How Stereotypes Devour The Good News From Africa

It is said that if you do not define yourself, others will define you. You can let others define you, which is the easier way or forge ahead and make your own path. I make a call for us to redefine Africa in our own terms.

Africa is depicted in the western media as a continent synonymous with genocide, disease, corruption, poverty, ignorance, deprivation, banditry, brigandage, slaughter fields, child soldiers, gang-raped girls, harassed mothers and wasted children. The continent is even at times referred to as the ‘dark’ continent.  Surely, we are plagued by some of these challenges but those should not define the continent and its people.

Today, such one-size-fit-all portrayal of Africa is irresponsible. Some countries and sub-regions have made significant strides in every facet of life. Despite a few aberrations, democracy is strengthening in several countries, while some economies are projected to see the fastest growth among economies in the years ahead. We may just cross our hands and complain about the unfair African stereotypes or each of us can decide to embark on his or her own mission to shape the ending of the story, the beginning of which is beyond our control.

I do not think it is going to be easy to expunge the current Western mindset on the African continent and people. I however believe that it is worth trying. Every African has a role to play in reversing this mindset. There has to be a gracious but aggressive challenge when people are caught on the wrong side of the facts. My goal is to arm our readers with the facts and figures to confront people who intentionally or out of honest ignorance get it wrong on Africa.

Very often, we hear Africa being portrayed as a country that is in a civil war. I personally feel upset when I hear people depict Africa as a jungle with women walking on streets with naked chest, every child starving, and scattered villages with schools held under trees. Perception becomes a reality, at least in the mind, if it is not confronted. It is for this reason that I call upon all readers to fight this unfair stereotyping. We are generally meek people, but our meekness should not be mistaken for a weakness.

I have listed below some facts about Africa that are easily missed and sometimes dishonestly covered up.

• Africans are not the sad, hungry looking folks normally depicted in the media. In fact a new survey by conducted by BVA Gallup in 53 countries and reported by French daily Le Parisien showed that Nigerians and Ghanaians are the second and third most optimistic people, respectively, beaten only by Vietnam.
• Africa is a continent of 54 independent countries with nearly 1 billion people (about 3 times population of the US)
• That the size of the African continent (30,3 million km²) is larger than the combination of China (9,6 million km²), the US (9,4 million km²), Western Europe (4,9 million km²), India (3,2 million km²) and Argentina (2,8 million km
• That Africans abroad remit back home about $40 billion annually and still manage to pay their mortgage and credit cards.
• That English, French, Arabic, Portuguese are used as medium of instructions right from kindergarten in most countries.
• That like Brazil, Peru, and Australia, the Democratic Republic of Congo has one of the richest ecosystems in the world (have you ever heard something good about the DRC?)
• That Africa is not a parasite on the western economy but rather make significant contributions to the global economic system, with an estimated combined purchasing power of more than $2.5 trillion [source: United Nations Development Program (UNDP)].
• That Africa has the only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace prize winners. It is Vilakazi Street, Soweto, South Africa. Both Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have houses on the street (that’s significant, I think).
• That Africa is not all slums. From Johannesburg to Dakar, Dares Salaam to Nairobi, and Accra to Cairo many African cities boast of towering skyscrapers, complex infrastructures, 21^st Universities and a sizzling nightlife that will amaze any first time uninformed tourist.
• That the continent can boast of some of the most talented athletes on the planet.

Knowledge is power. These are the weapons that I use to fight the stereotypes. You are welcome to add them to your arsenal.  It is time to uncover the Africa they do not report.

Thanks for reading.