African Expectations: Musings from Where I Stand

By Mafoya Dossoumon

African Expectations is a collection of essays about how political, economic, and socio-cultural issues retard Africa’s development and how the most important factor for this failure is the lack of good leadership. The book offers tentative solutions to some of the most pressing issues of our times based on the author’s worldview and life experiences.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mafoya Dossoumon
• Release date: Jul 16, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476249131

Mafoya Dossoumon

Mafoya Dossoumon was born and raised in Benin via France. He moved to Ghana in his teens. He worked as an Information Communication Technology Specialist at IFDC Ghana. He was the Web Editor for MISTOWA - a USAID funded agribusiness project to increase agricultural trade and food security in West Africa. He has a BA from the University of Sunderland and an MPA from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He lives in the United States.

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AFRICAN EXPECTATIONS

Musings from Where I Stand

By

MAFOYA DOSSOUMON

Copyright 2012 Mafoya Dossoumon

Smashwords Edition

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DEDICATION

I dedicate this book to all those who work for peace and development in Africa. May your commitment be rewarded beyond your wildest expectations, and may your work yield a bumper harvest in nations and in people’s hearts. I also dedicate this book to the brave young men and women in Africa who despite the innumerable challenges they encounter in their daily lives continue to believe in the power of honest work and perseverance. Finally, I dedicate this book to all the people around the world who endeavor to do good all the time, even in evil times.

IN MEMORIAM

SAMSON MELKIOR JEAN DOSSOUMON

My Beloved Father

1950 – 2010

I agree with you that there is a natural aristocracy among men.

The grounds of this are virtue and talent.

Thomas Jefferson to John Adams, October 28, 1813

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Foremost thanks go to my pro-bono editors Robin and Olaitan. Thanks for your friendship, diligence, patience, and honesty. In no particular order, I wish to thank my mother for being my quiet yet indefatigable supporter. I thank my little brother for keeping me on my toes. I am grateful for my paternal grandparents for showing me what a virtuous life means. I am grateful for my maternal grandmother’s undying love. My maternal grandfather died before I was born but knowing that he was a well-respected king always enchants me. I wish to thank my now departed father for instilling in me an understanding of the value of education. Special thanks to my history teacher in primary school - a man so talented at storytelling that he sowed in me the seed of curiosity about my history and subsequently the history of the world. I am grateful to all the teaching and non-teaching staff of Cite du Soleil boarding school in Adjarra – Devounkame, Benin. They instilled in me a fear of God and love for humanity. I wish to thank my friends in Ghana: Tetteh, Emmanuel, Japhet, Richard, and Theophilus. My deepest gratitude goes to Rudy and Laverne - my American grandparents for providing guidance in the first few months of my arrival in the United States. I wish to thank Leanna for looking out for me during the same period.

Mafoya Dossoumon

Edwarsville, Illinois

INTRODUCTION

For a majority of young Africans, the continent’s history is for the most part out of reach because oral traditions have been replaced by books and computers at such a blistering pace that it becomes exceedingly difficult for older generations to pass on cultural heritage to the younger generation.

The collective thoughts, hopes, fears, feelings, and dreams of many African societies used to be communicated orally across generations. But, the written word and technology have now effectively replaced oral traditions.

The fact is that we live in the information age where information travels at the speed of light and Africa is a fundamental part of our interconnected world. In the age of globalization and inter-connectedness, Africa is inexorably bound to the world. As such, we must assert ourselves and stake our democratic claim by telling our own stories.

Future generations will enter into the full possession of their cultural inheritance through the written word not orally.

As such, it is our duty to tell our own stories today so that generations to come may drink at the well of authenticity in order to get a sense of who they are in the future. In order to expand our collective experience and terms of reference, a plurality of voices is always better than a single story.

Globally, others have told our stories and shaped the world’s perception of the continent. I have always been frustrated by the dearth of African voices to tell our stories.

I think Africans in general and the youth in particular need to write more books because books will help us understand what was, what is, and what could be.

We must tell our stories on every platform available. We share a similar future, yet we have different stories to tell. The more we tell our own stories with our own voices, the easier the process of identifying, preserving, and reinforcing our cultural identities.

Collected in this book are personal stories and thoughts and feelings about subjects as varied as development and homosexuality. In recounting life events, I withhold the names of the people involved in order to respect their privacy. Also, I recount interactions in this book that I had with different people.

Due to the passage of time, these interactions have been recreated to the best of my recollection, but should not be taken as verbatim. In this book I have attempted to include contrasting as well as complementary ideas while staying true to my core beliefs and opinions. Generally, I have tried to avoid ‘clichés’ given that Africa and Africans are constantly victims of blatant generalizations. I want the book to inspire Africans and people who are interested in Africa to do some soul searching about the issues that I raise. Our individual as well as collective value systems and vision of the world differ but it is imperative that we learn about each other’s way of thinking, feeling, and doing.

As we discover other people’s prejudices, preconceptions, and misconceptions, we are in a better position to understand each other. We live in a diverse world and as such it is our duty to at the very least be curious about other people’s stories and aspirations. Life is much more exciting when we delight in the differences between men and between cultures.

I will attempt to present a number of ideas about how political, economic, and socio-cultural issues retard our development and how our leaders have failed us. Also, I will offer tentative solutions to some of the most pressing issues of our times based on my worldview and my life experiences.

I was born in Abomey, Republic of Benin, at the height of Marxist Leninism. The Parti de la Revolution Populaire du Benin (PRPB) was the country's sole political party. My father was on the verge of completing his government sponsored law doctorate in France and my mother had just delivered a bundle of joy (me) she named Mafoya which means: Have No Fear in the Yoruba language. My early years were spent at my grandfather’s residence, in Cotonou, Benin.

To this day, I consider that compound, my home. It’s where my enthusiasm for Africa all started.

My grandfather has a great influence on me. He instilled in my psyche that there was no place like home, and that wherever I went; it was my duty to always come home.

Just as he encouraged my father before me, my grandfather wanted me to go to the white man’s land to gain their kind of knowledge but to return to my roots when all is said and done.

My grandfather sowed in me the seed of undying loyalty to my country - Benin, and to my continent - Africa.

A reader may find some of my ideas and opinions controversial. Nevertheless, my intention is to create a source of inspiration for African youths. However, as the saying goes: the road to hell is paved with good intentions. If for any unimaginable reason this book generates any controversy, I pray that after all is said and done, more African youths are inspired to put their thoughts to paper.

Nelson Mandela once said: I dream of the realization of the unity of Africa, whereby its leaders combine in their efforts to solve the problems of this continent. I dream of our vast deserts, of our forests, of all our great wildernesses. For Africans today, Nelson Mandela’s dream of a united Africa is but a beautiful utopia. So until the day when the United States of Africa becomes a reality, let me start this book with a disclaimer: Africa is not a country.

In the 21st century, it is hard to believe that people still think that Africa is a country. If you already know that Africa is a continent, please bear with me as I am only trying to educate the reader who is still ignorant about Africa.

Africa is not a homogeneous unit. In fact Africa is a continent of extremes. For example, while there may be coups in countries such as Guinea and Madagascar, there are regular democratic elections in places such as my home country Benin and my adopted home country Ghana. While life expectancy in Cape Verde is over seven decades, life expectancy in Swaziland is barely five decades. Yet, all these countries are in Africa.

The continent is made up of 54 countries with thousands of languages. People of all races, cultures and varied ethnicities inhabit Africa. While some of the worst things the reader may have heard about Africa are true, other extremely good things have occurred on the same continent. Therefore, it is impossible to construct a remotely accurate generalization of African expectations. I urge the reader to keep in mind that Africa is rich in its diversity and that my use of broad depictions of the continent is more a stylistic decision rather than an attempt to portray Africa as a homogeneous unit.

Although there are many commonalities between countries in Africa, each country on the continent has its own idiosyncrasies.

It is my expectation that the reader discovers a new reality after completing this book; that this manuscript escapes the laundry list of clichés about Africa; and that it finds refuge in originality. If African Expectations only manages to open the reader’s eyes to the diversity of Africa, it would have succeeded its mission.

The process of writing this book has been most rewarding for me because I started writing it at a time of great personal loss and challenging academic endeavors. I had just lost my beloved father while pursuing graduate studies far away from my family.

I was unable to attend my father’s funeral. Needless to say: I was devastated and completely lost. This book was an attempt to soften the sting of my personal loss by writing through the pain.

I was not ready to write about my father because the pain clouded my vision so I decided to write about Africa - a subject I am as passionate about as I am about my beloved father.

Alfred Kazin - an American writer and literary critic once said: The writer writes in order to teach himself, to understand himself, to satisfy himself; the publishing of his ideas, though it brings gratification, is a curious anticlimax.

Judging by the way the writing process has stimulated me intellectually and emotionally, I dare hope that the reader is equally challenged in ways unexpected.

It is my prayer that African people and mankind find some use to this parchment - a humble contribution to the advancement of humanity. I write knowing that actions we take today can result in consequences far greater than we ever hoped or imagined tomorrow.

I hope to provide the reader with my perspective on what is wrong with Africa and what we can do to make it right.

For example: In Traditions in Modern Times, I shine a light on the constant struggle between traditions (some backward) and modernity. In my opinion, Africa’s children have a duty to move beyond backward traditions because Tradition without reason weakens nations.

In We will develop with healthy minds and a clean environment, I bemoan the lack of psychiatric care for Africa’s young who are left to deal with the vicissitudes of life on their own.

In my opinion, we need to do a better job at protecting our collective brainpower in order to maximize our potential. I also suggest that it is imperative that we protect the environment for future generations.

In Greener pastures and the Diaspora dilemma, I expose the lack of a strategic plan by African leaders to tap into the enormous intellectual and economic resources that is represented by the African Diaspora.

In my opinion, people from the Diaspora want to be part of the solution by making a difference on the ground.

In Four propositions to effect change, I suggest that despite the challenges faced, African expectations can be fulfilled if we shift focus from educating job seekers to molding entrepreneurs, shift focus from quantitative measures of development to qualitative measures, adopt a single official African language, and brand our countries and the continent for accelerated development. Other chapters include Young people are the solution and The good leadership guide.

SECTION I: LIFE AND TIMES

CHAPTER 1: TRADITIONS IN MODERN TIMES

A person is a person through other persons. None of us comes into the world fully formed. We would not know how to think, or walk, or speak, or behave as human beings unless we learned it from other human beings. We need other human beings in order to be human. I am because other people are. A person is entitled to a stable community life, and the first of these communities is the family – Desmond Tutu

In most African cultures, it is safe to say that the man is generally recognized as the head of the family unit. As such, he is expected to provide material, emotional and spiritual support for his immediate and in most cases extended family. In return, children are expected to be there for their parents in their old age especially when they do not have enough resources to take care of themselves as is almost always the case.

For all the changes in our history, this long held tradition appears to remain entrenched. However, it has come under increasing questioning by emancipated and independent young women and men who challenge aspects of this tradition.

Also, modernization which often rhymes with the clipping of the umbilical cord that held African families tightly bound has occasioned an open rebellion from many young Africans.

Increasingly, parents and children simply shirk their responsibilities. Children resent their parents for not taking care of them when they needed it the most and parents resent children for abandoning them in old age.

Family feuds may get even messier when parents are divorced and one of the children is world famous and wealthy.

Let me tell you the story of Michael Essien. Michael is a bona fide football (soccer for my American readers) superstar who plays for Chelsea Football Club in the English Premier League and also plays for the Ghana national football team.

Michael Essien is one of those rare players who exhibit amazing strength and boundless energy in both offensive and defensive play.

He has such brute strength that he was nicknamed: The Bison. Essien was the most expensive African footballer between 2007 and 2009, having moved from Olympique Lyonnais in the French first division to Chelsea Football Club for a record £26 million.

A few weeks to the 2010 Football world cup in South Africa, at the time when injured Michael was still unsure of recovering in time to participate in the world cup, James Essien his father launched a media campaign to accuse his son of neglect. He granted interviews to the national and international media relating how he lived in a mud hut, had not seen his son for the past fifteen years nor spoken to him for the past six years.

In the media, Michael flatly rejected his father’s accusations stating: "God knows I have done my best to thoroughly look after a man who didn't even raise me or take part in my upbringing - and who has eight other children who