Oluyomi Ola-David Insights

They are young At heart But you are ancient In heart and mind They are dynamic At heart But you are static In heart and mind They are learning At heart But you are learned In heart and mind They are growing At heart But you are grown In heart and mind They are open At heart But you are closed In heart and mind They are humble At heart But you are tutor In heart and mind They are innate At heart But you are extrinsic In heart and mind They are peasant At heart But you are elite In heart and mind They are sheep At heart But you are goat In heart and mind They are functional At heart But you are frictional In heart and mind They are thoughtful At heart But you are careless In heart and mind They are investors At heart But you are spent In heart and mind ... Photo credit: Oluyomi Ola-David

As I think through this Yoruba proverb 'olówó ĺó lòwò', I am humbled at how three words have sufficient substance to make a thousand speeches and fill a million lines. This proverb literally means "it is the rich that owns the trade", whatever trade that is. Can we cross-examine the verity of this simply stated fact? Which countries dominate global trade? See the figure on world trade statistics, facts speak for themselves. Doesn't the rich control the time of the poor. Every human is endowed with a 24-hour day. Nevertheless, the rich tend to wield adequate economic power required to buy up more hours to their productive advantage. Many poor people can only sell their time to survive.  Isn't it the rich that can create enough time to think, strategise, and flood our bookshelves? Who are those sane enough to want read whatever the poor may have to say, because they know it is instructive? The rich own large estates and living spaces that the working poor dream

It is indeed a pessimistic fact that Africa may have 90% of the world's poor by 2030. However, lessons from history point to an optimistic future. Our colonial masters thought out a system of education that churns out experts and managers for established business systems, political order, and constricted economic structures. Here is our 21st century outcome: a teeming population of entitled 'educated unemployed' people with nothing more than certificates to brandish. Moreover, with Africa's ever growing population and relatively stagnant absorptive and industrial capacity, our rising unemployment and poverty rates should not be surprising.  My stance is that Africa and its development thinkers can forge and institute sustainable systems of re-orientation, critical and creative thought, and balanced education that can release empowered nation-builders and wealth creators.  Africa has all the creative, human, and natural resources it needs to minimise its incidence of pov