Lagos’s reliance on generators is a foreshadowing of the challenges other large African cities such as Kinshasa and Luanda face as their populations swell despite underdeveloped infrastructure. But the emergence of new renewable energy players points to Nigeria's potential to become the world's most populous green country. 

Hassan Hajjaj, "Kesh Angels"

In the latest edition of Forbes Middle East, Isaac Kwaku Fokuo and I explain why the Gulf is set to compete in Africa. 

What started as a home décor project intended to infuse some of Nigerian style into her London home has morphed into a growing design empire. The striking, vibrant designs of her eponymous luxury line can be found in the premier global department stores from Liberty to Fenwick of Bond Street—and she’s only just getting started.

I caught up with Sonaike as she explored the Greek Isles to learn more about her journey from fashion journalist to interior designer. You can find the full interview here. 

Over the last seven years, Adjonyoh has introduced thousands of Londoners to traditional Ghanaian meals remixed for the modern kitchen. Whether British or Burkinabe, people from all walks of life find themselves elbow-to-elbow over a delicious plate of slow-cooked red-red and cassava. OkayAfrica spoke to Adjonyoh in the midst of her book tour about the ingredients behind her success.

Check out my interview with Zoe on OkayAfrica's website. 

Over a decade later, Austen-Peters is now one of Nigeria’s foremost producers whose theatrical productions have received critical acclaim from Lagos to London. OkayAfrica spoke to Austen-Peters about her journey to success as she prepares to take her latest musical, Saro!, to London’s famed West End.

Check out my interview with Bolanle on OkayAfrica's website. 

My recent Medium piece takes a look at how Francophone Africa can cultivate a culture of entrepreneurship and attract more investment. I've been following Emmanuel Macron's blueprint for making France the next start-up nation with some interest. As always, I have been thinking about what lessons can be garnered for Africa. In this case, particularly for Francophone Africa. 

You can find my thoughts here, which center on 5 key propositions:

1. Leverage fiscal and regulatory synergies
2. Position Abidjan as a regional finance hub
3. Manage perception of risk
4. Ensure access to Internet
5. Developed a skilled workforce

Anything else you would add? Comment on my article, or shoot me a message. 

Image courtesy of Midunu Chocolates

In a bid to meet the budget shortfall of their struggling economies, Ivory Coast and Ghana have accelerated efforts to support local grinders and producers of finished producers. Instead of selling raw materials for export, both countries now hope to make their chocolate just as iconic as their cocoa. New policies and initiatives aimed at local entrepreneurs may help them move up the value chain.

A few of the Ghanaian and Ivorian chocolatiers mentioned in this piece: Instant Chocolat, Midunu Chocolates, and '57 Chocolate. If you find yourself in Abidjan or Accra, be sure to check them out and let me know what you think.

Image courtesy of '57 Chocolate

"Nearly 60 percent of Americans admit knowing nothing at all about Sikhs. That lack of knowledge comes at a deadly cost. In the wake of recent incidents from the 2012 Oak Creek Massacre to a shooting of a Sikh man in Washington this March, the Sikh community is taking a more vocal stand against hate.

This month, the National Sikh Campaign, an advocacy group led by former political strategists, launched a $1.3 million awareness campaign, "We are Sikhs." Funded entirely by grass-roots donations, the campaign's ads will air nationally on CNN and Fox News as well as on TV channels in central California — home to nearly 50 percent of the Sikh American population — and online."

You can find the full piece here on NPR's website.

"With hate crimes on the rise, old coalitions between blacks and Jews are being rekindled and tested. According to a recent survey by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), 57 percent of Jews support Black Lives Matter, the second highest percentage of any faith group following Muslims. Although blacks and Jews worked closely to advance social justice during the Civil Rights Movement, the strong ties between the two groups have waned since the end of Jim Crow.

But the election of President Trump has contributed to a marked increase in hate crimes, while racist and anti-Semitic attacks had already been on the rise for years."

You can find the full piece here on NPR's website.

For most students and young professionals, first apartments are a painful rite of passage. The lessons often start after the first week: a sputtering air conditioner or the sinking realization that mice are noisy roommates. While not all landlords are exploitative, the fierce competition for housing in America’s largest cities puts young tenants at a disadvantage.
Read more here. 

Co-working, a trend pioneered by companies like WeWork, is a trend common in major American cities in New York or San Francisco. Across Africa it remains a new concept. However, as investment across the continent picks up steam, more startups are taking advantages of collaborative workplaces. According to data firm Social Workplaces, in 2013, there were only 24 coworking spaces across the continent. By 2015, the number grew up to 250. In Accra, there are over five today. They range from collaborative workspaces like Workshed to more full-fledged hubs and incubators with an even more expansive range of services.

"Muslim children are more likely to be bullied in school than children of other faiths. A new survey by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) reveals that 42 percent of Muslims with children in K–12 schools report bullying of their children because of their faith, compared with 23 percent of Jewish and 20 percent of Protestant parents."

You can find the full piece here on NPR's website. 

I once heard a very depressing statistic that 40 percent of World Bank reports have been downloaded fewer than 100 times, so hoping for better results with this article. If you're interested in reading the larger work, give me a shout here.

Abstract of the full-length thesis: 

During the Apartheid era, the mobility of black Africans, both those native to South Africa and those from other countries, was strictly regulated.  Citizenship was defined as white citizenship against black “others.”  Since independence from white-majority rule, South Africa, a country, which has built its modern democracy on inclusivity, has witnessed a rise in xenophobia and violence against migrants. In examining the dynamics of xenophobia towards Zimbabweans, the country’s largest migrant group, this paper argues that the persecution of migrants is tied to the persistent legacy of apartheid, rampant economic inequality, and the international relations of the African National Congress.

Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach. Any small, calm thing that one soul can do to help another soul, to assist some portion of this poor suffering world, will help immensely. It is not given to us to know which acts or by whom, will cause the critical mass to tip toward an enduring good.

What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing. We know that it does not take everyone on Earth to bring justice and peace, but only a small, determined group who will not give up during the first, second, or hundredth gale.

One of the most calming and powerful actions you can do to intervene in a stormy world is to stand up and show your soul. Soul on deck shines like gold in dark times. The light of the soul throws sparks, can send up flares, builds signal fires, causes proper matters to catch fire. To display the lantern of soul in shadowy times like these - to be fierce and to show mercy toward others; both are acts of immense bravery and greatest necessity.

Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it. If you would help to calm the tumult, this is one of the strongest things you can do. There will always be times when you feel discouraged. I too have felt despair many times in my life, but I do not keep a chair for it. I will not entertain it. It is not allowed to eat from my plate.

The reason is this: In my uttermost bones I know something, as do you. It is that there can be no despair when you remember why you came to Earth, who you serve, and who sent you here. The good words we say and the good deeds we do are not ours. They are the words and deeds of the One who brought us here. In that spirit, I hope you will write this on your wall: When a great ship is in harbor and moored, it is safe, there can be no doubt. But that is not what great ships are built for."