There is “also” dignity in African Labor
When most people hear the word "Nigeria", or "Nigerians" the first thought that crosses their mind is "online fraud" or "scam” a justified reaction owning to the fact the news constantly resonates with the “Nigerian Scam.”
I consider that a fallacy "hasty generalization" which is unfair to all 200 million citizens of the country. Granted there are a few bad eggs among them but a larger number of Africans diligently building the African Dream and I will be dedicating this article to telling their story through my eyes.
In 2004, I was in my freshman year at the University of Benin, Nigeria and for the first time in my life, I was completely responsible for my actions or inactions and away from the protective shadows of my parents or members of my family. It was there that I cut my teeth on the workings of the Nigerian society and the intricacy of what it means to be self-reliant.
I noticed firsthand that the government attached little importance to youth capacity development and empowerment, that corrupt politicians would loot the people blind without the slightest remorse, legal systems too weak to fight for the people and law enforcement officers too bribed to even care.
My sheltered upbringing didn’t expose me to all of this or in enough depth to register in my teenage mind, I kept asking myself how anyone can live in a society like this and expect to come out unscathed Think for a moment—if you lived in this kind of society, would the willpower to fight corruption come naturally to you or would you succumb to?society’s “standard”?
I battled with these questions throughout my years in the university and still did not get an answer after my graduation in the summer of 2007. There I was, fresh out of school with dreams of the future but mired in the backdrop of systemic corruption that was prevalent on the continent.
I had no clue what the future holds, jobs were scares and far between and it was at this junction of uncertainty that I had the biggest test of integrity and a chance encounter with a stranger that could eventually change my life forever.
My test came in the form of well-meaning friends from my neighborhood attempting to persuade me on the merits of online fraud, even going as far as showing me some of my high school classmates who have “succeeded” doing this. Some were driving exotic cars and dating beautiful girls. Truth be told, it was tempting.
However, I made the decision to take a different path to their surprise and subsequent disappointment, I told them that I had pride in my sweat and hard work. Despite the fact that I didn’t have a job, I had a plan to take an IT certification training and see where the universe would take me.
Needless to say, they avoided me like a plague afterwards, thinking I was shortsighted if not stupid. I soon met a mentor, Emmanuel, and meeting him changed my life’s trajectory completely. Because of him, I found purpose and a clear understanding of what I wanted to do with my life.
My goal then as it is today was to help African Youths who were at a similar point in their own lives when they are asking the question: “What’s next?” “Where do I go from here"?
One year after my training and mentorship with Emmanuel, I co-founded the Innovative Integration of Information Technology (3iT). 3it was based in Nigeria and focused exclusively in human capital development.
Our vision was to use Information technology as a vehicle to influence the habits, knowledge, social and personality attributes of the African Youth, enabling them to effectively perform labor that produces economic value.
This vision permeated our company's action/inaction over the years, leading to amazing opportunities to actually make an impact on behalf of the youths we serve. A few notable examples of our accomplishments are listed below:
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During my time leading the company, I personally met and interviewed hundreds of youths in Nigeria and Ghana to understand their challenges, motivation, and goals
I braced myself to hear testimonies of despair and frustration born from rampant corruption of those in power along along with a lack of infrastructure and governmental support. But alas, they spoke of their dreams, sharing with me in no small detail their accomplishments in the endeavors of their choosing be it farming, software development, or digital marketing.
I left those conversations feeling inspired by the elasticity of their hope and resolve and the relentlessness of their dreams, which is at odds with?the reality of the capabilities of the system they had been born into. (I attached a few of my interviews below)
These youths are warriors and have my earned deepest respect and continued adoration till this very day, for they fought when others gave in to the trappings of instant gratification and ill-gotten wealth choosing instead to empower themselves, uplift humanity, and build from nothing—a thing of beauty that their future self and the next generation would be proud of.
Like I said at the beginning, there will be bad eggs in Nigeria as with everywhere else, and as you judge those few, please bear in mind that there are good Africans out there quietly toiling hard into the night with little from the system, all in a bid to legitimately make ends meet.
To these unsung heroes, I ask you that you give a fair chance, support them when you can, and when that is not feasible, at the very least, acknowledge their efforts for there is “also” dignity in African Labor.
PS:
* 3it was acquired by Glappy Village and operates as the "Glappy Foundation" on the continent continuously building on the African Dream with a team of warriors we now call the Genius Army.