“To be an effective leader, you must want to empower those following you,” says General Martin Luther Agwai. In this interview with the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, Gen. Agwai discusses how ethical leadership is critical to a country’s stability. He also provides lessons from his years of experience of how to become an effective leader whose actions garner the confidence of those around him or her. Ethical leadership is a central theme of the Africa Center’s ongoing Senior Leaders Seminar, which has brought together more than 40 military, police, and civilian security sector officials from 21 African countries and regional economic commissions.
Gen. Agwai is a decorated senior army officer who has served as Army Chief of Staff and Chief of Defense Staff of the Nigerian Armed Forces, Force Commander of the African Mission to Sudan and the African Union/United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), and Deputy Military Advisor at UN Headquarters in New York.
Additional Resources
- Paul Nantulya, “Wisdom from Africa on Ethical Leadership,” Spotlight, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, May 9, 2017.
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies, “African Role Models in Strategic Leadership,” Spotlight, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, May 11, 2016.
- Paul Nantulya, “Africa’s Strategic Future: The Consequence of Ethical Leadership,” Spotlight, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, October 23, 2015.
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies, “Building Moral Leadership a Priority for African Militaries,” Spotlight, October 28, 2014.
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies, “Why Armies Succeed or Fail: Questions of Morale, Discipline, and Ethical Leadership,” Spotlight, October 23, 2014.
- Mathurin C. Houngnikpo, “Africa’s Militaries: A Missing Link in Democratic Transitions,” Africa Security Brief No. 17, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, January 31, 2012.
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