I have spent quite some time speaking about the New Nigeria, since my presentation on the role of ICTs in national development (Introduction to Web Development and Applications) at the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta on November 26, 2001. That was where I said:

I see a new Nigeria emerging, one that will be built on the labours of our heroes past, hewn out of the debris of the present waste and engineered by the strength of the future leaders: the youth. These young men and women will adopt Information Technology for the purpose of personal development, nation building, regional cooperation and global participation. They may be unknown today, but in the secrecy of their abode, they master the tool that will change their lives and that of their nation. They’re building the nation’s tomorrow today.

Between then and now, I have seen and heard various things that make my heart leap for joy as far as the dream of a New Nigeria is concerned. I am glad to let you know that the dream is now being lived by various people. I agree… there are still many reasons why one could look around in Nigeria and lose a ready smile. But… every nation that you envy today was not perfect from the beginning. And for Nigeria, what we’ve always lacked was an opportunity for the good to gather together and use positive peer pressure to reduce (and eventually make unpopular) the vicious efforts of a few — yes, a few among 140 million is a lot!

In the next few days (building on my 2006 and 2007 Independence Day presentations), I will be writing about a new online platform that combines the dream with the values we believe will extol the lifestyles required for that nation we all dream of. I will be making a few consultations to confirm that both technical and value-based ends of the project are intact and will go ahead to announce how you can be involved.

Watch this space…