Black Africa seems to be going through a phase. We initially thought it was one of rejuvenation; you know, taking back ownership of our industries, systems and establishments from the colonial masters. The beginning of a process of both mental and physical decolonization. Only that lately, these thoughts have come to be a fantasy of an ideal and nothing more than the hope of what should be, not what really is.
In reality, the race seems to be struggling with figuring out a lot of elements of her society as an aftermath of foreign-impacted damage, and the seemingly endless stream of foreign agenda. Across sectors, black Africans in Africa seem to be having a hard time figuring out systems that work for good living, including the creative space.
For creative people in Nigeria for instance, everything seems to be working against their favour. From policies, to systems, to technology, economics, culture and an endless list of other societal elements, creatives in Nigeria are faced with so many struggles, it’s actually meta human that they are still able to create.
It seems perfect to begin this cultural lamentation with the state of power supply in the country. Across its thirty six states, power supply is currently at its lowest. An entire country thrown into darkness means millions of young Nigerians with no access to technology, the internet and business relations with the outside world.
Gas prices have skyrocketed, alternative power sources are no longer an alternative but mainstream solutions, and power banks have become cultural. The average Nigerian creative young person has to provide power for themselves one way or another in order to keep up with the pace of the world, or at least try to.
A good follow up point has to be security. The country experiencing death toll numbers more than countries at war on a daily basis does not only ignite creative blocks in the heads of creatives, but also more importantly threatens their lives and livelihoods. It’s desirable to be creative, but essential to be alive first.
With food, Nigeria loses 30%–50% of agricultural produce after harvest due to poor storage, transportation, and processing systems. Combined with how much of a downtime her economy is experiencing, good food might become luxury in a matter of time. Statically, over 27% of Nigerians cannot afford healthy meals even if they spent their entire income on food. And for creative people who mostly don’t earn an even amount on a monthly basis, this is a huge problem.
Although the rot goes deeper than this piece highlights, these are cited examples of Nigeria’s government failing in its primary duty to protect, empower and provide for its people, including the ones with creative careers.
Nigerian young people are having to be their own government, beating all the odds to still make world-standard art, or at least try to. It begets the questions:
“What’s the way out for Nigeria’s creative future? What is the future of Nigerian arts? Does one even exist?”
Itty can be caught studying African pop culture, writing about it or hosting a relationship podcast. When he's not doing any of these, then he's definitely at a bar, getting mocktail.
