Saraki Joins Global Leaders in Italy, Says Africa Needs Strategic Partnerships, Not Aid Dependency
Former President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has arrived in Lake Como, Italy, to join global leaders, policymakers, scholars, and strategic thinkers at an international experts workshop where he is expected to make a strong case for Africa to move beyond aid dependency and embrace strategic partnerships anchored on trade, investment, industrialisation, stronger institutions, domestic resource mobilisation, and African agency.
The gathering, organised by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), the foundation named after former German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, has as its central theme: “Big Daddy Gone? Global Partnerships Without U.S. Leadership.”
Speaking ahead of his session, Saraki said: “This is a question that will define the coming decade. What does global partnership look like when it is no longer led by Washington? For too long, Africa’s relationship with the world has been framed around aid. The real opportunity is partnership — trade, investment, and mutual interest that treat Africa as an equal, not a recipient. A shifting global order is not a vacuum to fear. It is an opening to build something better.”
