Abstract
The main purpose of this study is to investigate the role of African humanism values in the process of promoting good governance for sustainable development in Africa. The African continent has the potential to attain governance and sustainable development, however it is currently facing the challenges of poverty, corruption, environmental degradation, violent conflicts, ethnic and regional tensions and inequality. As a result of these challenges, Africa is one of the least developed continents in the world, therefore it can be assumed that development policies on the African continent favour bad governance, as they are they are not successful in achieving good governance and sustainable development. Therefore, exploring African humanism as an alternative to achieving good governance and sustainable development is justified. The research approach used in this study is qualitative approach and the research design taken is exploratory descriptive approach as the main focus was based on textual data. The concept of African humanism promotes equality of all human beings, thus equal rights and opportunities, not exploiting humans, it fosters unity for peacebuilding and promotes hard work and resilience as all these aspects are necessary if good governance and sustainable development are to be achieved. African humanism therefore seeks to boost human dignity and welfare.
Ubuntu sums up the meaning of African humanism, as it is the very essence of being human. It is a world view that is immersed in African culture which is different from the Western culture, which may be the reason for the failure of implementation of development policies as the West and Africa are different contexts. African humanism appreciates indigenous knowledge and puts the emphasis on interdependence which is beneficial for the attainment of sustainable development. Every continent has a world view which guides their way of life, however on the African continent Africans are constantly in a dilemma as they have to choose between Western traditions and those rooted in Africa forcing people to adopt a world view that is not their own. In this case, this is a huge injustice, and may be the reason why development projects never reach fruition. Some of the findings of the study include; African humanism promotes home-grown democracy, human rights, consensus, and sustainable development, just to mention a few. Therefore, African humanism may be the value system that Africa needs if the future of good governance and sustainable development is to be successful.
Key words; African humanism, good governance, sustainable development, colonialism, Ubuntu.