Page 15 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 13

Community

These are the same people who are ployment keeps them bound to that We have failed ourselves and we
involved in ‘shaping’ the future of job/company/field as a source of have failed each other. Our brothers
the world and they say to themselves income, but if they maintain a con- and sisters, sons and daughters who
that youth are a potential threat to nection to the earth, they can always flee Afrika do so on the basis of
the stability of the nations of the find ways to grow food and there- uncomfortable political, economic
world. How does that sit in the by be able to sustain themselves, and other physical realities on the
same mouths that call the youth without depending on employment ground in the continent. They flee
the leaders of the future? You must – things will change. Who said that in search of the lie of ‘comfortable
remember that they consider them- employment was the panacea of living’ in America, Europe, Australia
selves to be elites. The top thinkers, the world anyway? From everything and Asia. They work hard in menial
industrialists, media houses, youth we’ve seen, it clearly isn’t – or are or top jobs, empowering the harsh
leaders, governments, financiers, you not aware that more unemploy- taskmasters that turn against Afrika,
educators and on and on and on – ment is coming with automation effectively becoming pawns in the
and they have not found a way to and ‘efficiencies’ being put in place. hands of those who seek no good
stem youth unemployment, the rate But more than all of this, if we can for the continent. They send money
of which has not decreased since remind them that the solutions to home to Afrika, yes, but avoid the
2005? Somehow, it always seems to the problems in Afrika rest in their hard work of coming home to deal
be a bigger issue that Afrikan youth hands, if we can point them to their with the situation here, which could
(born on and off the continent) are true identities, then their true pur- ensure that thousands of people
unemployed, and oppressive and poses will emerge. If we can direct do not drown in the Mediterranean
hateful things have been done to them to the passion to fulfill these each year seeking ‘a better life’.
them to curtail their innovativeness, purposes, then shifts and changes Which could ensure that their own
youthful verve and imaginations. will take place. If we can show them children can find a better future
These fake elites either have no clue that the ugly in Afrika is only there here.
how to keep young people engaged because we as a people have chosen
and focused on productive outputs, not to do anything about it, but that Afrika needs all her sons and daugh-
or they see them as a threat to their it is time to change that narrative – ters in order to make a genuine go
plans and are setting them up for and show them how to begin, then of things. I’m not saying we need to
something even more horrendous they can commit to finding a path be like India or China and try to be
than we can imagine. Either way, it towards shifting the reality of Afrika the world’s top economy. No. I’m
is clear they don’t have the answers towards a better future that is genu- saying that we need to rediscover
that Afrika is seeking in the name of inely free from slavery. the purpose of Afrika and fulfill that
‘development’. purpose together, as a people. That
But we have to STOP putting down we need to consider that together,
It makes no sense to me that we our continent and our people with all 1.6 billion of us are so strong
would call our Afrikan engineering our own thoughts, words and ac- that we can make an impact that will
degrees outdated. Fine, maybe they tions. We have dearly loved brothers ensure that Afrika finally lives up
are based on information and meth- and sisters who risk everything to to her name and true position. The
ods from the 60s – but, if combined cross the Sahara to go to North life-giver, the mother, the nurturer.
with wisdom and the use of the Afrika to try the Mediterranean And in doing so, we can restore
internet (especially the “YouTube crossing, in search of fake ‘greener sanity to a world that is in a frenzy
university”), our engineers can use pastures’ in Europe. Along the way, of accumulation and blind psycho-
those same degrees for good things, many hazards await them, including pathic self-destruction. I’m saying
especially in communities that don’t murder, rape, forced prostitution, that our path and that of the world
even have basic infrastructure in robbery, extortion, bribery and intersect not at the point of greed,
place. If the youth can be guided to even drowning. For the cost of an but at the point of the restoration
use things like TikTok not to shake estimated US$ 5000? Why is it that of life. That is Afrika’s unique
their bums, but to create challenges they don’t know that if they have purpose and we are uniquely placed,
using their pan-Afrikan networks US$ 5000 it can actually be used to all #1point6billionstrong of us, to
that are geared towards positive transform not only their lives but make this happen.
social transformation in their local also those of their communities
communities – things will change. around them?
If we can remind the youth that em-

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