INTRODUCTIONThe main objective of this paper is to discuss in detail the origins and objectives of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), as well as of the main problems and challenges it faces. First of all, the historical context of the partnership will be examined, which will address the origins and objectives part. Second, there will be a discussion of successes and then major issues and challenges facing the partnership. It is then that a series of recommendations will be formulated before finally examining the conclusion of the document. The period following colonialism saw Africa have a history of unstable socio-economic growth. The hopeful takeoff seen in the 1960s was short-lived. Growth was disrupted by the oil crisis of 1973. The effects of the oil crisis were more severe in Africa than in other developing regions. Nearly half of African states experienced poor per capita growth rates during the crisis until the 1980s. It was during this period that the debt crisis began. According to Donald Chimanikire, new long-term borrowing by African countries south of the Sahara increased from 3 billion US dollars in 1976 to 11.5 billion US dollars in 1980 (Chimanikire, 2007). This indicates that there has been an overall growth in borrowing by African states, hence the debt crisis. The situation worsened very quickly during the 1980s, leading some observers and analysts to characterize the 1980s as a "lost decade." As noted in African Development, a Comparative Perspective published by UNCTAD in 1998, “Africa…. failed to adapt to a more hostile external environment characterized by a deterioration in the terms of trade, a sharp increase in international interest...... middle of document ......e African President Thabo Mbeki and launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2001. Second on the list is the Omega Plan, by the President of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade, and presented at the Conference of Francophone African Leaders in January 2001 in Cameroon, and the third and last of these, the African Recovery Compact was launched by the then Executive Secretary of the ECA, KY Amoako, in response to a mandate from African Finance Ministers in late 2000. The three initiatives were a common goal: to increase the speed and impact of Africa's development. Although these initiatives have common features, there are also differences reflecting the regional and other biases of their initiators. Compromises had to be found in order to merge the three proposals into a single initiative. NEPAD therefore reflects the compromises necessary to achieve a single initiative.