By: Linda Tsungirirai Masarira

For decades, Pan-Africanists have dreamt of a continent united not merely by geography but by a shared destiny. I, too, carry that dream. I long to witness the birth of the United States of Africa in my lifetime, though I am painfully aware that this dream is often dismissed as utopian. Why? Because the chains of colonization still cling tightly to our institutions, our minds, and our borders.

The African continent continues to grapple with the toxic residue of the Berlin Conference, where our borders were drawn not by our ancestors, but by European imperialists who saw our lands as resources and our people as pawns. Today, these artificial borders persist, cemented not by our will but by the fear of dismantling the fragile states that emerged from colonial rule. Our economies, legal systems, education models, and even our religions remain deeply tied to colonial frameworks. We continue to operate under inherited systems that were never meant to serve African liberation, prosperity, or unity.

One of the greatest inhibitors of African unity is religion, which was used during colonization to pacify, divide, and control. Today, while many Africans are spiritually devoted, religion remains a double-edged sword: uniting some while deepening divisions among others. It shapes loyalties, fuels sectarian politics, and often distracts from our collective socio-political agency. Until we confront how religion has been manipulated to fracture solidarity and suppress revolutionary consciousness, our dream of continental unity will remain stunted.

Another deep fracture lies in the linguistic divide between francophone and anglophone countries. This division was manufactured by colonial masters and has infiltrated our continental institutions from the African Union to regional blocs. It weakens our negotiating power, promotes intra-continental mistrust, and obstructs the formation of unified policies. The remnants of French neo-colonial control, such as the CFA franc, are not just economic tools. They are chains preventing true sovereignty for many African states.

Despite these challenges, I believe that the United States of Africa is not only desirable. It is necessary.

What Must Be Done? A Roadmap to African Unity

1. Re-education for Liberation
   Africa needs a Pan-African education curriculum that dismantles colonial narratives and builds a shared identity rooted in African history, philosophy, and values. Our youth must grow up learning about Nkrumah, Nyerere, Lumumba, and Sankara, not just Shakespeare and Napoleon. Language is key: we must elevate African indigenous languages and promote Swahili, Arabic, and other widely spoken African languages as tools for continental dialogue.

2. Economic Integration Through AfCFTA The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a major step toward unity. But it must go beyond tariffs and trade. It must uplift local industries, create Pan-African value chains, and empower women and youth entrepreneurs. For the United States of Africa to emerge, we must own our economies, process our raw materials, and trade with each other before the rest of the world.

3. Dismantling Neocolonial Structures We must exit neocolonial currency systems like the CFA franc, demand reparations for slavery and colonialism, and challenge Western-led financial institutions that continue to dictate our policies. Africa needs its own financial institutions that operate on Pan-African principles and serve African development not extractive global capitalism.

4. Establishing a Continental Political Authority A gradual harmonization of legal, electoral, and governance systems is essential. We must envision a continental parliament with real legislative power not just a ceremonial one. Leadership must rotate, represent all regions, and be grounded in Ubuntu and indigenous African governance models, not foreign imitations.

5. Cultural Reclamation and Media Sovereignty African unity starts with African identity. Our film, music, literature, and digital media must be used to shape a common African consciousness. Let us reclaim our stories and protect our cultural products from foreign appropriation and erasure.

6. Strategic Youth Mobilization
Over 60% of Africa’s population is under 25. We must turn this demographic bulge into a Pan-African force. Through civic education, digital platforms, arts, and entrepreneurship, young people must lead the charge toward unity, rejecting the politics of division, ethnicity, and colonial mimicry.

7. Healing and Reconciliation
Africa must confront its internal wounds. From Rwanda to Darfur, from Biafra to Congo, we must hold truth-telling processes to heal and reconcile. A divided Africa can not unite. We need a continental truth and justice process to address inter-ethnic and intra-national conflicts.

A Call to Pan-African Courage

The United States of Africa will not come from leaders who chase foreign validation. It will not be born from summit declarations or press releases. It must come from the people from a Pan-African consciousness that defies borders, linguistic divides, and the poison of tribalism.

We must reimagine power, redraw borders if necessary, and build unity not from the top down but from the grassroots up. Let us not wait for the perfect conditions. Let us create them through bold action and resolute belief.

Let us not ask whether the dream of a United States of Africa is possible. Let us ask: What am I doing today to make it inevitable?

Or maybe to avoid confusion it can be name United Nations of Afrika. #FoodForThought

About the Author
Linda Tsungirirai Masarira is a Pan-Africanist, human rights activist, labour consultant, and President of the Labour Economists and Afrikan Democrats (LEAD). She envisions a united, sovereign, and self-reliant Africa governed by African values and people-centered systems.