By Olakunle Agboola – I had just had a great meeting with Laura in London, a 32 years old British media entrepreneur. We were on the way out of the meeting room when She asked if Coming To America part 2, a movie produced by Eddie Murphy is the true picture of Africa, a scattered settlement surrounded by wild animals.
I was surprised when I burst out laughing because almost every day I meet so many people most especially non-Africans who have the wrong notion or perception about Africa. West media also has continued to portray the poor image of Africa and it is the right time African media change the narratives.
It starts with the responsibility of telling nuanced and authentic stories about Africa that belong to the continent’s storytellers and not to Hollywood. There is a necessity to create a huge platform and reach like that of Hollywood’s movies or else Africans will continue to be subjective to the poor narrative of the continents, while people like Laura will believe whatever they see on the screen about Africa.
Delta airline, a major US carrier, once made a huge mistake on social media. Whilst congratulating the US World Cup team on a victory over Ghana, they used a photo of a giraffe to represent the African nation. Unfortunately for Delta, there are no wild giraffes in Ghana, and the Twitter community was quick to alert them to this.
Delta apologized for the image used. However, this highlights how widely such stereotypes are still accepted and perpetuated in Western media. This is just one out of hundreds that stands not to be corrected and allows to slip away. Yes, there are a whole host of exciting wild animals, and gorgeous savannahs, in some regions of Africa. However, there are also huge cities, rolling beaches, historic ancient monuments, and more.
George Allen, an American psychologist has continued to spread a beautiful message about Africa and this is after he had seen beautiful places in Africa traveling through the savannah in South Africa and monumental cities in Kenya, Rwanda, and Nigeria. George has not stopped sharing beautiful pictures of Africa across his social media as he is planning to travel to Ghana this year.
“I am one of those who had a huge misconception about Africa and you can’t blame me. I grew up with so many poor stories about Africa and a weekly donation in Church for the poor in Africa just made me sick while I wrote Africa off as a forgotten continent. The image of Africa has been so shattered that traveling to Africa might be the only way to have a rethink. I have not been to many places in Africa but I have seen more than five countries and I am amazed at my discovery.
I was more particular about technology traveling to Africa but I was surprised with an incredibly fast-growing global technology market. I don’t think America can compete with the fast pace of mobile technology in Nigeria. I just have to be honest.
Also, I duly observed the contribution and donation. From the west, my father did quite a lot of donations to Africa through the church. My father did not for once travel to Africa before he died and maybe he could have died having beautiful memories about Africa. Money is not the problem of Africa from what I have seen. I think it is a media perception to stereotype African people as helpless and dependent on us.
I am not arguing the fact that Africa does not have its unique problems but it is just like every other society who through daily thinking find a way to solve problems. The responsiveness to problem-solving might be slow in Africa and that is where a good leadership structure comes into place”
Deji Soboloju is set to launch See Africa initiatives, a travel and tour agency directed towards the non-Africans to come to Africa and experience the continent. This is a project that is backed up by international security agencies to guarantee safety in and out of the continent of Africa. Deji believes this will encourage those who have not been to Africa to travel and educate their mindset.
I have advised Laura to plan for her next holiday and follow Deji to Africa. This will be of great help to know that Africa is not just a country but also a continent that comprises 54 countries.
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