I didn’t expect a single word to make me stop and rethink my work.
But it did.
At the African Leadership Festival in Johannesburg, I came across a simple definition:
Africanist: engages with Africa’s past and present in order to serve its future.
I stood there for a while.
The more I thought about it, the more I realised how closely those words describe the work I’ve chosen to do.
Perhaps it isn’t a coincidence.
Africa’s Future Begins with Its Children
I’m a proud native of Ekiti State, South West Nigeria, a people known for our deep reverence for education.
That love of learning is part of my roots, and it has shaped how I see the world.
For me, education has never simply been about classrooms or examinations. It’s about what becomes possible when a child who has been limited by circumstance is given the tools, support and encouragement to imagine something different.
“Because the children we educate today will shape the Africa of tomorrow.”
Looking Back to Move Forward
To be an Africanist starts with engaging honestly with Africa’s past and present.
Our history has shaped our education systems. Our present realities tell us what still needs to change.
We look back not to stay trapped there, but to understand where we are well enough to change where we are going.
What Kind of Africa Are We Preparing Children For?
This is the question I keep returning to:
What kind of Africa are we preparing our children for?
Every skill taught, every child encouraged to believe in their ability, every teacher supported, these are not small things.
A child who learns to think critically can become a problem-solver.
A child who discovers their creativity can become an innovator.
And when we multiply those opportunities across millions of children, we begin to change the future of a continent.
Transformation rarely looks dramatic in the moment.
Sometimes it looks like a classroom.
A conversation.
A teacher gaining a new perspective.
A child being encouraged to believe that their circumstances do not have to determine how far they can go.
But a single child is also a future teacher, entrepreneur, policymaker or parent.
We rarely know what one opportunity will set in motion.
A Responsibility I Don’t Take Lightly
The classroom is connected to the community.
The community is connected to the education system.
The education system shapes the society we build.
And the society we build is the Africa we leave behind.
There is still so much work to do.
But I believe there is reason for hope.
Every child who learns is a possibility.
Every teacher who is empowered is a possibility.
Every school that grows stronger is a possibility.
And perhaps that is what being an Africanist means to me:
“Engaging honestly with where we’ve come from, paying attention to where we are, and choosing intentionally to serve the Africa we hope to see.”
Not someday.
Today.
If this reflection resonated with you, or if you would like to support or learn more about the work we are building at Dolly Children Foundation, I welcome you to connect or reach out. Because the Africa we hope to see begins with its children.
