Culture and the Nepad Project: Towards an Understanding of a Vital Missing Link

Abstract

Africa’s search for appropriate models of development has a long history behind it. Interestingly, most of the approaches to development failed even before they took off. Thus, when the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) was initiated it was felt globally that, at last, workable answers may have been found for the myriads of Africa’s development challenges. NEPAD was formulated to comprehensively address the many problems facing Africa. Beautiful and well articulated as the NEPAD document is, it is obvious that it omitted culture as a vital component of the development process. In such areas as health, agriculture, law and governance, conflict resolution, poverty alleviation and more, the originators of NEPAD failed to incorporate culture as an important factor in driving development. It concludes on the note that until this is done NEPAD will be another false start.

Keywords: NEPAD, Development, Development Challenges, Culture.