Africa’s Quest for Development and Peace: Lessons from Fratelli Tutti

Résumé

The essay examines the subject of development in the human society and submits that there can be no true development without peace. No society can grow without the foundation of peace. It proposes further that justice is also a necessary factor in the quest for development. Thus, to development and peace, justice must be included in the vision of a society where growth is inseparable from political stability, egalitarianism and tranquillity of due order. The first part of the essay is devoted to examining the Theology of Peace, drawing from biblical insights on the concept of peace and giving a contemporary analysis of the theology of peace in questioning the social issues that are linked to the development of nations. It looks at the concept of development and its indices for peaceful co-existence among peoples and their welfare; and it explores the perspectives from which development can be sought on the African continent. The essay subsequently examines the encyclical Fratelli Tutti of Pope Francis and draws lessons from it on how nations can work together for peace and the development of the human societies, especially in the poorer countries of the world in general and on the African continent in particular.