President Paul Kagame has called on African countries to take greater responsibility for the continent's development, saying progress will depend less on external promises and more on collaboration among Africans themselves.

Speaking during a plenary session on green industrialisation and energy transition at the inaugural Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi on Tuesday, May 12, Kagame said Africa can no longer afford to rely on commitments from outside partners that often fail to translate into concrete action.

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"Many promises have been made to Africa, which have never materialized into anything tangible. Is this unfair? Yes. But ultimately, as Africans, we must take responsibility before anyone else," Kagame told African and French chief executives during the plenary.

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"No world leader, no matter how big the country, is going to save our continent from itself. Conversations like these should remind us that through collaboration, we can overcome all the obstacles ahead of us," he added.

ALSO READ: Africa Forward Summit, signalling a new era of Africa-France partnership

Co-hosted by Kenyan President William Ruto and French President Emmanuel Macron, the summit is being held under the theme "Africa Forward: Africa-France Partnership for Innovation and Growth."

The two-day event has brought together more than 4,000 participants, including over 25 African heads of state and government, business leaders, investors, and innovators to discuss practical investment opportunities and future cooperation between Africa and France.

Organisers say the gathering aims to move beyond traditional donor-recipient frameworks and focus instead on implementation-driven partnerships, with emphasis on bankable investments in energy access, digital transformation, health systems, and food sovereignty.