African scholars, policymakers and diplomats are increasingly united in their recognition that Africa has long possessed—and continues to exercise—significant agency within the international system. This agency operates in a global environment marked by shifting alliances, intensifying multipolarity, and growing disorder. While these transformations undoubtedly pose risks to Africa’s position within the global order, there has never been a more opportune moment to move the debate beyond whether African agency exists. Instead, the critical challenge lies in interrogating how this agency is expressed and, crucially, how it is resourced. These questions formed the central focus of this year’s Global Edition of the African Public Square open debate, hosted at King’s College London.
At the heart of any effort to resource African agency lies the concept of dignity—both individual and collective. African dignity is not merely a moral or symbolic concern; it is foundational to enabling agency and to unlocking the continent’s capacity to reinvent itself and shape both emerging African futures and the evolving global landscape. Understanding dignity as the nucleus of agency underscores a fundamental truth: Africa’s ability to influence global affairs cannot be separated from deeper questions of power, voice, sovereignty, and representation. Agency, in this sense, is not only about participation in global processes, but about the terms of that participation and the structural conditions that make meaningful influence possible.
Accordingly, understanding this relationship requires situating the idea within the broader context of processes initiated by nationalist leaders towards independence. In the mid-twentieth century nationalist leaders argued that the struggle for development and self-autonomy is fundamentally linked to the restoration of dignity after centuries of colonial domination. In this sense, agency is not merely a matter of political independence, economic capability or diplomatic engagement. It is also embedded in the psychological, moral and African intellectual foundations that shape how societies understand themselves and how they interact with the world.
In many instances, the emphasis on dignity cannot be separated from the historical experience of colonialism. Colonial rule did not simply exploit African resources or impose foreign political authority. It also produced systems of knowledge and governance that portrayed African societies as inferior, incapable of self-rule and dependent on external guidance. These narratives became embedded in international institutions, academic discourse and development policy frameworks. For many African public intellectuals such as Steve Biko, Leopold Senghor, Kenneth Kaunda, Julius Nyerere and Kwame Nkrumah, political independence represented more than the transfer of formal authority from colonial administrations to newly sovereign states.
The restoration of dignity was seen as essential for rebuilding confidence in African institutions, cultures, and intellectual traditions.
This perspective is evident in the writings of figures such as Frantz Fanon, who argued in: The Wretched of the Earth that colonial domination inflicted profound psychological damage on colonised societies. Fanon emphasised that liberation does not only involve the removal of colonial power structures but also the reconstruction of self-respect and collective confidence among formerly colonised peoples. Thus, without such psychological transformation, the political independence of postcolonial states remains incomplete. Kwame Nkrumah, for instance, consistently linked political independence to the broader objective of restoring the dignity of African peoples within the international system. For Nkrumah, independence was meaningful only if it enabled African societies to pursue development on their own terms and to participate in global affairs as equals.
The relationship between dignity and agency becomes particularly visible when examining Africa’s role in global governance. Despite the significant human and natural resource strength of Africa, it has historically exercised ‘limited’ influence in many international decision-making structures. Institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, for example, have played major roles in shaping development policies across the continent. Yet African countries have often had limited representation within the governance structures of these institutions relative to the impact of their policies on African economies.
This imbalance reflects a broader issue of voice within the global system. In this instance, voice refers not only to the ability to participate in discussions but also to the capacity to shape the rules, norms and agendas that structure international cooperation. There is no sense of ownership of these policies due to lack of meaningful participation in their development and implementation, including their basic assumptions and conceptualisation. Without meaningful voice, states frequently find themselves responding to external policy frameworks rather than actively influencing them.
Closely connected to the question of voice is the issue of sovereignty. Sovereignty traditionally refers to the authority of a state to govern its territory and conduct its affairs without external interference. Following the period of decolonisation in the mid-twentieth century, African states formally achieved sovereignty as independent members of the international community. However, many scholars have argued that formal sovereignty does not automatically translate into substantive autonomy. Economic dependencies, unequal trade relationships and reliance on external financing can significantly constrain the policy choices available to governments. From this perspective, dignity and sovereignty are closely intertwined. A state that lacks the economic capacity to pursue independent policy choices may formally possess sovereignty but its agency in the global system remains limited.
Another dimension of dignity concerns representation: how Africa is portrayed and understood within the global knowledge systems. Historically, representations of Africa in academic literature, media narratives and policy discussions have often been shaped by external perspectives that emphasise crisis, poverty and instability. Such representations can influence international perceptions and policy decisions in ways that reinforce unequal relationships. When Africa is consistently depicted as a continent defined primarily by problems, it becomes easier for external actors to justify paternalistic policy approaches. It is, therefore, important to emphasise the importance of intellectual autonomy in shaping narratives about the continent. The work of Archie Mafeje is particularly influential in this regard. Mafeje criticised what he described as the domination of African studies by Western theoretical frameworks that often failed to capture the complexity and dynamism of African societies. For Mafeje, reclaiming dignity required the development of analytical frameworks grounded in African realities rather than imposed from external intellectual traditions. Such frameworks would enable African scholars and policymakers to articulate development strategies that reflect local priorities and experiences.
Taken together, these debates illustrate why dignity can be understood as the nucleus of agency. Agency involves the capacity to act strategically, articulate interests and shape outcomes within the international system. Yet the ability to exercise such capacity depends not only on material resources but also on the confidence, legitimacy and intellectual autonomy that dignity provides.
A society that perceives itself as capable and worthy of respect is more likely to invest in its institutions, defend its interests in international negotiations and pursue ambitious development strategies. Conversely, when dignity is undermined whether through unequal representation, intellectual marginalisation, or persistent economic dependency, agency becomes more difficult to sustain.
The idea that African dignity lies at the core of agency highlights the deeper moral and political dimensions of Africa’s engagement within the global system. Questions about power, voice and the future of the continent cannot be separated from debates about sovereignty, representation and the historical legacies that continue to shape global institutions. Restoring and sustaining dignity therefore remains a central task of the inter-generational conversation the African Public Square is advancing to provide public intellectual leadership for African societies. To strengthen economic and institutional capacities, expand Africa’s voice in international governance and foster intellectual traditions capable of interpreting and responding to global challenges from African perspectives. Ultimately, the pursuit of African agency becomes not a technical policy objective, but a broader project aimed at ensuring that African states and societies participate in the global system with confidence, authority and respect; conditions that lie at the heart of dignity.
Dr Shuvai Nyoni is the executive director of the African Leadership Centre, Nairobi.
For many African public intellectuals such as Steve Biko, Leopold Senghor, Kenneth Kaunda, Julius Nyerere and Kwame Nkrumah, political independence represented more than the transfer of formal authority from colonial administrations to newly sovereign states
