Conquering the Sahara

Whenever the subject of African development is brought up, a passionate few are quick to name past heroes that promoted the subject. Well, it is time for all Africans to draw from whatever lessons these heroes bequeathed to us, and build on them in our various spheres of influence. Heroes are not only confined to history.

All Africans should be advocates of pan-Africanism. It is regrettable that we have divided ancestral family members and aggregated ourselves rather selfishly within imaginary boundaries of sovereignty, and in some cases, based on foreign prescriptions. These boundaries have instilled in us ideas of greed, intolerance, and resentment.

We give so much attention to unsustainable immigration and foreign policies to protect the sovereignty of these imaginary boundaries of state. We have forgotten to be our brother's keeper and that we did not appear in Africa by accident. Africans with legitimate reasons should be able to travel to any part of Africa and be granted a visa on arrival. This does not in any way take away the need for effective policing and curtailing criminal elements amongst us. In fact, policing would be more successful on the continent if countries collaborate with sincerity and pull resources together effectively. Through transparent relations built on shared vision and common goals, illicit trade, terrorism, nomadic banditry, and rebel movements can be effectively controlled. Today, visa restrictions across African regions are not promoting commerce and trade, scientific collaborations and research, expeditions, and exploratory initiatives.   

 

Any earthly location brought under sovereignty by man's theories on boundaries and governance can only last for a brief time in history. One day, these boundaries and governance structures would be redrawn by realities backed with reasons of their own. All humans are nomads, and no matter your race, we will continue to migrate because of natural reasons and man-made necessities. A trip through the Sahara desert will convince you. We need to rise above the falsehoods entrenched in our belief to protect these imaginary boundaries of state, and realise that our ancestors danced together under several moonlights in nudity; trudged through primordial periods together; hunted for meat together in jungles filled with abundant wildlife; had an unlimited culture of hospitality; traded across the Sahara and the Rift valley in oneness and with sincerity of purpose; and most inhumanly, were transported in numbers like animals to unknown lands to work as slaves.

Until we actively remember these and unify to develop Africa, we may never leave good heirlooms for posterity. In fact, posterity too may name so called heroes from amongst us and tow the same gullies of oblivion. Conflicts, disease, terrorism, and xenophobia are all issues we can rise above together. What happens when Mother Nature opens her own drums of war with full discharge and finds Africa in disunity? Desertification, famine, flooding, and landslides are merely a taste of what we must confront as a continent. No African was born an African by mistake. We are custodians of humanity’s birth place. Beyond these imaginary boundaries of temporal creation, Africans must unite as human beings bonded together on the same continent by ancestry. Most of the things that seek to divide us today were imported. We should be able to synthesize external assistance with pivotal home-grown solutions to ensure sustained and incremental development. We should continue to encourage creativity, research, and innovation to utilise our abundant resources which made Africa the attraction of imperialism. African countries should intensify networking and partnerships for projects that support industralisation, social security, transportation, electricity, space technology, agriculture, trade and investment, sports development, educational development, research collaborations, healthcare development, human resources development, and military partnerships. At some point, we may all have to confront our expanding deserts and consider re-vegetating parts of them through innovation. This will greatly enhance the potential for peace in North and West Africa. I also think Africa should work towards its own Space Station😉😉😉.

Every country you see today may cease to exist someday. As politics, conflicts and Mother Nature continue to prompt our nomadic sojourn through time, we must remember that we are all human and one species. It is not an accident that the treasures of nature have combined abundantly on one continent. Why is it so difficult to see the big picture? We should stop believing everything we are told about Africa and create our own stories to shape future generations. Our imaginary boundaries should not become barriers to what we can achieve together as a continent. I envision a united Africa with a shared vision of sustainable development. May our brothers and sisters, gone before us, rest in perfect peace Amen.