Lost Files: This Time A Year Ago
Digital hopes and larger-than-life realities 2023-2024
This time for Africa Ghana: 2023 didn’t usher in the same aplomb that New Year’s celebrations & resolutions usually do, and for an expected post-COVID-19 era, it seems as if we are all managing our expectations on multiple fronts.
December in Ghana has upped a notch with the anticipated increase in tourists and big headlining events, Afrochella now AfroFuture, AfroNation, and the inaugural BlackStar Line Festival, and the entire Dec-Jan line up of events had me and my friends asking ourselves, after the Bamba with big boys then what?
In Accra, the volatile economic climate is palpable, with little to no celebratory spending, and in Sandton, load shedding (Eskom Se Push notifications) is an unwelcome reminder of the challenges to be embraced head-on.
Personally, there were highlights I’m eternally grateful for: including the communities I am passionate about and have served some over the last 12 months, and others over the last 12 years.
Starting with Ahaspora - our Ghanaian professional network’s Aha Y3 De Diaspora Festival where I got to MC, and ask unsuspecting attendees “What does Ghanaian Dream Mean to You?” with mixed, pleasant, and unsuspecting answers as we all cheered on for the good, the need-to-be-worked-on, and the unfailing Ghanian optimism.
The venue, TreeHouse owned and run by Ahaspora network members, Kwan Pa a group favorite band that plays indigenous Hi-life or “Palm Wine” music, and the numerous local and diasporan vendors showcasing their products and wares was a heartfelt moment. We had transitioned over the past decade from a group of friends, founding members, community impact champions, and volunteers for mentorship and impact programs to commerce, business supporting ecosystem players that others could tap into for relevance & resources.
And then there was Tech Connect 2023, a labor of love engagement that had been started by colleagues of mine at the Google Ghana office, 8 years ago, some of whom I got reconnected to working at the Meta Bryanston office in South Africa from 2021-2022. The first edition, community curated and very much tied to Black@ initiatives at Global Tech firms post George Floyd's global outrage that black lives, men & women; black dreams and aspirations were being choked out of oxygen and life. At the last minute, with the absence of one of the founding team members due to his not getting Vaccinated for travel (Covid-times chale), I was asked to host/MC and had a genuine blast. The 2023 and 2024 editions were events I supported from a less active role; practicing being an innovation orchestrator without being the lead/point person in seeing new growth, continued engagement, and purposeful tech community and ecosystem advocating.
Feb for me has been the commencement of realizing our hopes in the digital community via Heavy Chef, and digital access promise via MTN
The month has been a whirlwind of street insights to find out what sells, what doesn’t, and the murky in-between with valuations, companies in debt, and questioning the true cost of everything….
Fast forward to today, in February 2024, and I’m catching up on belated post entries in my draft and realizing that in as much as we hope for different things, quite a bit remains on challenges, economic strife, and promoting national pride amidst government disappointment the same. I could have written most of what I shared in sentiments this year and it would still hold.
My recipe from Heavy Chef garnered curious stakeholders across the continent, check it out here:
It has been a year working for MTN Ghana and relaunching our utility app, MTN Next Gen with local/international colleagues and vendors under my belt, I have learned to “accept what is, let go of what was, have faith in what will be, and lead my digital channels team in empathy for what will be.” This year we flourish, more here.
Be well, be safe, and be loved.
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