Why development tarries in Africa: an essay on resource UN-utilisation

Africa stands at one of the most important moments in its modern history. The continent possesses extraordinary opportunities presented by abundant natural resources, rapid technological advancement, expanding regional markets through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and one of the youngest populations in the world. At the same time, it continues to face persistent challenges associated with poverty, unemployment, institutional weakness, environmental degradation, low industrialization, and inadequate infrastructure.Many books have attempted to explain why development remains elusive across much of Africa. Most attribute the continent's challenges to colonial legacies, dependency, corruption, globalization, poor governance, or the resource curse. While these explanations remain valuable, they often treat Africa's developmental challenges as broad historical phenomena without sufficiently explaining how resources fail to generate prosperity.