It is not an exaggeration to say that many African nations are still struggling with development. If the word underdeveloped sounds too harsh, then it is fair to say we are still developing. In almost every sector, we depend heavily on countries that are far ahead of us. In education, we are crawling. In agriculture, we cannot produce enough to feed ourselves. In technology, we are far from where we should be. Sometimes it even feels as if we are asleep, and no one knows when we will truly wake up.
From my own observation, nothing more than my personal opinion, there are certain reasons Africa is not progressing the way it should.
One major factor is religion. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being religious. In fact, faith is a good thing. The problem begins when people start believing that prayer alone will bring success. Many Africans have been made to think that attending church or mosque automatically opens the door to prosperity. People forget that God does not drop money from the sky. What he gives are ideas, opportunities, wisdom, and the strength to work. Just like He provides the maize, but we must plant, weed, and harvest it ourselves. No one goes to a mountain to pray for thirty days just to get a cob of maize. We plant it because we know there are principles behind farming. In the same way, there are principles behind making money, skills, discipline, creativity, and hard work.
Another issue is our strong focus on eternal life. Many Africans have been raised to believe that real joy is only found in heaven. Children grow up singing songs that suggest life on earth has no meaning. Because of this, some people feel there is no need to develop anything here. After all, “the world will soon end,” they say. But how can someone who is only preparing for heaven also be committed to building a better Africa? This mindset makes many people ignore the responsibility they have to improve their communities. Even though heaven is important to those who believe in it, we still have a duty to make life better here on earth.
Creativity is another area where we lag. The way we were trained in school did not help us. Many of us grew up hearing things like, “If you don’t read your book, your shoe will be flat.” In other words, education was only presented as a path to passing exams and getting a job—usually a government job. You hardly heard anything about creativity, innovation, or entrepreneurship. Meanwhile, in other parts of the world, children are trained from a young age to think for themselves, solve problems, and create value. An African parent tells a five-year-old child, “Read hard so you will get a government job.” A Western parent says, “Learn how to create something of your own.” Those early lessons shape the mind of the child forever.
Slowly though, things are changing. Many Africans are beginning to realise that we cannot depend on the spiritual realm alone. Prayer without work will not build roads, or develop technology, or transform education. Until we reach a point where we turn some of our large crusade grounds into research centres and innovation hubs, Africa will continue to struggle. Even as a Christian myself, I cannot deny that many religious centres today operate more like businesses than places that transform lives. As Professor PLO Lumumba once said, many of these places have turned the gospel into “Jesus business.”
In the end, Africa has everything it needs to rise, talent, strength, and people. But until we change our mindset, we may keep going in circles. The moment we begin to value creativity, hard work, and true development, that is when Africa will finally move forward.
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