Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, Nelson Mandela, Malala Yuseif, Richard Branson. It doesn’t take an observant eye to realise that these personalities are notable for provoking change in one or more fields, but it does take an observant eye to realise that these personalities started their careers at a relatively young age. Malala Yuseif was only 15 when her life was threatened by the Taliban because of her fight to see the girl child educated – yet this did not stop her. Richard Branson was 16 when he started his youth-culture magazine called Student which ultimately led to him starting Virgin Records at the age of 19. Nelson Mandela was about 24 when he started his long walk to freedom. These examples prove that the future is shaped by the youth. Luckily, although seen as a negativity, Africa is blessed with the world’s youngest population, increasing its sample space of acquiring the next Mark Zuckerberg or Steve Jobs, and also being the key to Africa’s prosperity.
Take a look at Richard Turere in Kenya, who, from a very young age, began to explore with the electrical equipment in his household. His curiosity led him to repeatedly dismantle and fix the equipments, thus unearthing a skill he decided to use to serve his society. At the age of thirteen he invented “lion lights,” which discouraged lions from devouring livestock. This helped to protect not only the livestock, but also the lions from human invasion.
Also take a look at “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind,” William Kamkwamba, who was forced to dropout of school at the age of fourteen, due to a time of severe famine in Malawi when his parents could no longer afford his tuition. While at home, he found a book in his local library with images that illustrated how to build a windmill. Using only the pictures and scrap of materials he found, he was able to construct a windmill to efficiently power four lights and two radios in his house, which also became beneficial to his community. This achievement was key to his later admission at the African Leadership Academy in South Africa, with full scholarship. After completing high school, he went on to study at Dartmouth University in the USA. Today, with his newly acquired skills, he returns to his community to apply the skills he has learned to help make it better.
Despite these inspiring stories why is Africa still underdeveloped? Well… Africa needs a new generation of leaders. Leaders who will make it their responsibility to shelter and groom innovative minds, and ethical leaders who will finally put an end to corruption. Fred Swaniker is a wonderful example of such a leader. Swaniker is a co-founder of the African Leadership Network, which houses great institutions such as the African Leadership University and the African Leadership Academy. His mission is to train the next generation of entrepreneurs and ethical leaders who will build Africa, because after all, leaders are made and not born. It is the effort of leaders such as Fred Swaniker that makes it possible for people like Richard Turere and William Kamkwamba to keep dreaming.
Africa needs more Fred Swanikers. There is an African proverb that says, “It takes a village to raise a child.” We need more people, not just the government, but also individuals who will make it a priority to ensure that the next generation of Africans are equipped with the necessary tools to revolutionise the continent.
We need to learn from the stories of Richard Turere and William Kamkwamba such as: recognizing that innovative thinking happens when we are able to turn our problems into solutions, and we should not wait for a big platform before we decide to create change.
AfricaOut-Loud 