• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Africa needs Nigeria to flourish again if there is to be a new dawn on the continent

Africa needs Nigeria to flourish again if there is to be a new dawn on the continent

Let’s be frank about this, tough love is sometimes the best medicine. We can talk and talk all day about Africa’s problems, or we can ‘call a spade a spade’ and simply highlight the elephant in the room. Nigeria has a large elephant in the room.

“Amidst incredulous wealth, the majority of Nigerians are in a dire spiral of abject poverty, a common misfortune that pervades almost every African country,” says Thuli Nkosi, CEO of BossJansen, leading Executive Search Company focused on sourcing senior executive business leaders in Africa. In fact, according to the World Poverty Clock, Nigeria could be heading for the title of the ‘Poverty Capital of the World’ and has been relegated to the background of international affairs.

“Corruption, misappropriation of public funds, electoral malpractices, insurgency and terrorism have taken a devastating toll on Nigeria and curtailed the country’s ability to herald a prosperous future,” says Nkosi. The spirit of the people is broken and the country is in no place to lead the African continent, when its own ‘house’ is in ruin. Add to this, the desperately slow movement of government and it is easy to think that there is no hope of an improvement anytime soon.

According to BossJansen, if Nigeria is to be an excellent and prosperous beacon of light for Africa and the World – the most fundamental issue that needs to be addressed, is leadership. Leadership in Government and leadership in business. True leaders lead by example and to effect positive change for the better, will require individuals who emulate the culture they wish to see spread across the country.

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For too long leaders have talked and talked and excused things as being too complicated, or too complex, requiring much time to address the ‘plethora’ of challenges. BossJansen argues that these are merely nonsensical excuses and that Nigeria is simply hiring the wrong people into positions that are critical to move the country forward.

There is no more time left for Nigeria to continue on the path it has been on. It is time for the sun to set on the status quo. Nigeria has many men and woman able to lead boldly, who possess strength of character, common conviction to do what is right. Men and woman with noble and honest intentions, capable of less talk and more action. It is a time for these leaders to come to the fore. It is time to push for the empowerment of Nigerians to mobilise their local resources and to use them for development. Public funds should not be concentrated in the hands of a few individuals. Accountability must be enhanced at every juncture.

“Sourcing and finding these people will take a focused unwavering commitment and effort from business,” says Nkosi. Ensuring, as far as humanly possible, that senior appointments and leadership roles are filled by people untainted by corruption and ready to embrace a new era in Nigeria, where the people are uplifted and can look forward to a better life and better future with opportunity, a country where moral integrity, transparency and accountability abound.

Visit BossJansen.com Official Website here.