The key failure of the post-colonial state in Africa, transcending both ideology and individual personality, is a refusal to grasp the importance of succession planning.
This failure haunts every sector, from politics to the economy, to the very way society itself is structured. Without a plan for the future, there is neither map nor compass, leaving the ship of state adrift and directionless.
Consequently, Africa has witnessed decades of motion without meaningful movement, unlike countries such as India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brazil, which embraced long-term planning and institutional continuity.
Without succession planning, orderly progression through conventions and consensus becomes impossible. The most enduring democracies are sustained by what can be described as a National Democratic Agreement — unwritten rules accepted across the political spectrum regarding the key foundations upon which the state rests.
In the United Kingdom, for instance, a post-war consensus established welfare and social housing as stabilizing pillars of democracy. Germany’s tripartite collaboration among government, private sector and labour unions has equally strengthened its democratic stability, while Scandinavian countries have achieved enviable socioeconomic systems through similar consensus-driven governance.
Africa’s inability to build such enduring agreements has produced devastating consequences, trapping millions in poverty and hopelessness.
Succession planning begins with consensus on the nature and goals of the state itself. There must be broad agreement on long-term national objectives spanning ten, fifteen or even twenty years, irrespective of which political party is in power.
Governments may differ in priorities, but the overarching national vision must remain intact. Central to succession planning is the deliberate cultivation of capable individuals to implement national goals.
Without competent managerial capacity, even the best policies will collapse. Countries like China and India have demonstrated the importance of building efficient civil services rooted in merit and intellectual preparation.
China’s famed “Mandarin” public service system has for centuries safeguarded the nation through periods of crisis while propelling it into global economic prominence. Even reforms in the United States civil service under President Theodore Roosevelt were influenced by admiration for the Chinese model.
Nigeria itself emerged from an administrative philosophy rooted in rational planning. The British administrative tradition, later codified in the Haldane Report of 1918, had already influenced colonial governance before amalgamating the Northern and Southern Protectorates in 1914.
That integration was conceived as both a fiscal and political strategy for sustainable administration.
India provides perhaps the clearest example of succession planning through meritocracy.
Every year, over one million Indians begin the process of seeking entry into the Union civil service. Through an intensely rigorous process, that number is eventually reduced to fewer than a thousand candidates admitted into key managerial positions.
The demanding system has helped transform India into the world’s sixth-largest economy, with projections placing it among the top three economies by 2050.
For Nigeria, the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must reverse the mentality of the rentier state by articulating a national ethos capable of outliving its tenure in office. Such a vision requires the development of a disciplined cadre of public servants and party members imbued with shared values and national purpose.
Functioning democracies understand the importance of grooming young people early through ideological and civic education. Across advanced democracies, political parties organize youth camps and educational programmes to introduce teenagers to governance, public finance and democratic principles.
Young people are taught the meaning of separation of powers, budgeting and public administration. A former minister or local government chairman may explain governance in practical terms, helping to cultivate informed future leaders. This deliberate mentorship process builds a stable political culture and a sustainable national ethos.
Examples abound. Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown joined the Labour Party as a teenager and rose steadily through political mentorship and activism. Similarly, Scottish politician Mhairi Black began political engagement in her youth before becoming one of the youngest Members of Parliament in British history. Such examples demonstrate how democracies nurture future leadership from an early stage.
Nigeria’s political parties, however, often operate merely as vehicles for electoral ambition rather than institutions grounded in ideology or philosophy. This weakens succession planning and undermines democratic continuity.
The private sector, by contrast, offers lessons in institutional endurance. Procter & Gamble (P&G), one of the world’s most successful corporations, built its reputation on a philosophy of promoting talent strictly from within.
The company views external recruitment for strategic leadership roles as evidence of succession failure. Succession planning, therefore, must become a central pillar of Nigeria’s political economy.
Leadership should not be viewed as a desperate scramble for survival or self-preservation. In healthy democracies, governance is a relay race in which each leader builds upon the achievements of predecessors rather than dismantling them. Success should be measured not only by projects completed but also by the quality of leadership handed over to successors.
It is in this context that Ekiti State Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji deserves commendation for choosing the theme “Building Legacies: Governance, Successor-generation and Continuity” for his April 14 discourse at Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD). The lecture highlighted the urgent need for Nigeria to return to serious intellectual discourse as the foundation for sustainable development.
The article also reflects on the recent decision of the United Arab Emirates to leave the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), echoing similar exits by Angola and Qatar. The development raises critical questions about Nigeria’s continued membership in the cartel — questions Chief Obafemi Awolowo had already raised as far back as 1978 during the presidential campaign season.
Unfortunately, rather than engage the issue intellectually, critics reduced the debate to sentiments and distractions. Today, the UAE’s decision vindicates Awolowo’s call for hard economic calculations in national policy.
Governor Oyebanji’s decision to hold his lecture at ABUAD is equally symbolic. The university, founded in 2009, has rapidly built a reputation for academic excellence and institutional integrity.
Modern universities, the article argues, must evolve beyond traditional definitions by combining technological advancement with human development and societal transformation. ABUAD exemplifies this new direction. To sustain such progress, state governments must overhaul educational curricula to prepare students for future competitiveness.
In a knowledge-driven society like Ekiti, coding and digital literacy should begin from primary school. Educational institutions must become pipelines for innovation and leadership development, preventing the emergence of “accidental leaders” who lack preparation and vision.
Countries such as India, Malaysia, Singapore and the UAE have demonstrated that national transformation requires structured mentoring, long-term planning and institutional continuity. Nigeria’s persistent underperformance stems largely from the absence of these systems.
Building enduring legacies, therefore, demands carefully designed succession planning. Just as the quality of cocoa beans determines the quality of chocolate, the quality of leadership preparation determines the strength of institutions and governance outcomes. Poor succession inevitably damages the reputation and future of the state.
The article concludes by stressing that succession planning is not about imposing successors or anointing candidates. Rather, it is about embedding enduring programmes, values and institutions capable of surviving beyond individual tenures. For leaders like Governor Oyebanji, true legacy will lie not merely in achievements recorded during office but in establishing systems and visions that continue to drive progress long after they have left power.
As the writer poignantly concludes, succession planning is the hardest but most necessary final kilometre of leadership. May Nigeria find the wisdom to embrace it.
