For the first time in 2007, one Nigerian made it into the annual publication by Forbes magazine of the world’s billionaires. While Bill Gates was dislodged from the number one position he had enjoyed for some years (moving to third place) by another American, investor Warren Buffett, Nigeria’s own renowned industrialist, Aliko Dangote slipped into the 334th position [with a net worth of US$ 3.3bn]. On the list of Africa’s billionaires, Dangote holds an enviable 5th position. Other African billionaires include Egyptians Naguib Sawiris and Nassef Sawiris and South Africa’s Nicky Oppenheimer and family. The African billionaires, most of them entrepreneurs, represent wealth running into billions of dollars.
Having a Nigerian and a host of other Africans on this list is a good thing as it presents a different face of Africa; a more promising and positive outlook from the usual stories of poverty, hunger, disease and corruption. Africa also boasts of the finest crop of forward thinking and visionary entrepreneurs and industrialists.
The vast majority of other Nigerians, can hardly comprehend such wealth; running into ten digits and above. Aliko Dangote and other wealthy Nigerians (and there are probably hundreds of others in this category) have a rare chance to make history; to use the advantage that they have to lead the fight against poverty, maternal and child mortality and morbidity, HIV and AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and the increasing problem of illiteracy. These are all high priority areas for Nigeria reflected in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Almost every sector and facet of the Nigerian way of life needs some level of rehabilitation.
There is a role that you can play as a Nigerian and you need not belong to the billionaire category to do something; to contribute to changing the circumstances around you; to become a philanthropist; to be concerned enough to contribute your quota to the fight against underdevelopment, poverty and death. The needs are so enormous that governments alone cannot solve all the problems; even if they had the political will to do so.
Nigeria currently has the 2nd highest maternal mortality ratio in the world; second only to India. What this means is that for many Nigerian women, pregnancy often does not end in rejoicing but in death. More women are dying unsung in the underserved rural areas and some regions of the country. Many of these deaths can be easily prevented.
Let us take a closer look at the HIV and AIDS issue as an epitome of the development challenges that Nigeria is facing at the moment and the critical entry points through which support can be channeled. Although the prevalence rates appear low, Nigeria ranks third in terms of the actual numbers of people infected with HIV after India and South Africa. Estimates indicate that nearly 4 million Nigerians are HIV positive.
According to the records (Nigeria UNGASS Report 2007), only 16.67 percent of adults and children with advanced HIV infection are accessing Antiretroviral (ARV) Therapy. Even for the privileged few who are able to access ARVs, issues of sustainability arise; how to ensure continued access to these drugs becomes a key concern because they are expensive drugs (and out of the reach of most of the people who really need them to stay alive) and the government and donor sources may sometimes be difficult to access, irregular or even unavailable! Ideally, once a person living with the virus commences use of ARVs, the treatment is meant to be sustained throughout the lifetime.
Unfortunately also, only about 5 percent of HIV positive pregnant women are benefiting from the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme. This is a critical strategy for truncating the spread of the virus. If we could ensure that all Nigerian babies are born AIDS-free, this would be a giant stride forward. This is not impossible to achieve either.
There is also the issue of orphans and vulnerable children left behind as a result of the HIV and AIDS crisis. Less than 10 percent of households of orphaned and vulnerable children aged 0-17 receive basic external support in caring for the child or children. Unfortunately the hardest hit communities are facing the problem of children-headed households in scenarios where the orphans are so many that the traditional extended families are no longer able to absorb any more children. In situations like this, even the basic necessities of food, clothing and shelter are hardly assured and education may be completely out of reach. Some of these ‘abandoned’ children contribute to the growing street kid problem.
These are just a few of the entry points where concerned Nigerians, philanthropists can extend a hand of support. There is a role to play as a donor, volunteer or advocate.
As noted elsewhere by Chinua Akukwe: “A unique situation now exists for significant intervention in the fight against HIV/AIDS by the richest people in the world. It is possible to turn the superstar entrepreneurs and richest people of our time into superstar philanthropists in the fight against AIDS. The key to the intervention of the super rich is to narrow down areas of potential impact on AIDS relief so that they know they are making a significant and measurable difference” (emphasis added.)
As a philanthropist, you can map out the specific areas of interest or concern where you want to put your money and working with organizations like Sonflower Development Initiative (SDI), you can work out the details including choosing the implementing organization and performance indicators to measure step-by-step, the change that you want your money to achieve. You can follow-up and be rest assured that your money is achieving the value that you want. In this way, you will not only be investing in the future of others but saving precious lives.
Nigerian cultures, historically have been caring and nurturing cultures - caring for the extended family, for members of the clan, for the sick and aged; and for widows, orphans and vulnerable children. Modernization, the struggle to survive in a very stifling socio-economic context as well as the massive rural-urban shift has tended to erode these positive aspects of Nigerian cultures.
Philanthropy is derived from the Latin philanthrōpia, and Greek, philanthrōpos, which refer to love of mankind in general. Philanthropy is defined as an activity performed with the goal of promoting the well-being of fellow men and women. Philanthropy refers to planned giving – to acts of dispensing and or receiving aid in the form of a gift from individuals or groups; in other words, enabling flow of resources from those who have, to help the poor, needy and underprivileged and to support development.
Development work in the form we know it today, involving a variety of actors – not for profits (non-governmental organisations –NGOs), religious organisations and charities as well as multi and bilateral donor agencies, individual givers, volunteers and a host of other players work within the boundaries and parameters of philanthropy - the need to care for the weak, the less privileged, the poor and vulnerable and to engender development and growth. So far, the resources for this kind of work in Nigeria have been largely provided by donors, foundations and charities based in Europe and the Americas.
But as many more Nigerians begin to enjoy business success and prosperity, there is a need to look inwards. In the words of Akukwe, let’s turn our “superstar Nigerian entrepreneurs and richest people of our land into superstar philanthropists in the fight against [underdevelopment and poverty]”.
The American, Henry Ford established philanthropies that have outlived him and still carry out his vision. Andrew Carnegie, a renowned philanthropist rightly observed that: “It is well to remember that it requires the exercise of not less ability than that which acquires it, to use wealth so as to be really beneficial to the community”. Os Guinness was right on track when he said, “Giving and caring are humbling because money carries with it, three distinct challenges – making money, enjoying money and giving it away”.
This is an auspicious time because more Nigerians are making money, they are enjoying money and also giving it away especially in terms of acquiring more cars, the fanciest jeeps, landed property, buying designer clothing and throwing lavish parties in which whole streets and highways are taken up. Philanthropy is also another way to “give away” some of that money in an organized and planned way; to make a name that lives on long after the givers’ death. We remember Ford and Carnegie today, not so much for the huge businesses or property they owned, but because they invested in the lives of people in their time, and today, the investments they made are still enriching the lives of people in Nigeria and globally.
Arit Oku is Team Leader of Sonflower Development Initiative (SDI), a Lagos-based NGO. Sonflower promotes a culture of philanthropy and planned giving to support the most vulnerable sectors. Email: arito@sonflowerng.org
(Written in 2007 and first published in the Sunday Guardian newspaper.)
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