Excerpts from a Prolific Thinker

  Young, fragile, plagued by complex challenges and yet full of passion and energy. The African continent is often defined in similar terms than its large youth. If history attests that the oldest known human skeleton was found in Eastern Africa, there seems to be a gap in data and historical research between the estimated living period of Lucy, 4.2 million years ago, and history of the continent as it unfolded thereafter. When it comes to Africa, there seems to be less interest about its past and long history than its future, expected growth and upcoming challenges. There seems to be so much more to be done than already achieved, so many needs and so little resources. Needless to say that Africa holds huge proportion of natural resources. 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves, 8 per cent of the world’s natural gas, 12 per cent of the world’s oil reserves, 40 per cent of the world’s gold, up to 90 per cent of its chromium and platinum as well as the largest reserves of cobalt...

  When moving between cities and regions in Africa, you leave tarmac (and sometimes dust) to meet the prominent nature, a green decor that imposes itself to the few who dare confronting it. A luxurious nature that can only partially be grasped, even by the most famous painters, from Van Gogh to South African John Pemba. The natural rhythms of Africa’s rural areas seem to be altered over time by the penetration of the urban way of life. Traditional houses are progressively transforming, with cement and steel rooftops being marks of an unstoppable evolution towards modernity, if one subscribes to the dichotomic comparison between tradition and modernity. In actual fact, tradition and modernity remain intertwined in the wooden boutiques selling essential staples from local produce to telecommunication recharge cards, even deep in the dense forests. City dwellers bring their gadgets and services in response to emerging business opportunities. Mechanics are now established across the ...

Communicating in today’s world is as ambivalent as society itself, on the one hand it links people as it should, while on the other hand it operates as a simulacra, enabling individuals to fake connection when they are only creating air waves and not bridges. Communication is the framework in which we ought to exchange meaning, make sense of the surrounding, share a reality that we create together, as one body yet singular individuals. When human beings exchange with their fellow beings, they should share information, perceptions and values altogether and strive to express a common reality. Was it meant to create more cohesive groups and societies or polarize socially created opinions that individuals single out and fight for as their own? Is communication today what is keeping societies together by outlining a commonality of experience and understanding or has it become one that shapes and perpetually restructures our perception of the world, to the benefit of some groups which polari...

Laid foot by the Ocean. After a quite shaky flight to the well-known home of luxurious seaside beach resorts. Beyond the humidity that welcomes the unaware visitor at the exit of the plane, something about the ambient air reminds me of what makes me both hopeful and desperate about Africa. A capital of natural resources that has been, in modern times at least, underserved, and utilized with too little attention to sustainability. Like a  c ow  (the animal of thousands symbols in Africa) which, instead of being nurtured and carefully milked, was slaughtered and sold, because it takes less effort and the expected direc t return puts corn on the dining table. A cow, yes. One that could support the farmer plough its land, tirelessly giving milk to nourish newborn and elderly. A cow. One that was revered as a symbol for prosperity and long-term wealth, but now is milked to blood. When will Africa become more than a cow left to the desires of those than never saw it grow, nor walked...

“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.”   — Louis L’Amour Why I write? Well. Good question. Probably because it is easier than screaming my thoughts from my backyard and expect people to hear them and engage in discussions as a result. More seriously, I started writing to give my thoughts a wider and more structured space to blossom. I remember the first lines that came out, by the lakeside (not the worst view to get inspiration isn’t it) after a very early morning swim. With music in my earphones, taking advantage of a work break, I opened a blank word document and let my mind coordinate with my typing fingers on how to organize the many words, battling to come out. I wasn’t thinking while writing. As if the thoughts had been rehearsing the moment they would be jotted down on paper (or screen in this case). Few minutes and a couple of pages later, I stopped. As relieved from an unknown pressure. From that day I would look forward to ...