As the global economy faces continuous threat of fragmentation, African leaders have been advised to use the opportunity to their advantage by pursuing strategic autonomy to survive.
Making the call in a statement, Caroline Lucas, a director from TEXEM UK, the United Kingdom based leadership development organisation, said on www.texem.co.uk that now is the time for Africa to focus on reconfiguring.
Lucas, who is in charge of special projects at TEXEM, said this dynamic captures Africa’s evolving role in a new geopolitical era marked by global fragmentation and the search for supply chain resilience.
She said as major powers engage in decoupling and friend-shoring, Africa is being repositioned from a peripheral supplier to a potential keystone of new, diversified supply chains.
Lucas said that among the key drivers of reconfiguration are the critical minerals and natural resources found in Africa.
“Africa holds a significant share of global reserves of critical minerals like cobalt, lithium, and manganese that are essential for the green transition and high-tech industries.
“Geopolitical competition for these resources is driving increased investment and a push for local processing and value addition, moving beyond simple raw material export,” she said.
Speaking on intra-African integration, Lucas said the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is the primary engine for reconfiguring supply chains within the continent.
According to her, by reducing tariffs and non-tariff barriers, AfCFTA aims to create a single market, strengthen regional value chains, and reduce reliance on external imports, thereby building economic resilience against global shocks.
Lucas said that with strategic autonomy, African leaders are increasingly pursuing a pragmatic, non-aligned foreign policy, engaging multiple global partners like the US, EU, and BRICS based on transactional clarity and national interest rather than conditional aid.
“This balancing act allows the continent to leverage global competition to secure better investment, technology transfer, and infrastructure development, which are critical for supply chain upgrades.
“Nations that depend only on imports, import fragility; nations that design interdependence, engineer resilience,” the TEXEM director explained.
She said the leadership lesson here is that sole import dependence represents a failure of strategic economic sovereignty and is a liability in a fragmented global economy.
The TEXEM director said African leaders must transition from managing scarcity and vulnerability to designing prosperity through planned, robust, and mutually reinforcing interdependence.
Lucas announced that TEXEM was hosting African leaders and chief executives in a programme that would be of immense benefit to them and their countries in implementing leadership development goals.
She explained that the high-level executive development programme is designed to help African executives to respond effectively to the deepening waves of global economic uncertainty and domestic challenges facing the continent.
The programme designed specifically for African Chief Executives and top-tier leaders, is tailored to equip them with the mindset and tools to not just survive, but thrive amidst the continent’s unique challenges.
The programme, themed Navigating Economic Uncertainty Successfully: Strategic Leadership in Turbulent Times, will hold from Nov. 24 to Nov. 27 in Milton Keynes, United Kingdom.
It will bring together senior executives from both the public and private sectors.
The TEXEM director said among other things, the upcoming programme would delve into how to distill an organisation’s mission and priorities when resources are scarce and the environment is volatile.
She said participants would learn techniques for developing high-impact solutions with limited capital, leveraging local resources and ingenuity.
Lucas said they would also be able to develop the conviction and resilience to implement transformative changes in spite of inherent risks and pushbacks.
“The curriculum is designed to be highly relevant, acknowledging the unique socio-economic and political contexts in which African executives operate,” she said.
The TEXEM programme seeks to be a pivotal force in cultivating a new generation of African chief executives who don’t just weather storms, but harness their energy to drive profound and lasting reform.
The director added that TEXEM’s track record of building over 4,000 African leaders demonstrates its ability to deliver value that translates into organisational transformation and national impact.
The November programme will feature globally recognised faculty with deep experience in leadership, governance, and diplomacy.
Among them are Prof. Nicholas Cheeseman, a leading scholar of good governance and accountability and former don at the University of Oxford.
Others are Dr T. B. (Mac) McClelland Jr., an expert in organisational leadership and former US Marine Corps leader, bestselling author; and Ambassador Charles Crawford CMG, a former UK diplomat and multiple award-winning communicator.
The UK Former Attorney General, Jeremy Wright MP, who also served in the UK Government as a member of the cabinet as Digital Secretary, will be a part of the faculties.
Participants will gain actionable insights into strategic decision-making in turbulent environments, financial risk management and contingency planning, leading through recession and recovery, and developing resilient business models.
They will also explore how digital innovation and data can be harnessed to unlock productivity and sustain long-term growth.
The fee for the four-day intensive is £5,500, discounted to £4,750, with an early payment option of £4,300 for those who register before Oct. 31. The fee covers study materials and certification.
Interested participants may contact TEXEM via +44 7425 883791 or email exec@texem.co.uk for registration.(NAN)
Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz
