The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is billed to be a game-changer for the African continent, to propel intra-African trade, boost economic growth and lift millions of Africans out of poverty. The AfCFTA has also been born in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 in keeping with global and regional human development aspirations. Since the wind of democratisation began blowing across Africa in the 1990s, there has been concerted advocacy to ensure that human development is done from a rights-based perspective. Accordingly, efforts have been made to mainstream the normative and institutional structures of the African human rights system as regards the promotion and protection of social, economic and cultural rights into continental developmental policies, albeit with limited success.

My purpose in this paper is to provide insights into the mechanics behind the statuquo ante prevailing within the franc zone even though most African countries in general and former French colonies in particular obtained their “independence” from France in the early 1960s following decades of colonisation. Such statuquo is rendered by the formula “plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose” loosely translated as the more it changes the more it remains the same. In the upcoming developments, l will portray the extent to which French colonialism in Africa has never stopped and was simply merged with the current economic and political structures across “former colonies” and moved underground. I will unpack the whole mechanic taking place behind the scene and in so doing, I portray the extent to which what is actually displayed for the public eye to witness has nothing to do with what lies beneath the surface.

With the advent of democracy in South Africa in 1994, the government is committed to transform the society into an equalitarian one. Starting with the adoption of the 1996 constitution as well as numerous policies to turn it normative commitment into reality, the country became a good constitutional democracy and the most developed on the continent. Yet it is marred by a paradox: On the one hand, it is one the largest economies in Africa, and its constitutions is considered one the best in the world. On the other hand, the country is characterised by massive poverty, huge unemployment and considered one of the most unequal country in the world. While this paradox is playing out in the country, the Zondo Commission on the State Capture unveiled how the political elite and main actors in the private sector have been travelling to Dubai and other exotics places to hide the proceeds of illegally or immorally acquired funds, or channel these funds abroad without travelling. This is the manifestation of illicit financial flows (IFFs) which was also revealed through the Panama papers that exposed numerous South Africans on the list of those hiding stolen money in save heavens. In the same vein, the 2014 financial integrity report revealed that from 2003-2012 , the country lost trillions of dollars to IFFs.

It is against this backdrop that this paper will examine the impact of IFFs in frustrating the South African transformation agenda which seeks to foster the right to equality, and improve the well-being of the entire population. To this end the research examines the political economy of IFFs including their forms and effects on the South Africa’s development and transformative agenda as whole. As part of assessing the impact of IFFs on the country’s transformative agenda, the paper explores the linkages between development and financial transparency, examines the data on IFFs from South Africa and their correlation with extreme poverty, unemployment and inequality, before mapping the way forward in providing remedies to the problem.

Intellectual property contributes to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in various ways. Most African economies are based on extractive industries. This creates a situation where developing economies are suppliers of raw materials to industrialized economies and importers of manufactured goods. Intellectual property coupled with an increased awareness of the importance of intellectual capital and intangible assets creates a situation where Africans and other developing economies are realizing that natural resources alone are not really wealth. There is a need for value addition and beneficiation of natural resources. There are good initiatives such as the development of the automobile industry in Ghana and Nigeria and the exportation of branded foods products such as chilly from Rwanda. In addition to traditional intellectual property protection mechanisms such as copyright, Related Rights, Patents, Industrial Designs, Trademarks, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) has included in intellectual property indigenous knowledge, cultural expression and folklore. In this way, cultural expressions such as Kente cloth patterns from Ghana, Burundian drums, traditional ways of rearing animals, knowledge of medicinal plants, methods of food conservation and natural processes such as thermal waters which are believed to have therapeutic effects can be protected as intellectual property of communities. This is a paradigm shift from the traditional Western approach where Intellectual Property was subjected to individual proprietorship. The exploitation of intellectual property creates employment and generates revenue through IP exploitation i.e. selling and licensing, franchising, merchandising, joint ventures and strategic alliances. Intellectual property can actually be used as collateral to get a loan from financial institutions and it is increasingly taken into account in the valuation of companies. These initiatives contributes to SDGs especially SDG 9 industry, innovation and infrastructure but also to SDG 8 which is decent work and economic growth. Intellectual Property can be management through Common Management Organisations (CMOs).