“A functioning, robust democracy requires a healthy educated, participatory followership, and an educated, morally grounded leadership” — Chinua Achebe
The Barriers to Community Wealth
In the opening quote, Achebe shows how mobilisation of the population, based on education and a moral code, can lead to the advancement of democracy. We need to build on this formula to show how Nigeria can address its multiple challenges in a way that leads to systemic and inclusive change. Let us start with the problems.
Nigeria suffers from poverty and extensive unemployment, particularly with younger workers. Unemployment reached 33% in the fourth quarter of 2020. In 2022, Nigeria was ranked 162nd in the Environmental Performance Index developed by Yale and Columbia universities. The country suffers from growing deforestation, which compounds the threats associated with global warming. Nigeria was also ranked 107th in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2021…
