Hello Folks,
I have the great pleasure of sharing with you all another interview with a Young African Professional who moved back home. As previously mentioned, my goal is to share personal stories of “our contemporaries”, who made the decision to relocate back to Africa. As always, I feel that by hearing about the positives of living and working in Africa from the horse’s mouth, it might persuade someone out there to think about moving back to our beloved Continent.
Next Up – My Countryman and former Schoolmate….Gilleh Thomas in his own words! Enjoy.
INTERVIEW
– What is your background (country of origin, where you attended high school, undergrad, grad school and your area of study).
GT: My name is Gilleh Thomas. I’m from the Gambia, West Africa. I went to Gambia High School and later proceeded to do my Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at Kentucky State University in the US. I’m currently doing an Online Master’s Degree in Distributed Data Management with the University of Hertfordshire in the UK.
– What inspired you to return to Africa?
GT: Well I believe that it wasn’t really an
inspiration. It was more like the right thing to do considering that I am from
The Gambia, it only made sense to return home after spending some time in the
US and I felt like the time was right in 2008 after getting a bit of work
experience. Besides, my grandmother (May she rest in peace) always told me to
return home after finishing my studies which always rung in my head, so I
finally heeded her wise counsel.
– What are you engaged in now that you have returned, ie. working, running your own business, etc?
GT: I’m currently working as a Data Manager with the Medical Research Council, a UK government organization that has been in Gambia for over 50 years doing mostly Malaria, TB, and HIV research.
– What would you say is the best part of relocating back to Africa?
GT: The feeling of being in your own country, being a part (even a little part) of the development that is taking place, and being around family and friends is great and quite liberating.
– What would you say is the hardest part of relocating/living in Africa so far?.
GT: Well, I have made a lot of good friends during my time in the US and I do miss them so that is hard at times. I miss the vast food variety that is available there (yes I’m a foodie!). In terms of being here, it takes a bit of time to get adjusted to the way of life as I had gotten used to the ‘American’ way of life. The work ethic is quite different and can be frustrating at times as things can move very slowly at times. Traffic can be very chaotic because the level of enforcement of traffic laws is very limited. This can get very frustrating.
– Are there any specific “perks” in your opinion of living/working in Africa as opposed to if you had stayed overseas?
GT: Like I said, the feeling of being home is second to none for me. The workload can be huge at times but things move slower generally so its not too stressful and you get a lot of time to have a life.
– Why would you strongly recommend that other young African professionals think of coming back to Africa to work?
GT: I believe that there is nowhere like home, and if anyone really wants to make it, they ought to do so at home. The odds will hugely favor them and they will be contributing actively in the development of their country. I think we should all take pride in that.
– What industries do you think are looking the most promising/have the potential to recruit heavily?
GT: In terms of Gambia, I think the technology sector is doing quite well and has the potential to do even better. Banks are also a major recruiter of young graduates and they help provide a good background for people looking to go into business in the sense that working there gives you a good idea of what the business climate is like.
– What would be your advice in terms of how someone can successfully find a job in Africa?
GT: I think for anyone who has worked abroad in their field or tried to find a job abroad, it will not be difficult to succeed in finding a job in Gambia (Africa). Using the same professionalism that you apply abroad automatically gives you a strong footing and increases your chance of finding a job / running a business.
INFORMAL QUESTIONS
– What is the coolest encounter you have had so far since you’ve been back? (celebrities, old friends…etc)
GT: In terms of celebrities, I’ve bumped into Luciano at a pool lounge and even got to play a game with him. He beat me of course, but it was cool seeing him just mingle and play pool with everybody even with his status as a reggae superstar. That was pretty cool. Many of my friends have also come around since I’ve been here and it’s always great seeing them and catching up.
– What would I find you doing on weekends or on weekdays after you come home from work?
GT: Weekdays are usually very laid back after work. Probably I’ll just watch TV and take naps. On weekends I would usually go out to Green Mamba to shoot some pool and just hang out with friends. Occasionally, I will hit the clubs and catch up on new music as well…lol.
– By relocating back to Africa as a young African professional, I hope to……
GT: Be an active part of the development that is taking place here.
– In five years time I see myself ………………
GT: Only God knows where, but hopefully still here and making progress in helping build the country that I love and am proud of being from
– What is one ironic thing you have seen/noticed since you’ve been back that has inspired you and giving you hope about Africa’s progress.
GT: I am very much amazed by our sense of community. The people are very helpful towards each other and despite the poverty, this helpfulness keeps people’s heads above water so to speak. I think if more people wake up every day and go to work, things can only get better for us. As we may know, Africa is ripe for development. The service industry is not at all saturated, and as more people graduate from university, and as the middle class grows in Africa, the opportunity for business ventures will only increase. I think we have to see that we still have the chance to overtake everyone else in that we have seen other countries/continents develop, and we have seen their mistakes, and we can learn to do it even better. We have a lot of work to do so we need to put aside our differences and get on with it.
Thanks for sharing 🙂
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