One African voice amongst a billion » Technology

From Activist to President: Why Youssou Ndour shouldn’t be President of Senegal

marieme — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:30:43 +0000

Don’t get me wrong, I like Youssou Ndour. I have met him. I think he is a man of high calibre with extensive influence in Senegal and an international profile. His music has spoken to an entire generation and been heard around the world. He has never hesitated to raise his voice about social injustice and matters that touch the Senegalese grassroots. He is an entrepreneur who has invested in his country, creating jobs. In short, Youssou plays a positive role in Senegalese society.

But after weeks of speculation, I was surprised and disappointed to hear him announce on his own TV station his decision to stand for president of Senegal. It’s not that I think his apparent ambition is bad in itself. But I think that his candidacy is unlikely to succeed. And if it did, I do not think he is the right candidate for the job. If he won, his role would become more difficult, more overtly political – in the bad sense. He is far more valuable to Senegal as an activist than as an officially elected politician.

Civil society in Senegal is weak. It lacks direction and is full of nostalgia for the post-colonial renaissance of “l’Afrique noire”. People dream of change but there are few credible actors of change. Senegalese politics is a corrupt and shambolic family-run affair, with 173 parties jostling for power and influence. Certain political leaders don’t even understand their own manifestos, some of which are written in France and sent to them. Senegalese society is also dominated by a deeply entrenched class system, in which a small number of wealthy families and religious leaders carry great influence. The wider population, in particular the younger generation, are also weary of self-serving politicians and their unkept promises. The sad fact is that the country is divided and has never fully recovered since the departure of Léopold Sédar Senghor thirty years ago.

The class system is one of the biggest obstacles Youssou Ndour would need to overcome. Growing up as a young girl in Dakar, I used to see him regularly when he visited my Aunt Fatou Sall’s home. She was a wealthy and influential woman in Senegal and a fan of Youssou’s music. Her faith in him prompted her to contribute financially to his career. Many of his songs pay tribute to my family in Senegal. This patronage and that of other tightly-linked “good-blood” families in the past is a problem today; he needs their support but they will see him as opportunistic and greedy – not to mention under-qualified – and their backing would in any case weaken his independence and therefore his credibility.

The same goes for the religious leaders. No candidate is credible without their support. But to obtain it he would inevitably corrupt himself.

Then there is the Diaspora. Money talks in Senegal, and the Mourides and Tidjanes brotherhoods contribute around 1.4 BILLION US$ to the Senegalese economy each year. And they have also supported his career in the past.

And finally he would need to attract the younger generation. They are being inspired by developments elsewhere in the world – the Occupy movement and the Arab Spring in particular – and are beginning to flex their muscles by demonstrating, and not just on social media like Facebook and Twitter. Their support would be essential, but it would not sit easily with that of the old elites.

One thing that all these forces have in common is a doubt about his qualifications to do the job. Senegalese people were disappointed yesterday by his interview on TV5, when he failed to elaborate clearly on his policies. This is a legitimate concern and one he tries to address in his declaration. But a failure to lay out coherent policies will quickly sink his chances.

I believe his desire to stand has sound motivations, but I am not sure if his celebrity status will enable him to attract enough votes to win. Also, his need for support from entrenched secular elites, religious conservatives and the young would force him into fatal compromises. Finally, there are legitimate doubts within the Senegalese middle class and the youth about his ability to do the job.

Youssou Ndour is a unique figure in Senegalese culture. Most activists in Senegal are penniless and relatively powerless, but Youssou Ndour has the ear of many; a musician with entrepreneurial acumen, activism in his heart and mind, and positions on the advisory boards of various platforms for change and African development that enable him to influence policy while retaining political independence. Senegal wants and needs him. But he is far more valuable to his country in the role of a prominent and politically independent activist than as a president. I hope he will stand down.

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Where are the African speakers?

marieme — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 08:51:09 +0000

This blog has been triggered by the numerous emails I get every day about the apparent lack of African speakers prepared to come forward to talk about certain industries at Africa-focused events.

I attend many events in Africa and around the world and my exasperation is growing because I struggle to find African speakers capable of representing the continent effectively, apart from the usual faces we see at every event, and they are few and usually from the USA or part of the International Development world. As for African women in ICT, they are very hard to find.

So I am wondering, why is it that African people are not stepping forward? What is the problem? Is it a lack of confidence? A lack of visibility? Is it their fault? Do they not know how to speak? Or are they overshadowed by what we might call ‘friends of Africa’ or by Afro-Americans who left Africa 20 years ago and now have little direct contact with Africa. This is not to be critical of Afro-Americans — they are part of the Diaspora, have links in Africa and could have much to say if they engage more regularly with the grassroots — or other ‘outsiders’ with a passion for the continent, but I believe that we should also be able to find some Made-in-Africa speakers. Surely there are eloquent Africans capable of telling their stories. Storytelling is in their blood. From a young age, Africans are surrounded by amazing stories that can be shared with a wide audience to vibrant and inspiring effect, even changing people’s lives.

I am sure if we look hard enough within the continent we will find that we have vibrant young Africans who are dying to have their voices heard. If empowered, supported and trained to take the stage, Africans can tell their stories better than anyone else, whether it be about mobile technologies, ICT development, international development or other areas of the economy and business. It’s time they emerged from behind the scenes and stopped being overshadowed by Corporate Americans, or the ‘lovers of Africa’ who take all the credit for their hard work. African People need to get more visibility as a matter of urgency. Some are already making a name for themselves — Jessica Colaco Mobile Technology Evangelist from Kenya and London-based Nkeiru Joe to name but two. And I have been following others on social networking platforms like Twitter and Facebook. I have also identified a few speakers on my Best of Africa list on Twitter. But I am sure we can find more. So, I’m appealing to any Africans out there who have an exciting story to tell, who want to learn how to stand up with confidence or who already know how to speak in front of an audience, to step forward and share their experience with us.

You can always email me you know! I will do my best to help!

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Rethinking Africa

marieme — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 11:57:10 +0000

“Africa is the home of limitless potential, feel free to dream and together we will make it happen”

Africa will host its first International tournament this year 2010. Millions of people are expected to fly in the continent and to discover the beauty, the humanity and smell of it. No African nation has done this before therefore this opportunity will put Africa in the spot light. Visibility is expected at its highest.

It’s also an opportunity to Rethink Africa. South Africa is one portion of Africa with its population reaching the 50 million out of 1billion people living in the continent, a very poor country still where unemployment is extremely high and income inequality has almost created racial discrimination between Blacks and Whites. Women are still raped violently, reduced to nothing, polygamy and violence are still an actuality in South Africa.

South Africa is not Africa; there are many other countries in Africa that by 2020 can hold an International tournament as this grandeur. Yes lots of work needs to be done to achieve that but with reserve certainty, it could happen. This mean that in the next 10 years we must work hard to build necessary infrastructures, stabilise our governments, invest in ICT, help Africans with sustainable applied educational programs that will create jobs and reduce poverty.

Africa is not poor, but 70% of the continent is poorly administered, governed with individuals that want to remain in power for centuries, fear to loose wealth, and good “life”. They have forgotten their noble mission in society and just thinking of themselves and their entourages.

I always say that Education is Key to Africa development, we must teach governments to be accountable, reliable and responsible. They have been elected to serve their people, therefore must serve with Dignity! When a mandate has been served, another elected government must take over. Governments aren’t family businesses and we must know this. They have earn the vote of that poor woman in the village therefore must have the decency to deliver what they have promised. African governments need to be taught basic lessons of humans’ rights. 2010 will be a testing time for Africa, it will get lots of visibility, but the credibility, and profitability it needs will depend on how its people rethink of it.

Social Media will have a huge effect on the continent with an expected #hashtags trending on the Twitter home page. It will mean nothing for the people that don’t know Africa, but will mean a lot for the Diaspora and millions of Africans that are leaving outside the continent for diverse reasons such as force immigrations, war, poverty, asylums or simply lack of opportunities in their countries of origins.

Rethinking Africa is crucial for 2010, as we enter this new decade; change must happen at its core. Some people in Africa are very poor, this is a fact and they do not even know why they are so poor, why they can’t buy food, why their resources are misused, or why they can’t get access to basic education and that’s the sadness of it. We all must rethink Africa;do the right thing as it has lots of potential that can contribute to a better world.

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