We don’t need to preach the love for money to Africans. It is one of the reasons Africa despite being the wealthiest continent is still the poorest. Our politicians cut deals at the expense of the well-being of their citizens because of brown envelopes and briefcases.
We need to stop this notion that Africans are poor because of their mentality – that’s a lie!
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If Americans have a better mentality – why do they write so many self-help books? Why read books like Think and Grow Rich, and How to Win Friends and Influence People? Why? The mentality is wrong in a lot of places, not just in Africa. Americans have created a system where you can be stupid and still win.
As Africans, we are hustlers and creative people. Have you seen the grind of West Africans? The problem is we don’t have proper systems that support the scaling of our ideas. We have taxation systems that prey on their own people and favour foreign investors. Because everyone is trying so hard to survive, almost everyone is selling something out here. Have you seen the streets of Lusaka? Whether in the CDD or the townships, people are grinding.
The mentality issue might be there, but it’s not an African thing. It’s everywhere.
Africa will see exponential growth when:
- We lose this excessive love for money and personal gain and see a bigger picture above our selfish desires. We will cut better bilateral deals that benefit a lot of people.
- We create systems and policies that make it easy for locals to succeed in their ventures.
- We unite and be proud of who we are as Africans and as Zambians. And when we start to lift each other up.
