Gitelle Naitoli Nairobi, Kenya – When African leaders met in Addis Ababa on May 25, 1963 to establish the Organization of African Unity (which later became the African Union), the event became a symbol of continental liberation and is still known to many as “African Liberation Day.”
Sixty-three years later, as the continent celebrates Africa Day 2026, questions remain about the true concept of liberation.
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The term, whose dimensions were summarized in the past in the raising of flags and the national anthem, is now viewed through deep debates related to who controls wealth, technology, and global influence, and how this control shapes the details of daily life throughout the continent.
For the older generation, Africa Day represents a deeply moving milestone, reminding them of an arduous and dear victory over colonial rule and political oppression; A victory that reshaped the continent’s history.
Muzi Josephat Kimanthi (74 years old), a retired government employee who lives in the Machakos region of Kenya, says:
“We fought for our right to self-government, and we can never underestimate or take this political liberation for granted.”
“We thought that political freedom would automatically be followed by economic freedom. Instead, today I see my grandchildren suffering under the weight of the high cost of living, and struggling to pay off huge debts that we did not sign.”
Generation gap
However, Kimanthi also sees a steadily widening gap between generations, and a growing feeling that the promises of independence have not been fully translated into reality in our current era. In his conversation with Al Jazeera English, he added:
“We thought that political freedom would automatically be followed by economic freedom. Instead, today I see my grandchildren suffering under the weight of the high cost of living, and struggling to pay off huge debts that we did not sign.”
Many analysts and young Africans believe that issues of money, job opportunities, and economic control are now at the core of the concept of liberation.
The debate has shifted from formalities such as flags, borders, and the national anthem, to deeper questions about who runs the economy, who has the right to make financial decisions, and who actually benefits from the fruits of growth on the continent.
In several African countries, rising debt burdens have become an existential challenge that imposes severe constraints on governments’ public spending choices. Often, governments find their fiscal policies dependent on the results of negotiations with international financial institutions, which reduces the space for independent decision-making.
At the same time, African governments are trying to balance their relations between Western powers and China, as well as emerging economies and international blocs such as BRICS. Each front offers investments, loans, and strategic partnerships, which in turn carry their own terms and hidden influence.
Many African analysts and youth believe that the issues of money, job opportunities, and economic control are today at the core of the concept of liberation: “It is not possible to talk about true liberation when the continent produces what it does not consume, and consumes what it does not produce.”
Debt stress
In this context, Professor Paul Mbatia, from the Faculty of Social Sciences at Multimedia University of Kenya, told Al Jazeera:
“It is not possible to talk about true liberation when the continent produces what it does not consume, and consumes what it does not produce.”
Digital technology, initially promoted as a gateway to opportunity, inclusion, and economic growth, is also raising complex questions about ownership, control, and long-term dependency. Questions about who builds these systems, who owns the data, and who reaps the profits from the digital economy have become a central concern.
Many policymakers argue that the next stage of development in Africa will not depend on political ideologies, but rather will depend on the extent to which countries are able to transform their resources, workforce, and innovations into real industries that maintain value added within the continent rather than exporting it abroad raw.
They stress that the real test lies in the extent to which these transformations are able to bring about a tangible structural change in the working mechanism of African economies, so that they do not remain merely repeated promises in the corridors of politics without echo in the lived reality.
“To be honest, for my generation, Africa Day seems to be just a celebratory parade. We respect what the independence generation achieved, but that does not solve today’s problems. Emancipation for us is not a date to turn to, but a change in the systems that shackle our daily lives.”
Digital conflict front
This shift is clearly evident in the digital economy, where a new front in the struggle for influence has emerged.
Cities such as Nairobi, Lagos, and Kigali are witnessing the rapid proliferation of mobile money services, artificial intelligence applications, and digital infrastructure, making them prominent technological metropolises and symbols of the rapidly changing digital landscape.
However, critics warn that the backbone of this digital infrastructure remains controlled by outside powers; Submarine cables, data centers, and cloud computing systems are often built, financed, and owned by multinational technology companies.
“Our battle today is against corruption, mismanagement, high taxes, and security violations. We cannot talk about freedom while people suffer under the weight of their governments’ practices. Contemporary freedom means dignity, and the ability to build and innovate without guardianship or interference.”
In this regard, Amina Osei, a technology policy analyst at the African Center for Digital Governance in Accra, says:
“Digital extraction is the new face of neocolonialism. If African data is moved abroad to be processed in foreign servers and then sold back to us in the form of systems that we have to pay for, then we have replaced old colonial control with modern digital dependency. True freedom today means owning our technology, protecting our data, and building our own capabilities to develop our own platforms.”
This tension between pride in history and frustration with the current reality has deepened the gap between generations in their view of Africa Day. More than 60% of the continent’s population is under the age of twenty-five, and many of them believe that the anti-colonial struggle literature that prevailed in the 1960s no longer reflects their daily suffering with unemployment, rising prices, and economic turmoil.
In this context, Chinedu Nwosu (26 years old), a software developer living in Lagos, says:
“To be honest, for my generation, Africa Day seems to be just a celebratory parade. We respect what the independence generation achieved, but that does not solve today’s problems. Emancipation for us is not a date to turn to, but a change in the systems that shackle our daily lives.”
Nwosu explains that African youth are turning their compass inward, demanding more honest and accountable governments, rather than blaming external parties alone:
“Our battle today is against corruption, mismanagement, high taxes, and security violations. We cannot talk about freedom while people suffer under the weight of their governments’ practices. Contemporary freedom means dignity, and the ability to build and innovate without guardianship or interference.”
“The flags are raised for us, but the strings of the economy are still being pulled from the outside.”
The struggle is not complete
Thus, Africa Day is gradually stripped of its celebratory character throughout the continent, turning into a space for review and disclosure. It is a moment to evaluate how far the continent has come, and the distance that still separates it from translating political independence into a living economic reality.
Liberation is no longer viewed as a historical event that has been accomplished and ended, but rather as an ongoing process and experience whose chapters unfold one after the other. While political independence has laid the foundation stone, the next stage requires – according to many – achieving economic self-sufficiency, digital sovereignty, and enhancing transparency and public accountability.
Unless Africa’s resources, the innovations of its youth, and its workforce are translated into a tangible improvement in people’s lives, the liberation struggle will remain a story whose chapters are not yet complete. As Kimmanthi summed it up in his eloquent words:
“The flags are raised for us, but the strings of the economy are still being pulled from the outside.”
