stemmed from policy changes under the Trump Administration, is projected to push millions of Africans deeper into poverty. For Ghana, the loss coincides with new tariffs on exports, part of a broader global trade realignment.
President Mahama expressed disappointment over the unilateral nature of such decisions, stressing that they erode decades of international cooperation.
“One country cannot say, ‘I’ll slap tariffs on you because I want to bring manufacturing back,’” he said. “That’s not a very effective way of conducting foreign policy.”
At the United Nations General Assembly in September, Mahama renewed his call for Africa to be given a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and for the abolition of its veto system, declaring that “the future is African.”
He told TIME that Africa’s demographic boom and rapid economic growth make it essential for global governance to reflect modern realities. By 2050, one in every four people on the planet will be African, and the continent’s combined GDP is projected to surge from $2.6 trillion in 2020 to $29 trillion.
President Mahama reiterated his long-held stance that while foreign aid played a critical role in the past, it has also contributed to dependency and weakened institutional accountability.
“Aid engenders laziness on the part of African policymakers,” he said, referencing Zambian economist Dambisa Moyo’s influential book Dead Aid.
“It’s time for Africa to chart its own course,” the President declared. “The world progresses together, not in isolation.”