African Development?

Work

If Africans are not ready to work really hard, and just expect things to change by some sort of white MAGIC, it is never going to happen. There is no magic. There is WORK, WORK and more WORK.

And sincerely, that is what a lot of the so-called "elite" class in Africa does not want to do: WORK. Or do they? Why would you put on a suit in a hot tropical climate when you are supposed to be doing real, hard work to develop your living space?

The body language of most of the African "elite" (whatever that means) reveals a disdain for hard work, which (in my humble opinion) is the only way to make a difference. Without planning, and hard work in carrying out projects to help their own people, all the words the African elite speak just go with the wind. They do not echo on the rocks of Africa, let alone among the African people themselves.

This is not a reprimand of everyone who is (supposedly) educated in, and from, Africa. It is a call to reality: a plea to look at the brutal facts of history and current events, and a summons to take stock of what has been, what is, and what can be.

The so-called African problem is so complicated that no one person can claim to have the solution. Not even Mandela could make that claim. Or did he? I didn't think so. This is a fact all agree on.

Question

So what is the point here? Simply put: the African problem is more complicated than any maths problem you have ever met, even if you have a PhD in maths. Yes, it is that complicated. Are you good at maths? You could take a crack at this problem.

What is the African problem? It is a simple, direct question that is not easy or straightforward to answer. First of all, how does one solve a problem without defining it?

The West: the view

In today's world, dominated by "Western" civilization, humans have got used to defining almost everything from the Western point of view. For example, "the West" represents countries developed to a certain degree, found in the so-called "Western hemisphere". If the Chinese had conquered Europe and the Americas 2,000 years ago, they would have called it the Middle East, and Africa would have become the Far East. Well, that did not happen. Now we are stuck with what we have, unless you want to change it. Good luck.

What does this have to do with Africa? Before the so-called West came into contact with Africa, it knew it only as the "Dark Continent", meaning "no lights", "can't see inside", "impenetrable"… Today we know these labels came from people outside the continent. In those days, was the African continent bustling with activity? Yes: so many restless humans.

African history

There is reading material on the history of Africa before, during and after the coming of Western "intruders". Note that parts of Africa, like Egypt and the Mediterranean regions, were "known" to the West. So the parts of Africa that were "dark" and "unknown" are the parts facing some of the most complicated problems today. In my opinion, those problems swirl around "nationalism" and its failed implementation in various so-called African "states".

In most Western countries, the theory of nationalism has been analysed and practised for decades, to the point where citizens can sincerely say they feel patriotic about their country. Very few African countries, if any, have a convincing doctrine of nationalism that overrides the sectarian and tribalistic tendencies running through the fabric of African society. The result has been some of the worst atrocities of African-vs-African violence the world has seen in recent decades.

So instead of non-Africans waging war on Africans, Africans are decimating themselves. What do Africans expect the West, or the rest of the world, to do? Intervene? How? The UN has faced this conundrum: how do you separate family members who are tearing each other apart? Whose side would the UN (or anyone else willing to help) be on?

Labels

Africa has been labelled in several ways, and the more global attention is paid to this crucible of humanity, the more creative the names for its parts: Maghreb or Mediterranean Africa, Africa south of the Sahara, West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, Southern Africa, South West Africa. After some years, the people who live in these labelled regions slowly but surely begin to identify with the labels: "I am East African; you are West African; she is Southern African. Oh! See that old lady? She's Central African." And someone complains: "No, I am from Ethiopia," or "No, I am Kenyan," or Nigerian, Togolese, Sierra Leonean…

The question is: are these truly African labels, or just a convenience to fit a Western paradigm? Or is it an African paradigm? There is a contention that the word "Africa" is not even African! Figure that out.

Talking of paradigms: if you don't create one, you are forced to live in one created by someone else, unless you live in a bubble. That is what African "intellectuals" need to do: come up with a paradigm that fits the African people, one that will create a spirit of nationalism, if that means love of country (meaning Africa) and love of fellow country men and women (meaning all Africans). Without that, the whole idea of a United Africa, or even a loose federation of so-called African states, is dead from the get-go.

It is this "coming up with a paradigm that fits the African people's reality" that is the hard, hard work. Speeches and public posturing without real hard work and extensive use of brain cells will not cut it.

Repeat: there is no magic. People can go to church, the mosque or ancestral tombs to pray and offer sacrifices, but without real work, several hours a day towards targeted objectives, nothing will happen. No one needs to reinvent the wheel, but it takes thinking (brain cells again) to use existing wheels to build your own automobile.

It is time for Africa's so-called intellectuals to pool their wits and come up with something original to help bring Africa out of the doldrums. And remember to include ways of funding the exercise. If you use other people's money (OPM), well, you know the drill.

Wanaku

— Wanaku Verdzekov