The Regional Officer of IndustriALL across sub-Saharan Africa, Kenneth Mogane, has called for the reindustrialisation of Africa to create jobs for workers in the manufacturing sector. Noting that the continent faces more job losses due to an economic model in which countries in Africa rely on imported foods from larger economies like China, he said most countries are establishing storage facilities for sales and consumption.
Economic Model Challenges
Speaking recently, he alleged that for some, the economic model has become an easy money-making machine, making it more challenging for workers, who scramble for the few available jobs. He said the challenge called for workers to be resolute in their call for the reindustrialisation of Africa and the beneficiation of mineral resources on the continent.
Manufacturing for Job Creation
The IndustriALL chief said that if goods are manufactured in Africa, jobs can be created. According to him, with about 1.5 billion people in Africa, this is much clearer due to the large market across the continent. While he acknowledged the efforts of Dangote Group and other African multinational companies to reindustrialise the continent, he fumed that it was senseless that Nigeria, endowed with large oil reserves, had no refining capacity.
Emphasising that it was doable, Mogane said that for generations to come, it would become even easier when investing in the continent is considered. With ongoing wars in the Global South, he called on leaders to put an end to the sale of workers, warning that they have continued to ravage international markets and threaten food security.
Building Solidarity and Organising Workers
While advancing the course to build solidarity efforts, he said strategies needed to be developed for organising to grow membership along the value chain, including young digital workers, who will use their expertise and skills to attract their peers into the labour movement, bringing about transformation unions.
