Lingual Olympics

- Temitope Olofintuyi 

While delivering one of my favorite rap lyrics, I was quickly interrupted by a friend who asserted that I must never feel the need to utter those words again. I felt disappointed in myself—that I could not code-switch into African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) as smoothly as I would have liked. Yet I have always felt discouraged from using AAVE, as it is thought to be an inferior, constricting, and a rather invalid form of communication. I wonder, however, what makes one form of communication more legitimate than the other? After all, at times, where I have failed in communication with Standard English (the existence of which is questionable), I have succeeded with AAVE.

It’s a question well worth the exploration from various perspectives, though personally, understanding the function of code-switching required me to take an even more individualistic approach. Within my social parameters are many Nigerians, most of whom are of Yoruba descent. As an individual who was born in Nigeria, but grew up in the US, it is not uncommon when greeting relatives (all of whom we call aunties or uncles) or friends of parents to hear the perpetual joke about my inability to speak Yoruba fluently and I find myself only getting by with a rough mix of half Yoruba/half English. The joking never fails to remind me of an undeniable truth: without better command of the language, I am further from understanding the complex cultural roots and significance that define the ethnic group I identify with. The original ideas and experiences once/formally existed in full validity without the need for any operative- now standard- English. Accordingly, Yoruba cannot be denied full entitlement to its legitimacy as an effective form of communication, particularly within the group of people who share the common experiences that call its use into relevance.

Likewise, the experience that predicated AAVE cannot be... continue reading 

Africa and the Future of Outsourcing

Currently, India dominates the outsourcing world, followed closely by Indonesia and China. A bulk of India’s outsourcing is in the Information Technology (IT) service which had a 14.8% increase from 2011 to 2012 and stood at double the figures from 2007. The IT sector and other outsourcing industries made over $101 billion in 2012. Indonesia, ranking second highest on the list of top outsource destinations, is a leading exporter of textiles and apparel. China, on the other hand, dominates the manufacturing sector, starting from the easy creation of a toothbrush to the more complicated and skilled manufacture of the iPhone.

Following the economic trends that all developing countries exhibited on the journey to becoming “developed”, we should expect to see a rise in the cost of wages and a gradual move towards more skilled labour in places like India and China. This is a predictable and inevitable trend which is driven by growing amounts of wealth and education in the nation. Because of this, China will no longer have the cheapest rates around for labour and companies looking to outsource will have to find other destinations that are more attractive.

With recent economic crisis and unemployment rising, western countries have been scrutinized by their citizens for their reliance on outsourcing. However, even with backlash and complaints from skilled laborers within the developed countries (U.S, U.K, France) who claim that the international community is stealing their jobs, capitalism and large profit margins will always be the deciding factor for companies. Provided costs stay cheap abroad, nationalism won’t be enough to get employers to keep all jobs on home soil. Unfortunately for these skilled labors on home soil, regardless of expected rise in cost of wages in current outsource destinations, offshore outsourcing will continue to be a trend. The truth is, the vast majority of jobs lost by the developed world to its developing counterparts will not be coming back, but rather these jobs will rotate among the various developing countries. Where one country fails to keep it’s cost low or produce at a satisfying rate, neighboring countries will pick up the slack and the outsourcing companies won’t think twice about shifting focus.

When labor costs in key Asian countries do rise- and that time is not so far away- we will see a shift in regards to outsourcing. The number one contender for cheap labour will be the countries of the African continent, replacing India, Indonesia and China’s position. Currently the poorest continent, Africa is also the fastest growing continent in the world after recently outpacing its Asian counterparts. Within the next 50 years, we are sure to see companies looking to African countries and we will bear witness to increasing numbers of outsource jobs in these locations.

Here is some background: Africa is home to a vast majority of the worlds resources and is truly starting to control its destiny. With Africa’s one billion plus population, it is easy to foresee the strong position the continent will hold for the long-term. The 90s was the best economic period for the majority of African countries; this increased stability was brought about in part by the introduction of democracy and peace. At the time, most of the economies focused on economic and financial policies to help improve their domestic economy. In 2005, the entire continent grew an average of 5% which marked a huge milestone for a continent that participates in less than 6% of the global trade. It was clear that African states were finally waking from their previously detrimental slumber.

Today, African countries have already begun making a name for themselves in the world of outsourcing. Kenya, for instance, supports local industries in an effort to promote itself as major offshore location for western countries. This particular East African country leads in Information Technology. Recently, it has made large strides and is securely positioning itself as a leading global player in this field. In addition to Kenya... continue reading

Goodluck Johnathan's Oga at the Top?!

Diepreye Alamieyeseigha

Just the other day I read some news that I can simply not go without commenting on and to which I must bring attention. It is sad and embarrassing to read about the recent president's pardon granted to Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the former governor of Bayelsa State in Nigeria. Mind you, Alamieyeseigha was already impeached and later pleaded guilty to corruption charges. Investigators said he used government money to acquire property in Britain and Nigeria worth more than $10 million.

I find it hard to understand even the faintest of reasons as to why the president of Nigeria will even so much as associate his name with this convicted criminal. If we go back to just moments after his swearing into office, we can profoundly remember him promising to fight corruption. This is not just a step backward, but a complete insult to everyone who voted for him. Every day, millions of hard working Nigerians in Nigeria and other countries around the world fight to improve the already diminished and shameful negative image of Nigeria. Now, for the president himself to come out and publicly call someone like Alamieyeseigha his “boss”… excuse me, but is there something I’m missing?? Again, this man is a convicted criminal!

And so, our beloved country has fallen to the level where the supposed figure-head can go as far as call Alamieyeseigha- the criminal- his boss. In a democracy such as ours, which we so boast of, shouldn’t the boss of the president be we, the citizens? But no, instead, the one person the whole country elected to lead somehow has a convicted criminal as a boss. That is disgraceful in every sense. It is overwhelmingly annoying and pitiful. At this point, I am dumbfounded and equally astonished at the mediocrity our country has fallen to.

With this single action the president has taken, it is fair to admit that we might be the single most openly corrupt nation in the world. How can a president who claims to fight corruption go about openly defending and pardoning someone convicted of that very thing? I have personally given up on this administration’s promise to fight corruption. There can truly be no end to such corruption, then, as long as we have officials like our president promoting this behavior. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, in this way, has betrayed the trust of all Nigerians and for honor’s sake should find a way of amending this tragic error.

F.E.A

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