Africa is rich — in culture, land, language, and spirit. Yet, despite our abundance, one invisible chain continues to strangle our progress: tribalism.
Tribal identity is not the problem. Our diverse cultures, dialects, and traditions should be celebrated. They are the threads that make Africa’s fabric so uniquely beautiful. But when tribal loyalty outweighs national unity, and people vote, support, or defend corrupt leaders solely based on tribe rather than integrity, vision, or competence — it becomes dangerous.
Across the continent, we’ve seen time and again how tribalism fuels division, senseless wars, etc. It weakens democracies, encourages nepotism, and justifies corruption. A leader fails, but if he belongs to a certain tribe, he’s still protected. A brilliant young reformer rises — but if he’s from the “wrong” group, he’s rejected. Progress stalls in places like Liberia, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana, etc., because we are too busy choosing who is our tribal men instead of who will serve us and thinks beyond us.
This mindset is not just outdated—it’s a curse. It's a mental colonization passed down through generations that tells us to prioritize tribe over truth and loyalty over logic. And until we break this pattern, Africa will remain fractured politically, socially, and spiritually. There’s no other way forward but to break this curse!
So how do we break it?
It starts with education—not just academic but civic and moral. Your elected president must work with the court systems of his country to pass laws that label it a “crime.” And, then, they must publicly give a speech labeling “tribalism” as an enemy of progress. We must teach the next generation that patriotism isn’t tribalism, that leadership is about service, not surnames, and that competence matters more than cultural background.
It also takes courage to call out injustice, even from “our own.” It takes courage to support leaders who deliver results, not just those who speak our dialect.
Most importantly, it takes unity — seeing ourselves as (Black Folks) Africans first before anything else. Because when one tribe succeeds, and another suffers, the continent as a whole loses.
Tribalism may have been our past, but it doesn’t have to be our future. This generation of young Africans can write a new chapter in which Africa rises as one people, united not by tribe but by purpose.
