Youths tasked to embrace, promote own culture

Former African Union Representative to the United States (US), Ambassador Arikana Chihombori Quao, has urged African youths to embrace and promote their own culture and values if they are to uplift their lives and the continent as a whole.

Ambassador Chihombori, who represented the AU in the US between 2017 and 2019, expressed her concern at the Julius Nyerere Leadership Centre (JNLC) at Makerere University on Wednesday, July 26. She emphasised the importance of self-sustenance and African history in shaping culture, identity, and effective development of Africa during a cross-generational fireside (Ekyooto) conversation with young leaders.

She highlighted the potential of Africa's educated and intelligent young individuals, expressing regret that many leave their beautiful lands in search of perceived greener pastures, which are not always as promising as they seem. 

“Imagine if we could convince the 300 million brilliant Africans working outside to bring back that knowledge here, where will we be? Africa is rich, in fact the people you run to are the one who need us not as it is perceived now,” she said.

Ambassador Chihombori called for a reversal of this trend and encouraged the return of knowledge and skills to Africa to propel the continent's growth.

Africa, she said, has often been labeled a weak continent by its former colonisers, despite the abundance of potential within its people to effect transformative change.

“The issue of revamping our education systems is something so blatant and so easy to do, the issue of rewriting our own history. Why are we still using colonial textbooks, it simply doesn’t make any sense, and we can write our own history,” she said.

Ms Suzie Muwanga, the Executive Director of JNLC, urged youths to embrace and preserve their cultural heritage, ensuring the continuity of their generations and resisting the cultural erosion posed by foreign influences.

“It is high time we thought and reflected on how to make this continent work,” she said.

Ms Mariat Namiiro, the Vice President of the Makerere Students Guild, emphasised the importance of learning from African elders and leaders who can help the youth embrace their true identity. 

“We need to learn from African elders especially leaders who know who we are so that we can also start accepting the true us because today you will find the majority of youths want to be identified by their given foreign names as opposed to the African ones,” she said.

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