20100614
africanews

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation has announced, for the second time in two years, the decision not to award any winner for its Ibrahim Prize, awarded to former African leaders with outstanding governance records.

According to a statement issued by the Foundation, on Sunday, the Prize Committee, after deliberations on Saturday, could not select any winner for the 2010 Mo Ibrahim Prize.

The same Prize Committee, last year, failed to announce a winner after it had considered what it called some “credible candidates.” The committee said this year there had been no new candidates or new developments.

The Ibrahim Prize, the first of its kind in Africa, is the brainchild of Sudanese born business mogul, Dr. Mohamed "Mo" Ibrahim, one of Africa’s most successful business entrepreneurs. He launched his Mo Ibrahim Foundation which has the support of remarkably respectable global figures, including Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela and Amartya Sen.

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation seeks to encourage good leadership and participatory governance in a continent that has been blighted by corruption, civil strife and all sorts of problems hindering development.

It does so by awarding a “democratically elected former African Executive Head of State or Government who has served their term in office within the limits set by the country's constitution and has left office in the last three years.”

It consists of US$5million over 10 years and US$200,000 annually for life thereafter. The Foundation will consider granting a further $200,000 per year, for 10 years, towards public interest activities and good causes espoused by the successful winner.

Former Mozambican head of state, Joaquim Chissano, made history in 2007 when he became the first awardee of the luxurious prize. The following year, former President Festus Mogae of Botswana won it. Nelson Mandela was made an Honorary Laureate in 2007 in recognition of his extraordinary leadership qualities and achievements, having left office well before the prize was established.

“The standards set for the Prize winner are high, and the number of potential candidates each year is small. So it is likely that there will be years when no Prize is awarded. In the current year, no new candidates emerged,” Mo Ibrahim, the founder and Chairman of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, said in a statement, reacting to the latest development.

And he added: “Whether there is a winner or not, the purpose of the Foundation is to challenge those in Africa and across the world to debate what constitutes excellence in leadership.”

The Sudanese businessman went on to assure that the Board respects the decision of the Prize Committee not to select a winner for the 2010 prize. He described the Committee as an independent one with a “unique repository of experience and expertise.”

This development will be considered by many as another indication of the unimpressive trend of governance on the continent. But this is not so, according to the statement by the Ibrahim Foundation.

It states: “Many African countries are making great strides not just economically, but also in terms of their governance. The Ibrahim Index, which measures the performance of African countries across around 80 governance criteria, indicates that the overall standard of governance is improving.”

It however added that “the Foundation is anything but complacent about the standards of governance in Africa. Its mission is to improve governance and nurture leadership in Africa. It is clear that much more needs to be done. It is for that reason that the Foundation has decided to promote complementary initiatives.

Future African leaders’ fellowship

Meanwhile, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation has also announced a new initiative geared towards preparing a new crop of future African leaders. The ‘Ibrahim Leadership Fellowships’ is set to be launched shortly, according to the Foundation.

A selective programme designed to identify and prepare the next generation of outstanding African leaders, the Foundation said it will seek to do so by providing them with mentoring opportunities in key multilateral institutions.

“The programme will seek to attract a number of highly qualified and talented professionals each year to serve in leading institutions whose core objective is to improve the prospects of the people of Africa,” the statement said.

It added: “The Foundation is currently working with pan-African organisations to design the fellowships. It will announce further details of them at the Foundation’s annual celebration and forum on governance to be held in Mauritius in November. Applications will open shortly afterwards and we expect the first Leadership Fellows to begin their Fellowships early next year.”

The Ibrahim Prize Committee comprises seven high profile individuals, among them former United Nations Secretary-General and Nobel Laureate Kofi Annan; former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Nobel Laureate Mohamed ElBaradei; and Graça Machel, Chancellor of the University of Cape Town in South Africa, and former Minister of Education and Culture in Mozambique.

“The task of promoting good African leadership is more important than ever. Good governance is crucial if African people are to share in the strong economic growth that many are predicting for Africa. There are many ways to support great leadership. The prize is one such way, the fellowships will be another,” the statement concluded.