Is the grass greener elsewhere apart from home? The reality of most African countries

 

In human nature, it is extremely hard to appreciate what we have until we lose it. We tend to want something else from outside. African youth are increasingly migrating in large numbers to the four corners of the globe. It is not a secret that African countries face a lot of challenges and for most young people, the dire situation has become extremely unbearable. The loss of bright minds in form of brain-drain, it is increasingly becoming existential for the continent especially smaller state such as Burundi, Malawi and others. However, is the grass greener elsewhere apart from home?

The hardship in many African countries are real and they leave huge toll on young people. A lot of households struggles to offer 3 meals a day to their children. Most of the kids watch trough television the good life that people lead in Europe and other countries outside the continent and they make it a life objective to travel and settle there. This obsession of bettering their life at all cost sometimes lead them to take very dangerous choices. In recent years, it has been common that many young people from sub-Sahara Africa have been embarking on journey to Europe through the Mediterranean Sea on small boats. This is extremely dangerous as many of them are repeatedly losing their life. Others are moving to the Middle East in countries like UAE, Saudi Arabia and gulf countries for mainly construction home keeping jobs. The obstacles of getting to those countries do not deter them as they believe that life promises to be better across the ocean.

What’s greener on the other side, worth risking life for? Most of people especially young people sell all their belongings to get a visa for Europe, US, Canada, Australia and other Asian countries. Most developed countries offer opportunities that Africans only dream of. Therefore when given a chance, they would rather die trying to get the opportunity than staying in the same place. Small kids grow up idolizing super stars such as Drogba, Yaya toure, Osimhen and others. The lack of similar visibility and financial reward for playing football means that some takes their chances to migrate to Europe to realize their goal of becoming super stars.

However, the situation always comes with a complex reality. Most of the developed countries are increasingly becoming hostile to migration and it is expressed many movement such as Brexit in UK and MAGA in the US. It is extremely hard to perform in such kind of environment. The competition between locals and migrants tends to lead crashes in certain instances. Western cultures and African cultures are ways different. The gap means that it is hard for Africans to fully embrace the customs. Someone once said when in Rome, act like Romans. However, it is difficult for some people to behave like locals in their host countries which result in unprecedented collision of cultures and way of life.

 On the bright side of the continent. It is imperative that the bright minds remain on the continent to help the African continent to develop. However, it is not just trough words, the governments should provide a platform for youth to express their ideas and make available investment opportunities. The African countries can become the Eden garden that we crave for by racking it and removing all the weeds ourselves. The African continent have immense potential and it is time to add value to our raw talents. With the level of development, Africa is promising to get greener and greener.