We can live the African Dream

Only this year, the African Union, neé the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), celebrated 50 years of existence with some saying there was not much to celebrate for while others say this is the right time for Africa to shine and live the past to the past. I happen to belong to the latter school of thought. We always wonder how comes that Africa, with all the riches, oil all over and rich soils, remains characterised by high levels of poverty, low GDP per capita, famine, corruption, you name it. If one needs the worst conditions to live in, let’s be honest, Africa is the place to be. Some have even gone ahead to acquire way of explaining our mediocrity, through the TIA (This Is Africa) mantra.But things should not be that way forever. From the dark times of colonisation and the era of decolonisation – read independence – championed by a crop of some brave Africans, education has played a huge role in influencing change on this continent. It is ironic that the same education brought through colonisation helped unleash the dream of freedom. The great dreamers of what I would call the golden era, Kwame Nkrumah, Leopold Senghor et al– were beneficiaries of the western education but this did not stop them to dream big, at least at the time, dreaming an Africa, one continent without boundaries. They knew that unity is power, and that is how the OAU came into existence, created with a longer vision of making this a unified country, much as it would later die prematurely as the spirit progressively died out and some of the independent-era heads of state degenerated into dictators so to speak, and subsequently endemic civil wars, massacres and a Genocide that took place in this country.Looking on a brighter side, this generation has luck; there is better education than before.Communication has been enhanced through the evolution of ICT.Yes, sometimes, we will tend to think that there is a better life overseas and adopt a different lifestyle, and with that, loose our culture and roots.We should leverage these opportunities presented to us to change this trend, and we have the resources at our disposal to do so. From the rich soils of South Africa to the Gold Coast in Ghana, from the ports of Alexandria to the thousands hills of Rwanda, we can change the TIA ridicule to live The African Dream.To achieve this, like I said at the beginning, we need to harness our resources. It is really easy for China, for the European Union and United States, to dictate over their funds in Africa for 54 tiny, scattered countries, dying from ethnic conflicts, but it would be fairer for example, to discuss trade under the African Union framework, with all the countries involved.Nevertheless, some aspects of the actual education have to be changed; it is sad to see how what I studied ten years ago in primary school is still being taught now, notwithstanding the continually changing global trends. Would we still want to change our continent if there is no continuous upgrading of our education system? Would we still want children today to cram their subjects as we did decades ago? The same education, as it was before is not yielding results; it is not creating employment, is not sparking creativity, but rather, is keeping us on the same trend. That is how the dream will be realized. Thousands and thousands of children of Africa will be staying on the continent to realize their dreams, rather than drowning in oceans as they swim away from African poverty. Africa needs thinkers, as it was in the golden era, trained and formed on the continent. We need leadership universities as it is already in Accra, Ghana; a leader is not born, a leader is trained. Africa needs this young generation, with all the opportunities to stay and transform. The only way to success is not change, but creation. Even God himself did not change a thing on the world as it was. He only created.