The President of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP), H.E. Chief Fortune Charumbira, delivered a compelling keynote address at the inaugural 2025 Rural Investment Summit (RIS), officially launching Africa’s newest and most influential platform dedicated to rural transformation, traditional leadership, and sustainable investment.
Held in South Africa and aligned with the country’s hosting of the G20 Summit 2025, the RIS brings together traditional leaders, governments, investors, and innovators to reimagine the future of Africa’s rural economies—rooted in heritage, driven by innovation, and positioned for global progress.
In his address, the PAP President emphasized that Africa’s journey toward true independence remains incomplete without resolving the land question, particularly in South Africa. “South Africa, and indeed the continent, will never gain full independence if the land question is not resolved. Without this, the political independence gained in 1994 will not serve its purpose,” he said, urging policymakers to advance equitable and sustainable land reforms.
He described South Africa’s role as G20 host as a defining moment. “South Africa must seize this opportunity and demonstrate leadership for both the continent and the developing world,” he stated, encouraging the government to leverage the platform for long-term national and regional gains.
Highlighting Africa’s demographic strengths, the President underscored the need to prepare a future that meaningfully includes the youth, noting that the continent has the world’s most youthful population. “We must create policies that accompany young people from education to jobs to health. Their future is Africa’s future,” he stressed.
Chief Fortune Charumbira also drew attention to the urgent need to revitalise rural areas, warning that communities continue to depopulate due to poor service delivery. “People are running away from rural areas because of the lack of basic services. Make rural areas attractive and people will not seek to go to big cities,” he said, adding that rural investment is critical for sustainable development.
On governance, he cautioned that democracy must deliver tangible change. “Democracy is a means to change the lives of the people. It is useless if it has not brought water or improved livelihoods,” he remarked, calling for people-centred governance.
A key portion of his speech focused on the centrality of traditional leadership and cultural identity in Africa’s development trajectory. He lamented that modern institutions often duplicate roles historically played by traditional leaders, reflecting what he termed “a mistake Africa made.” He emphasized that no country has achieved progress by abandoning its cultural heritage. “From China to Germany, development went hand in hand with culture. If you ignore traditional leadership or fail to give it a central role, you are creating disaster. Africa must return to its roots and promote its culture,” he urged.
The 2025 Rural Investment Summit marks a significant step toward reshaping Africa’s rural narrative. Through strong partnerships, renewed cultural confidence, and inclusive policies, the Summit aims to unlock the continent’s vast rural potential and ensure that development reaches communities often left behind.
