Africa is facing summit fatigue, here is how to beat it
President of Kenya William Ruto speaks during a climate change summit at the Pan African Parliament in Midrand, South Africa on May 17, 2023. PHOTO | IHSAAN HAFFEJEE | ANADOLU AGENCY via AFP
Summits are the mortal enemy of a leader’s diary. African heads of state could attend a summit– regional, continental, global – every week if they were so minded. Preparation, travel and attendance take bites out of schedules, reducing time to focus on pressing domestic concerns.
It can sometimes be hard to connect the time invested in summits to tangible outcomes. As a result, there’s no doubt summit fatigue has set in among African leaders and their advisers in recent years.
