And Then What?

It's code green and everyone's trying to be part of it. The United States is one of the largest consumers of oil and these days we hear all over the news how it's trying to break the addiction to foreign oil. A huge feat no doubt, but not an impossible one. It's defnitiely going to take some time but the reminders are everywhere now. And the U.S is not alone in thinking this way since it's actually the right way to go. So what happens when oil goes out of style and alternative fuel sources become the in thing. What happens to a largely monoproduct economy like Nigeria?

The Voice of a People

I’ll rip my ears away from between these speakers very briefly to reflect on someone very influential to Nigeria, to Africa and the world at large. Fela Anikulapo-Kuti born October 15, 1938 lived, in my opinion, a fulfilled life. He went through much of his life voicing the deep resentments of a people against their government defiantly on stage; using music as a weapon and not giving a heck about the consequences, especially in the face of the ruthless military regimes that prevailed at the time.

His music echoed the feelings of millions; from the direct challenges voiced in Army Arrangement and Beast of No Nation to the heavy drums and blaring horns that accompanied chants of Eko Ile and the soothing mellow tones that wrap around you in Water No Get Enemy; Fela’s music still remains a constant wake up call to millions who remember the ills of the past and continues to inspire upcoming generations with a steady reminder of what they must aspire to.

Fela died 11 years ago today; leaving a deep void in the hearts of Afrobeat lovers the world over. One of my greatest regrets is still never having a chance to watch him perform live. In his own words “Music is the weapon of the future” so if you don’t mind terribly, I’ll just get back to one full day of strictly Afrobeat music. Easy…

The African Assignment

Across the globe, momentum gathers. Exceptional individuals, groups and organizations persistently work towards a new Africa. A new crop of talented minds and young professionals are engaged in restoring the African image. The question remains, will you be one of those who look back with regret at your reluctance to be a real part of the restoration or will you look back with satisfaction on time spent in service to the continent?

Do you dream of a new Africa? If you do, what do you see and if you don’t, why not? Given the chance to paint a future for Africa, what picture would you come up with? How do we move from our present state to one we and others, without question, want to be part of. I see an Africa which through its seemingly unending period of trial emerges to take its position as a major contributor to modern civilization. One that holds its own as a relevant and respected voice in the global community, not merely as listeners to the wishes or demands of others.

We move into an age of heightened social awareness and it becomes increasingly clear that the welfare of humanity as a whole is inextricably tied to the well-being of Africa. With this also comes the realization that we must each take upon ourselves the task of redefining the continent. If we don’t, someone else will; and then once again, our history will be written for us.

Our intelligence as students and young professionals in various disciplines across the world must be channeled towards redefining its future. Our individual dreams must be blended into one collective vision. It will be wrong to believe we cannot heal the Motherland; to believe that the problems are too much for us to face. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. This is our call to duty, this is The African Assignment.

Patrick Awuah in an effort to understand the failings of leadership in Africa traces the problem to prevailing educational systems and describes how a new approach must be adopted for the more effective results that will become necessary for the future. He specifically mentions his perception on how students from universities in Ghana, graduate with a sense of entitlement rather than responsibility. An occurrence which I believe holds true for a larger part of the continent.



For there to be real development, methods of instruction must emphasize critical and creative thinking. The continent is in dire need of individuals who possess intellectual capability, proficiency and moral competence. In essence, educational systems must be driven more towards producing individuals who are highly proficient in their respective fields and eager to explore innovative avenues for solving real world problems in the most ethical manner.

A system still grappling with traditional mediums cannot compete in the global arena. It should expand to include new mediums and principles that promote not only the mathematical and scientific genius that drives technological advancement but also the creative innovations that stretch limitations and break boundaries. In this way, the sciences promote the arts and the arts drive the sciences; a uniquely symbiotic process that ensures a wider reach and fosters a learning environment within which knowledge, ideas and resources can be applied to problem solving.

As developed nations move towards developing newer educational paradigms, the African continent will also need to embark on a similar shift which allows younger generations to develop a state of mind that keeps us keenly aware of the changes, both apparent and subtle, happening around us constantly. A state of constant curiosity which precedes the thought and practical process necessary for dealing with the challenges of the future.

Noting the Nuances, Part 3.

Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod, in their updated version of the highly acclaimed video “Shift Happens” deliver a compelling presentation; outlining certain changes happening around the world that shape the way we live and will continue to do so for quite some time. In many ways, the presentation is a call to the younger generation as well as to educational institutions urging them to modify instructional models to prepare for the challenges of the future. As world economies inch steadily towards globalization, Africa’s position, or lack thereof, in the light of circumstances described in the presentation becomes even more uncertain. If we still struggle with the problems of poverty, disease, and war; how can we hope to thrive in a global arena?

In his book The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman outlines some basic necessities that nations must possess in order to have a comparative advantage with others. He mentions Governance, Infrastructure and Education and insightfully notes how the movement of capital/investment from developed to developing nations is driven by these factors. “…capital does not just move around the world looking for the cheapest labor….It is looking for the most productive labor at the cheapest price, and that requires you to get those three basics right.” As the problem of governance remains a huge part of the African predicament, many have turned to private initiatives as it seems African leaders lack the will or wherewithal to brings us out of our present state.

Noting the Nuances, Part 2.

We can all relate to the analogy of a neighborhood where we as residents evaluate others in the community based on their cars, jobs, houses and the like. Ultimately what they own produces certain images in our minds and influences our view of what we perceive to be their status levels. Take for example, a certain family across the street which grows steadily into affluence, eventually moving to a new and more than likely better neighborhood; leaving behind the constraints of the past and reaching for a better future with higher living standards.

Such is the case with India and China, and who’s left behind; take a wild guess. Granted a huge proportion of the Indian and Chinese population still live in harshly poor conditions, however the recent growth in these nations cannot be ignored, especially since it directly affects ours. Factor in continued economic growth, improvements in public policy and innovative private initiatives and a ripple effect of growth can already be seen in some parts of these countries. There is a lot to be learnt from these countries because even as they leave African nations behind they provide the drive needed to pull out of our present position. They are a strong example of practices that can be replicated on the continent and have even, as a BBC article reports, begun providing humanitarian aid to some African countries.

A major contributor to the growth of these countries is technology, or more precisely, technology transfer which has facilitated the outsourcing of jobs from developed nations like the United States to offshore locations. An Information Week article by Paul McDougall outlines a study by consulting firm Deloitte which estimates that “offshore tech spending will rise from 6% of the $44 billion the industry spends on IT annually to 30% by 2010.” Thanks to these same technological advances, the distance between two or more people has diminished significantly; creating an atmosphere where they can collaborate effectively on projects regardless of geographical location, where links can be established between individuals on the continent and those in the Diaspora to foster a new kind of development.

These technologies will have both negative and positive consequences, there is therefore a need to anticipate and re-adapt ourselves to the educational and professional needs of the future. It's common knowledge that many who aimed for courses and jobs in the information systems field in the United States have had to rethink and retool themselves to be adaptable to these changes. Changes which continue to reshape world economies and the educational needs requisite for success in the future. Changes which require us to think more than a few steps ahead in order to make ourselves flexible and thus make our abilities indispensable. Changes which demand that we unleash our imagination to the possibilities that these new tools and resources present for innovation.

Noting the Nuances (Intro)

Have you ever taken a minute to consider the words or phrases most often associated with Africa; development, poverty, below the poverty line, HIV, corruption, conflict, human rights abuse, rebels, dictators to mention just a few. Very often, the image of Africa is rendered by the media using the image of a starving child, an ailing population, fleeing and displaced refugees or other such images that convey an overall sense of chaos and despondency. That has become our image. That, it seems, is what generally comes to mind when Africa is mentioned in conversation.

Now this is not to imply that we deny or understate the truth contained in such portrayals; we recognize that there is much more to the African experience, however such views cannot be disregarded as they represent a part of the full picture. On the contrary, we must acknowledge and accept these images as pointers to the numerous problems that exist on the continent and then ask the question, what can be done to reverse this reality?

Not an easy question to address as many times the problems are tied strongly to external factors. For any one problem, there must be an understanding of all the factors that contribute to or are affected by it. These problems are usually in a continuous cycle with one precipitating the next. For example, people with diseases like HIV/AIDS cannot afford available treatment and conversely their illness has them unable to get themselves out of poverty.

Very often I take the train. It’s a relatively reliable form of transport and connects me easily to most points I have to get to in the course of a day. On one of my transient trips home, I was seated directly across from a gentle man whose profile was to me and who was also in the middle of reading a magazine. He flipped the page and there, on one side of the magazine spread was the full size image of an African kid with the desert and dead livestock in the background. On the other side of this page spread was the continuation of the article he had started on the previous page. After a few seconds; deciding he would not be able to carry on reading with this image on the other side, the gentleman folds the page in half and finishes his article. Now it took a while for me to process the possible reasons he could have for doing this, but eventually I came to what was the most obvious. The image was disturbing. It burdened his mind as it did mine. He chose, in that time, to put the thought away from his mind.

Well I don’t think we have that alternative. The world has shrunk remarkably and the problems in Africa are inevitably problems to humanity. One way or the other, in our own little way, we should address these problems and thanks to the numerous resources out there now; we actually can.