PM Anwar Calls on Young Malaysians and Africans to Break Free from ‘Colonial Mentality’
By Saraswathi Muniappan
ADDIS ABABA, Nov 20 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has urged young Malaysians and Africans to consciously break free from a lingering ‘colonial mentality’ and imperialist cultures to secure a just and progressive future based on their own strengths.
He stressed that societies and countries that have achieved independence should be free to shape their own destinies, adding that young people must be directly involved in reconstructing their countries and economies.
“Hence, youths must deliberate and decide for themselves in shaping Africa and Asia’s future,” he said, highlighting the importance of youth participation in national development.
Such a mindset is crucial, he added, because “even decades after the end of colonial rule, many societies still carry psychological and cultural remnants of subjugation”.
“The colonial mentality persists, with independent countries sometimes behaving more like colonial masters,” he said when delivering his lecture ‘Bridging Civilisations, Building Futures: Strengthening Afro-Malaysia Partnership for Shared Prosperity’ in the Ethiopian capital on Thursday.
Anwar is currently on an official visit to Ethiopia, which is the first stop of his Africa tour that also includes South Africa and Kenya.
Addressing a mostly young Ethiopian audience, he said: “We have fought against slavery and colonialism, but we should not be slavish in our mentality and attitude.”
He warned that failing to break away from such a mindset could lead nations away from the values of justice and freedom they once fought for.
“If Asia and Africa truly want to chart a better future, then its people, especially the youth, must have the confidence to let go of the mentality that once kept them subdued,” Anwar said.
Also present at the lecture were Ethiopia’s Minister of Women and Social Affairs, Ergoge Tesfaye, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa, and Embassy of Malaysia in Ethiopia Chargé d'Affaires Ad Interim Mohd Afandi Abu Bakar.
The Afro-Malaysia Youth Forum, titled ‘Youth Partnership for Shared Prosperity’ and co-organised by the Ethiopian Youth Council, Pan-Africa Youth Union and the Malaysian Youth Council, drew 250 participants.
Ergoge, meanwhile, highlighted that youth development requires not only programmes but also systems, access, and equality, while also expressing Ethiopia’s interest in collaborating with Malaysia to enhance youth capacity, including exchange programmes, joint innovation hubs and research initiatives.
By 2050, Africa’s youth population is projected to double to over 830 million, with the continent’s working-age population rising from 849 million in 2024 to 1.56 billion, accounting for 85 per cent of the global workforce increase, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation (OECD).
Anwar’s three-day visit, which began on Nov 18, marks the first by a Malaysian Prime Minister to the ‘Horn of Africa’.
From Addis Ababa, the prime minister will visit Johannesburg in South Africa from Nov 20-23 to attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit and thereafter Nairobi in Kenya from Nov 23-24, before heading home.
-- BERNAMA
