Our Constraints to Success

• Mass poverty in our regions – Some areas are much worse than others, but the neglect is acute and visible
  
  
• Lack of employment opportunities
  
  
• But even if the opportunities are there, experience shows that people in the region are grossly underprepared to assume roles of professional responsibility in a formal employment setting.
  
  
• They like the idea of going to work, but are largely unfamiliar with the expectations of an employee, such as showing up to work on time, focusing on the role, conference calls, contributing to meetings, etc.
  
  
• Lack of general ethics
  
  
• In my experience, the day you employ someone is the day that person begins preparing their exit strategy at the expense of the company.
  
  
• Any employer (or authority figure) is automatically viewed by staff in adversarial terms, thereby allowing the employee to intellectually justify their nefarious conduct and theft.
  
  
• Staff views any employer as “the government,” a benevolent entity which exist for the sole purpose of catering for the needs of the staff, and not a profit-making venture with a fiduciary responsibility to owners to maximize revenue and shareholder value.
  
  
• Mistrust of government – The people generally have very little confidence in government services, and believe they are on their own
  
  
• Government routinely misses salary and pension payments, and people accept this as a “normal thing.”
  
  
• Mistrust of employer – Many employers, just like the government, routinely miss staff payroll payments, with the staff expected to be happy to even have a job. This leads to employer mistreatment of staff, and very often, women are the victims of exploitation in the process. The alternative is to not have a job at all.
  
  
• Additionally, private sector employers rarely provide a retirement package, which forces a “get mine while I still can” mindset from staff.
  
  
• Fundamentally dishonesty among the masses – Most people are fundamentally dishonest when it comes to money matters and integrity. It simply isn’t there. Relatives tend to be the worst given your limited ability to discharge maximum punishment due to family ties, and they know this.
  
  
• The moral compass is very low
  
  
• Inadequate community pride – People will support their community sports or dance teams, but seldom participate in gentrification projects which would aesthetically boost and clean their environments.
  
  
• Being “first overall” in school, is no longer viewed as a prestigious accomplishment, as it assumes that being academically talented is no longer a given path to success.
  
  
• Being a politician, even if it is merely a Ward Chairman, carries more weight and prestige, than being academically gifted, even if that person is functionally illiterate.
  
  
• The curriculum currently being taught in schools does not adequately prepare students for the knowledge economy; the curriculum remains stuck in the WAEC era of static learning versus dynamic delivery and the application of knowledge.
  
  
• Universities do not even bother having career counseling services which would provide students the tools they need to successfully find employment.