My presentation at the April edition of the JCI-Nigeria Eko Chapter’s Business Meeting was interesting — not only because of the obvious right-timing and the immediate response, but for the discussions that followed the presentation a few hours after the venue was empty. The discussions held downstairs, while everyone assumed that the other person was on his/her way home. The topic, noting its relevance to the future of Nigeria, made for a lot of input from various sectors but what was more interesting to me was the passion with which some of the youth described the little action they are taking in their respective domains.

While it takes a long time for little drops of water to make a mighty ocean, drops that pools together around the same source (networking) will make for better speed –and the ripples will spread faster. Slowly, but surely, young Nigerians are preparing themselves for the future. Governance (we need to use that word more than politics), law enforcement/regulatory agencies, businesses, civil society organisations, and every other sector of the economy should expect some bright minds making major inroads into the sector as we continue. In the secrecy of their abode without news reports and cameras), these young men and women — who are tired of talking are taking action in their circles of influence.

Another major highlight of the meeting was the reconnection with the chairperson of the JCI-Nigeria Ten Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) in Nigeria committee in 2003 (when I was honoured as a TOYP honouree for the Science and Technology category). Her input into the discussions after my presentation gave me reasons to smile, and I guess a natural follow up to that is an invitation to speak at the April (30th) Business Meeting of the JCI-Nigeria chapter where she’s now President. I’m still thinking of the topic that will best suit the audience (which seems to be quite different from the April 3 chapter), but you can be sure that we will also be challenging ourselves to get Tired of Talking! If all the energy we spend complaining or talking (without taking action) is directed towards national development, we will bring forward the completion date for Project New Nigeria!