The World Economic Forum for Africa successfully held in Abuja recently, amidst continuing national outcry, echoed globally, for the safe return of our kidnapped Chibok daughters. With Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, on the front burner of the international media over the country’s serious security challenges, the significant achievement of hosting the WEFA, in spite of the extremely tense build up to the forum, has been overshadowed. However, despite the importance of the national crises at hand, there is an important lesson from Nigeria’s hosting of WEFA that, in my opinion, must not go unmentioned.
As a Nigerian citizen participating in the forum, my antennas were up to see how the country would receive the rest of Africa and the world, so I was intensely struck and most pleasantly surprised by the quality of Nigerian human capital at work through out WEFA. From the FAAN staff at the airports, the road safety marshals, to the security personnel – the Nigerian police and army – to the staff at the various hotels, the Nigerian work force were professional, courteous, and efficient at their jobs. These are not the adjectives generally associated with such workers in Nigeria. Notably, there were none of the usual vices that are typically exhibited by many in similar roles, such as indiscipline, rudeness and nonchalance, ‘power shows,’ corrupt and extortion practices, or beggarly ‘tip-seeking’ eye-service antics. Perhaps most impressive of all, the WEF staff team from Switzerland stated categorically that the 57 student volunteers from University of Lagos assisting them in various capacities were the best team of volunteers that they had ever worked with in their 15 years experience!
However, my euphoria is bitter sweet. To be so happy and relieved that what was obviously a carefully selected team of Nigerian workers were able to present a decent, world-class standard of customer service and efficiency over a seven-day period magnifies the extent of indiscipline and inefficiency currently prevailing in our society. This should be the norm. It didn’t take rocket science to figure out what went right in Abuja. The quality of planning and ‘forced’ discipline that went into the year-long preparations for last week’s WEFA, facilitated through the Nigerian Economic Summit Group as secretariat liaising with the WEF team was instructive. Key take-aways were the importance of the role of leadership, strategic organisation and team work.
I had the privilege of being invited to speak on a panel along side President Thabo Mbeki, Lord Hastings of Scarisbrick and two other global thought leaders at a WEFA Community Conversations session on ‘Governance in Africa’. The session sought to answer the question of who is accountable for governance by identifying what constitutes the future of governance in Africa, and how citizen participation and institutions can be strengthened and sustainably improved. In reflecting on governance from the perspective of the public sector (the government), private sector economic drivers, or civil society activism as the conscience of society, I, again, reached the conclusion that every individual Nigerian is responsible for the attainment of the ‘Nigeria of our hopes and dreams’ – and is accountable for the current dearth of governance – because good people make up good institutions, and leaders emerge from within the people as a mirror image of the society.
WEFA in Abuja was an example, and there are other pockets of excellence, that demonstrate to us that it can be done. With inspirational leadership, vision and focus, with discipline, organization and true team spirit, I believe Nigeria can achieve a complete turn around in a very short space of time in spite of the current prevailing selfish interests of a few – but every single Nigerian must decide what kind of Nigeria he or she wants to see, wants to live in, and then go ahead and walk the talk, pay the price, sacrifice and really give it all it takes in their own sphere of influence, no matter how small, to achieve this country’s much-talked about potential. Our ‘youth bulge’ alone, if properly harnessed, can change the trajectory of this country in a single generation.
With the manifold challenges we face as a country, we each carry both the shame and the hope that personifies Nigeria today. Watching that cohesive team of young men and women working in Abuja, serving their country diligently, striving for excellence with a visible sense of national pride, gave me a much needed booster of hope, particularly in these trying times.
Jumoke Oduwole
