Over the past century, Africa has been a continent of resilience, resistance, and relentless struggle. ‘Neo-colonial forces’, among other challenges, have worked tirelessly to undermine the sovereignty of African countries, exploit Africa’s vast resources, and keep its people impoverished.

Again and again, visionary leaders who championed Pan-Africanism and defied Western dominance were targeted, deposed, or assassinated. The same sorry script repeated as if Africans were still on the slave plantation. Their stories are not just historical footnotes—they are stark reminders of the ongoing battle for Africa’s self-determination, its wealth, and the very soul of the motherland.

Let’s begin with Patrice Lumumba, the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Lumumba sought prosperity for his people, advocating for African unity and independence. He envisioned a Congo free from colonial shackles, where its resources served its people—not foreign interests.

What many don’t know is that Lumumba first sought aid from the U.S., which refused to provide military support. Frustrated, he turned to the USSR which agreed to help. Soon, a thousand Soviet military advisors arrived in Congo—and that was the moment trouble began. Belgium had convinced the US and Britain that Lumumba was a communist, which wasn’t true.

In 1961, Lumumba was assassinated in a CIA-backed plot hatched by Belgian and British intelligence.

His murder sent a chilling message: that African leaders who challenge Western control will not be tolerated.

Fast forward to the 1980s, and we find Thomas Sankara, the revolutionary leader of Burkina Faso. His bold policies—nationalization, land redistribution, infrastructure development, women’s rights—threatened Western and neocolonial interests. In 1987, he was assassinated in a coup widely believed to have French involvement. Sankara’s vision of a self-reliant Africa was violently silenced, yet his legacy continues to inspire.

And the pattern didn’t stop.

In the 21st century, Muammar Gaddafi, Libya’s longtime leader, once welcomed by Western powers, fell out of favour when he proposed a gold-backed African currency. His goal? To reduce Africa’s dependence on Western financial systems. To reduce African dependence on the dollar. That made him a threat. In 2011, NATO-backed rebels deposed and murdered him, plunging Libya into chaos and undoing decades of progress. Compare what Libya is today and what it was in 1995 or 2000. Can you say there has been improvements?

Many other Pan-Africanist leaders have met suspicious ends. And while definitive evidence of Western involvement doesn’t always emerge, the pattern raises serious questions.

But today, a new wave of leaders is emerging in the Sahel:

• Captain Ibrahim Traoré in Burkina Faso
• General Abdourahamane Tchiani in Niger
• Colonel Assimi Goïta in Mali

And although they came to power through military coups, these leaders have so far been challenging Western hegemony, severing ties with former colonial powers, and forging new partnerships with nations like Russia and China. Their visions appears to be economic independence and self-reliance for Africa.

And so, if it is true that what these leaders want is for African land, resources and wealth returned to its rightful owners, and mineral wealth to benefit Africans—not just foreign corporations(and their shareholders), how can that be a bad thing? Considering all the poverty the continent has…

What is wrong with wanting poverty eradicated—not as a dream, but as a tangible and achievable goal? What is wrong with wanting unemployment for young people? High quality Hospitals, good level of Education?

And yet certain organisations tell African leaders repeatedly that these targets, these aspirations are unrealistic?!? Or that they would be too expensive.

Who gets to decide what is unrealistic or expensive? And how easy it is for countries that have been built on the back of exploitation to preach down condescendingly on developing countries, what they can or cannot do.

Traoré needs your support. The Alliance of Sahel States needs your help.

Captain Ibrahim Traoré stands out, and articles about him dominate online discussions, drawing massive engagement amongst Africans. His youth, charisma, and defiant stance against neocolonialism make him a beacon of hope—not just in Africa, but across the global Black diaspora and community.

People are saying: Finally, here’s a leader who wants to reclaim Africa’s glory, dignity, and wealth.

His leadership has restored the dream of an independent and self-sufficient Africa in many young people’s minds.

But what does this popularity mean? Where does the Traoré momentum go next?

I believe we don’t just need one Ibrahim Traoré—we need hundreds, thousands.

So then, if your wife or girlfriend is pregnant and you’re expecting a son, name him Ibrahim Traoré. If you have bought something and need to give it a name —a house, a hotel, a farm, a shop, your new truck, a cow, whatever valued resource or asset, name it Ibrahim Traoré.

Let the progressive and bold spirit he has shown spread across the continent like wildfire—the spirit of self-sufficiency, of standing up to exploitation, of rejecting neocolonial control. Of Clear, Tangible and Solid Fairness. Let that proliferate in popular culture, in literature, in song, in dance and in lore.

And while resistance alone isn’t enough. Let’s start to build more solid structures around this momentum.

Most deals corporations sign with African countries are unfair and one sided. They rob our nations of the much-needed resources for purchasing medicine, for funding poverty alleviation programs, to spend on education, and for food security.

Often, these so-called deals are accompanied with corrupt backdoor bribes, which the citizenry is unaware of…

Resource-rich countries across Africa continue to suffer while foreign corporations (and their shareholders) profit. Making Billions out of African resources, while African countries continue to struggle with lack of resources. While poverty continues to linger.

That can’t be right. Whatever lens you view this state of affairs, it can’t be right.

African leaders going forward need to secure fair contracts that truly serve African people—not just the now common dodgy agreements that profit a handful of corrupt and heartless politicians?

The entire African continent must rise.

For decades, institutions like the IMF and the World Bank have burdened Africa with debt, stalling its development. Pressuring it’s countries to sell valuable assets for a pittance – whole elected governments selling off valuable assets for peanuts because someone in Washington said so.

And the beneficiaries of these selloffs have often been western companies. Or individuals and companies connected to western companies.

We know the script, many Africans remember the history, so we haven’t forgotten. We won’t forget.

The exploitation needs to stop. And African leaders must gain inspiration from Burkina Faso to stop such practices.

In a few years’ time, Burkina Faso’s economy will overtake those of many African countries, even the larger ones. And that’s when your leaders’ embarrassment will hit home.

How is this small country in the Sahel able to achieve these incredible results when we, with our fresh water lakes and large rivers, our massive populations and beautiful cities, are struggling to grow our economies?

It’s the policies you’re putting in place now that are the problem.

So, if you want Africa to once again forge its own path. Our countries need to build their own institutions, and to reclaim their destinies. We need policies that favour wealth preservation, policies that favour local manufacturing, policies that create thousands of youth jobs.

The Pan-African dream is alive—in the streets of Ouagadougou, in the markets of Niamey, in the hearts of millions of people in Africa.

But dreams alone are not enough. How do we, for example, specifically translate this excitement into jobs for young people in our countries across Africa?

Action, unity, and an unwavering refusal to be exploited must follow. With an emphasis on the Action.

Let this be our call to action. Let’s honour the legacies of Lumumba, Sankara, and Gaddafi – men who wanted the best for their countries, by continuing their fight. African leaders need to enact policies that give resource control firmly to their peoples. The state should own large industry, and if corporations want to invest, they should come in as junior partners, and not the other way round.

In other words, if you need to procure equipment, buy that equipment as a government and use it to do the job that needs to be done. Don’t just sign a rubbish unfair contract with a foreign company, for work, which with some training over a couple of years, your own citizens can very competently do.

Let’s stand behind leaders like Traoré—not as saviours, but as catalysts for Africa’s liberation and development.

And let’s remember that freedom will not be given—it must be seized.

The time is now. The choice is ours.

As Africans, we should ask ourselves this: will we be the generation that finally breaks neocolonial chains, or will we let this moment slip away, and watch as the repressive events of the last 100 + years continue to haunt our countries, for another 100 years?

The world is watching. And history will judge us by our actions.