04/09/2026
It is easy to criticise the previous generation.
It is much harder to understand them.
Many African parents raised their children in circumstances where security could not be taken for granted.
Economic instability was real.
Political uncertainty was real.
Employment could be scarce.
Infrastructure could be unreliable.
Access to capital could be limited.
The difference between financial security and financial crisis could sometimes be one unexpected event.
Parents therefore did what parents everywhere try to do:
They looked at the world they understood and prepared their children to survive it.
If education was one of the strongest pathways to economic mobility, they pushed their children toward education.
If professional qualifications created opportunities, they encouraged professional qualifications.
If government employment provided stability, government employment became attractive.
If migration appeared to offer better opportunities, migration became part of the family conversation.
They were not necessarily teaching their children to think small.
They were teaching them to survive the world they knew.
That distinction matters.
Because we should not insult the mindset that carried our parents through difficult circumstances simply because we now live in a different technological era.
We should honour it.
