Fayemi To Deliver Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture In South Africa

The former governor of Ekiti State and executive chairman of the Amandla Institute for Policy and Leadership Advancement, Dr Kayode Fayemi, will deliver the 16th edition of the Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture on 25 May 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa.

A statement issued by the Head, Fayemi Media Office, Mallam Ahmad Sajoh, said the invitation was conveyed in a letter dated 1 May 2026, and signed by former South African president and patron of the Thabo Mbeki Foundation, Thabo Mbeki.

Africa Day is celebrated across the continent on 25 May every year. For 16 years, the Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture has served as an important flagship platform for African reflection, dialogue and continental engagement.

The statement explained that the event would take place in Cape Town, South Africa, under the theme, “Rebuilding African Unity in an Age of Fragmentation – Sovereignty, Solidarity and the Renewal of Institutions.”

The statement described Fayemi as a renowned pan-Africanist, an activist, and someone active in African policy, having been in government circles for the last four decades and, more recently, advocating for Africa’s active involvement in the changing global order.

Fayemi is currently a professor at the African Leadership Centre in the School of Global Affairs, King’s College, London and also president of the Forum of Regions of Africa – a pan-African forum of sub-sovereign states.

Previous speakers at the annual Thabo Mbeki Lecture include President Benjamin Mkapa of Tanzania; former secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity, Salim Ahmed Salim; Professors Mahmood Mamdani of Uganda, Abdoulaye Bathily of Senegal, and Toyin Falola of Nigeria, amongst others.