非洲人想要的未来（英）

© European Union Institute for Security Studies, 2021.The views expressed in this publication are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.BRIEF / 14Jun 2021THE FUTURE AFRICANS WANTWhen optimism is powerbyE. Gyimah-BoadiChairman of the Board, AfrobarometerJoseph AsunkaChief Executive Officer, AfrobarometerINTRODUCTIONThe middle of a pandemic that has stopped the world in its tracks may seem like a surprising time to focus our attention on Africa’s future. Covid-19 has triggered lockdowns and school closures, caused job losses, postponed elections (1) and forced us to fix our gaze on the here and now: on staying healthy today, on putting food on the table today, on protecting people’s rights and dignity today. However, a shock like this pandemic also creates an imperative for strategic foresight.As Africa prepares for a post-Covid world, we must take stock of people’s lived experiences and ex-pectations if we are to build back better. What are Africans’ aspirations for their lives and those of their children? How are they thinking about the future and what can they do to shape it? What assets are citi-zens willing to invest to further their collective am-bitions, and how can governments and development actors best harness them? This policy Brief taps into Afrobarometer (2) survey data to map people’s aspira-tions for the next decade and their willingness to take action to achieve their goals (detailed information on Afrobarometer surveys and methods can be found in endnote 2). Rather than using abstract scenarios Summary ›This policy Brief opens the EUISS Imagine Africa series, which provides a platform for African experts to do foresight analy-sis on priority areas for Africa-Europe co-operation. The first cycle (2021-2022) fo-cuses on the theme of ‘people-centered development’. ›African people demand self-sufficiency and autonomy, as well as democracy and trans-parent, accountable and responsive govern-ance. However, African decision-makers are not always receptive to citizen engagement, according to Afrobarometer surveys. ›Not harnessing the energy and will of citi-zens deprives African countries of input legitimacy and valuable political, social and financial capital that is vital to achieve core development goals and solve prob-lems. Countries where citizen engagement is higher show greater optimism about the future and deliver better policy outcomes. ›Strengthening government transparency and building a collaborative relationship between citizens and the state can yield sig-nificant returns, allowing African countries to implement a new, people-driven ap-proach to development. This could be a pri-ority for international and EU support. 2E. GyImAh-BoAdI ANd JoSEPh ASUNKAor models to build a vision of the future, we asked people directly where they want to go and how they think they can get there (3). Our analysis is grounded in the perspectives of ordinary citizens, their views on the i