Will Our Generation Fulfil the Mission or Betray It?

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on Africa’s trajectory. Since independence in the 1960s, much of the continent has fallen into decline. Yes, our population has grown dramatically. Yet spending power has fallen. Worse still, we simply don’t have enough jobs for the millions of young Africans entering the workforce. For every 20 million people who step into the labour market each year, only 11 million jobs are created. The rest are left to navigate uncertainty.

It’s tempting to point fingers at politicians, rulers, or policymakers. But that only tells part of the story. How did we get here? How did things deteriorate so badly? Blame without action is empty. Accountability must start with us.

Frantz Fanon once said: “Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it.” I first heard this from my father-in-law, a former diplomat, and it struck me profoundly. When you trace back to the generation of the 1960s, the Nkrumahs, the Nyereres, the Senghors and the Kenyattas fulfilled their mission. They liberated our continent, reclaimed our dignity, and gave us self-determination.

But in the decades that followed, Africa lost its way. By the 1980s and 1990s, corruption, debt crises, and poor governance hollowed out many of the promises of independence. If Fanon’s test holds true, then the generations that followed betrayed the mission. The continent is worse off today by many measures, and when pressed, those in charge often offer excuses, or they are too privileged to notice.

Now the baton is with us. For those between 25 and 40, the question is urgent: what will we do? Will we continue the betrayal of the preceding generation, or will we begin to fulfil the mission again? I believe we can turn things around. In fact, I believe we must.

A starting point

As I travel across the continent, I see elections approaching in country after country. I often ask my peers: Who are you backing? Not just who you’re voting for, but who you are supporting, lobbying, and equipping to represent you. Parliamentarians and policymakers may not be perfect, but they hold our destinies in their hands. They make and pass the laws that determine the future of our continent, and we must know who they are and learn how to work with them. If we don’t run for office ourselves, then the least we can do is support those who do. Laws shape everything: our businesses, our families, our opportunities. Influence starts with showing up and knowing the decision makers.

Here in Dar es Salaam, with elections ahead in October 2025, I’ve asked every peer I meet: Who are you supporting? Too often, the response is a shrug followed by “the elections are already decided.” My answer is simple: so what? Even if the outcomes feel predetermined, backing credible local and regional leaders still matters. Supporting strong voices in Parliament still matters. Having someone who speaks on your behalf still matters.

Good policies are the foundation of progress. We don’t need to be career politicians to understand that. But we do need to engage, to influence, and to prepare for the Africa that is coming. The laws passed today will shape the realities our children inherit tomorrow.

Fanon gave us the challenge. Nkrumah and Nyerere showed us what it means to fulfil a mission. The generations after them showed us what betrayal looks like. Now it’s our turn. This is a call to my peers across Africa: our generation has the chance to fulfil the mission again, not with empty rhetoric, but with deliberate action.

Kwame Nkrumah once said: “The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed influences that keep us apart.” Today, those words ring louder than ever. Our unity, our action, and our resolve will determine whether we reclaim the mission or betray it once again.

The choice is ours. History is watching…

Thank you for reading

My name is Joe Kinvi, and I’m building Borderless, the infrastructure that enables the Africa Diaspora to invest at home easily. We are starting with building tools for investment collectives. Our medium-term goal is to collaborate with African governments and create instruments enabling the African Diaspora to invest at home easily. We are in beta and have a couple of collectives live, but if you have read this far, you can log into Borderless here 😉.