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56 FROM AID TO COOPERATION© Reutersbroken by centuries of slave trade andbrutal colonisation. They must activelynurture their self-confidence and selfrelianceto devise and implement their owndevelopment action plans.To build up their self-confidence,Africans must counteract externalmisconceptions with their own narrativesbased on reality. For instance, rather thanallowing themselves to be lured into a falsesense of optimism by the current ‘Africarising’ discourse promoted by foreignanalysts, Africans could develop theirown realistic yet inspiring and powerfulnarrative: the ‘building Africa’ vision.Being an African in the 21st centuryis to have a unique opportunity to makehistory by building and developing acontinent rich in natural, human, culturaland other resources. No one with Africa’sbest interest at heart would lend credibilityto the claim that it is rising while mostAfrican populations do not benefit fromits wealth, and while they are relying onforeign interventions to protect them fromcivil wars, ebola epidemics, etc.It is imperative to acknowledge thatforeign handouts will never be conduciveto Africa’s development. African leadersshould not be allowed to use foreignaid and international NGOs’ work as amagic carpet to ride through corruption,incompetence, oppression and disregardfor citizens’ welfare.Nobody, African or otherwise, has abasic human right to be a ruler. Whoevercannot use their country’s resourcesto feed and protect their people, buildschools or hospitals, and generate nationaldevelopment should leave power, not relyon foreign governments and NGOs to dothese things.Ending Africa’s dependence on foreignhandouts will trigger social, political andstructural reforms leading to the rule oflaw, peace, transparency and democraticaccountability that Africans need to useas resources to develop their countries.Botswana and Mauritius, which aredemocratic, peaceful, non-dependent onforeign handouts, and richer than, say,China in terms of GDP per capita, showthat this is not an unachievable goal forAfrican nations.Partners of African countries needto develop new, bold and forwardthinkingpolicies based on evidenceand enlightened self-interest, ratherSupporters cheer Mauritian Prime MinisterNavinchandra Ramgoolam during a rally in the capital,Port Louis. Mauritius is a rare example of a peaceful,democratic and relatively prosperous African nationthan age-old myths. For instance, theimplementation of initiatives aimedat promoting transparency, peace anddemocratic accountability on the onehand, and responsible entrepreneurshipby Western companies operating in Africaon the other hand, would be far moreeffective in terms of preventing the Westfrom losing ground to the emergingeconomies in Africa, than the currentemphasis on foreign aid.Equally, distancing themselves from thevulture policies that the ‘save Africa’ mythcompels them to adopt – such as the use ofpictures of dead and starving Africans toobtain donations and trigger humanitarianinterventions – would enable internationalNGOs to focus their resources on moreproactive and effective policies. Theseinclude tracking and repatriating lootedfunds, fighting tax evasion by multinationalcompanies, and combating the distortionof global trade by developed countries’agricultural subsidies.GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT GOALS 2014