London: As the global economy faces a persistent threat of fragmentation, African leaders have been advised to leverage this opportunity by pursuing strategic autonomy to thrive.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Caroline Lucas, a director from TEXEM UK, a leadership development organization based in the United Kingdom, emphasized the need for Africa to focus on reconfiguring its economic strategies. This call was made through a statement on www.texem.co.uk. Lucas highlighted Africa’s evolving role in a new geopolitical era characterized by global fragmentation and the quest for supply chain resilience.
Lucas, responsible for special projects at TEXEM, noted that while major powers engage in decoupling and friend-shoring, Africa is being repositioned from a peripheral supplier to a potential cornerstone of new, diversified supply chains. She identified critical minerals and natural resources in Africa as key drivers for this reconfiguration.
“Africa holds a significant share of global reserves of criti
cal 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 explained.
Discussing intra-African integration, Lucas pointed to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as the primary mechanism for reconfiguring supply chains within the continent. 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 further stated that 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 approach allows the continent to leverage global competit
ion to secure better investment, technology transfer, and infrastructure development, which are critical for supply chain upgrades.
Lucas emphasized that import dependence reflects a failure of strategic economic sovereignty and poses a liability in a fragmented global economy. She urged African leaders to transition from managing scarcity and vulnerability to designing prosperity through robust and mutually reinforcing interdependence.
TEXEM is hosting a programme for African leaders and chief executives, aiming to aid them in implementing leadership development goals. The high-level executive development programme is specifically designed to help African executives respond effectively to the increasing waves of global economic uncertainty and domestic challenges faced by the continent.
The programme, themed “Navigating Economic Uncertainty Successfully: Strategic Leadership in Turbulent Times,” will take place from Nov. 24 to Nov. 27 in Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. It will gather senior executives from
both the public and private sectors.
The upcoming programme will explore how to distill an organization’s mission and priorities when resources are scarce and the environment is volatile. Participants will learn techniques for developing high-impact solutions with limited capital, leveraging local resources and ingenuity. Lucas noted that they would also develop the conviction and resilience to implement transformative changes despite inherent risks and pushbacks.
The curriculum acknowledges the unique socio-economic and political contexts in which African executives operate. TEXEM aims to cultivate a new generation of African chief executives who harness the energy of challenges to drive profound and lasting reforms.
TEXEM’s track record of building over 4,000 African leaders demonstrates its ability to deliver value that translates into organizational transformation and national impact. The November programme will feature globally recognized faculty with deep experience in leadership, governance, and dip
lomacy.
Among the faculty are Prof. Nicholas Cheeseman, a scholar of good governance and accountability; Dr. T. B. (Mac) McClelland Jr., an expert in organizational leadership; Ambassador Charles Crawford CMG, a former UK diplomat; and Jeremy Wright MP, former UK Attorney General. Participants will gain insights into strategic decision-making in turbulent environments, financial risk management, and developing resilient business models.
The programme fee 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 [email protected] for registration.