Ethnographic Rural Development Model for Africa

Pitch

Problem: Corruption is the bane of rural development in Africa, funds earmarked for developmental activities are often diverted to personal pocket. This is possible because of ignorance and nonchalancy to political participation 

Solution: The proposed solution is to encourage ethnic groups in the Niger Delta to set up media centers that leverage on social media to advocate for economic cum political development and accountable leadership.

If scaled globally,  this solution will help underdeveloped regions avoid poverty traps with strong economic policies and development policies. For developed regions,  it will lead to increased access and integration of the market as well as expansion of their economy through taking advantage of emerging markets. 

Nigeria has the largest economy in sub Saharan Africa with an estimated population of 193.6m people of which 42% which equals 82.14m lives below the poverty index. Unfortunately all program aimed at improving the lives of the people failed due to bad leadership, corruption etc. 

Scholars have repeatedly emphasize on the strategic role of communication in rural development. They called less developed nation as information have not. 

Social media has proven herself as an effective tool for political information, interaction and participation.  It's also an enemy to corruption which constitutes a formidable pillar with huge potentials of preventing developmental activities to be mismanaged.

It's the burden of the researcher to leverage social media and traditional institutions  to bring about rural development.

The itsekiris with an estimated population of about 777600 lives mainly in villages along the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.Their  homeland is richly endowned great human and natural resources but the inhabitants live in abject poverty,  aware that huge funds meant for development are being siphoned but they think they are helpless. 

The solution is the establishment of a media centre that mobilises all of the locals into a platform regardless of their location.  The primary duty of the center is to create strategies that stimulates rural development through the appropriate use of social media technology. 

Facebook is more popular in this region but Twitter and LinkedIn will be used to cater for the few audience there and just maybe the concept might be found interesting by someone who will replicate it in his ethnic group.

The information being disemminate will center on the activities of development being carried out for them either by government, corporate institutions and individuals.

The center will act as a watchdog to know when funds are released to enable the audience keep tab on the project so the funds won't end in private pockets. 

The center will also keep the people informed of recent job offers and empowerment opportunities.

The center will have an economic team responsible for researching on investment opportunities in rural areas,  search for investors and connect them with opportunities to create new markets and stimulate rural development. 

This approach takes on "tribalism," a word that is often viewed as the source of our development woes and turns it around as a source for stimulating rural development. 

The politics of Nigeria has always been drawn across ethnic lines.Now the division has gone beyond region to tribal issues; an average Nigerian first belong to his/her tribe before being a Nigerian. We have used other model of development that was basically up-bottom but this approach is bottom-up, up-bottom and unending. It takes on the traditional institution which the government has relegated whereas it's closer to the people than even the local government. 

This makes it more effective because an Urhobo man don't want their region to be shortchanged by an itsekiri man. This approach explores this selfishness for the purpose of rural development. 

This approach is innovative because it encourages the traditional institution to reposition herself to fit the challenges of this age by assigning certain portfolio to individuals /chiefs who often carry out those jobs probono. The ethno cabinet is a prototype of that of government; it has a minister of education that caters for educational issues throughout the ethnic enclave, same goes for health,  housing etc. 

A key factor of this approach is the variables involved; While talking of traditional institutions,  traditional methods of communication are used but this approach is a wonderful blend of both ancient and modern. Traditional institutions has always leverage on government,  corporate bodies,  ngo..,  for development not social media 

This solution makes use of an active presence on social networks.

Through my work,  I intend to expand the horizon of the people to make them realise that governance should be transparent and leaders should be accountable to the electorates. 

For now,  the focus is on the itsekiris who are estimated to be 777690. In the next year, we will access about 3million people by looking at our neighbours from the urhobo nation, nevertheless the figures can rise because the concept can be easily replicated and run simultaneously in different ethnic enclave.

Five years from now, we hope to have at least five strong media centers in Delta state. We hope to reach at least 20% of deltans. 

 Five years from now,  I see kingdoms in Delta State and Nigeria embracing this approach and replicating it as a potent way of fighting/reducing corruption and stimulating rural development. 

Recently Bill Gates complained that the cash spent in Nigeria is not directly proportional to the results. My dream is that through this media centers,  NGOs will be able to monitor and measure the effect of their intervention rather than depending on corrupt officials.I am actually depending on NGOs to run with this to other places in Africa and the world.

Institutions for higher learning will be encouraged to see that there exists a symbiotic relationship between them and media centers.The media centers can function as a research center for the social sciences as this concepts cuts across different academic fields like Economics,  Sociology,  Psychology, Political Science, Mass Communication amongst others. In communication,  this concept deals with the ethnographic aspect which is an emerging area of development communication;it might interest you to know that Nigeria has no Professor of ethnographic communication. I hope to see universities embrace this concept for research purpose and a unique way of fulfilling their corporate social responsibility. 

I have a dream that in five years,  the government must have repositioned the ministry of information and culture,  local and chieftaincy affairs and other ministries to fit into this concept. There shall be freer access to information. 

We will surely experience certain barriers; 

Financial barriers; This task will cost a lot in terms of logistics. There will be salaries to be paid, cash for internet data, fees for expertise, renting of office space,  buying of camera and other equipments, cost of transportation amongst others. 

Psychological barriers;  An aspect of leadership in the community who will be affected by our work might raise or propagate negative sentiments about us. They might not want to reposition themselves to fit into the challenges of our age. 

Legal barriers : we might be bombarded by legal suits

Physical barriers;  we might be beaten up and our equipments destroyed 

To overcome financial barriers,  we will rely on partnership and volunteers

Initially we might not be successful in making then agree to reposition themselves hence the media center will do a prototype whI'll lobbying for it 

Solution team has four persons

We have numerous part time staffs which acts as volunteer

My M. SC research centers on social media.  The team knows how to sniff out the truth and use social media to stimulate development as well as raise an outcry

Our partners are the people whose life we are working on changing

We act like a  microfinance bank

We will be involved in business like we are about investing in Palm oil business

We are looking for connections,  partnerships and opportunities for growth 

I will like to partner with Bill Gates foundation and UNDP

it will lead to development of our community 

we will start up a microfinance bank