Circumspecte

I had come home to find a stack of papers and brown envelopes in my laundry basket. Assuming it was my sister’s, I ignored them. That is, until I needed the laundry basket. They were mine: college applications, recommendation letters, letters from high school, the works. I ignored them still. Until I needed yet another excuse to delay my packing (procrastination becomes your best friend when you absolutely dislike packing). So, leafing through the stack of materials I’d long forgotten I had, I time-traveled to younger versions of myself and of my parents. Among the things I found were invoices, letters and notes from my first real job… straight out of high school. Now I must say that I didn’t get my job as an administrative assistant and sub-editor the traditional way. Applications? No siree. Connections – mum tells distant-not-really-a-relative aunt of so-so and so that her all-grown-up-distant-not-really-related-niece is all done with high school and looking to keep busy – nop...

Ladies and gentlemen, Entrepreneurship is IN! Not just because entrepreneurs are some of the coolest peeps ever, but because we Africans have a very real challenge on our hands. The dilemma presented by Africa's youth bulge: to either sink or swim in the face of youth unemployment and other issues. The good news is that there's a growing awareness of just how much of an opportunity or a challenge the youth bulge presents for Africa, and people and organizations like Christabel Ofori and the iHAV (I Have a Vision) Foundation are working on capacity building and employment generation by putting "Vision in ACTion!" with the IHAV Conference. What iHAV Conference: An annual conference "designed to raise a generation of young African entrepreneurs who will work collaboratively to create employment and provide sustainable solutions to Africa's challenge". 2014 Theme : Creating an Agribusiness Revolution with Africa's Youth. Topics: Embrac...

We're excited to be partnering with Lean Startup Machine (LSM), a three-day workshop on starting a successful new business. Most new startups fail because they build something no one wants. LSM teaches you a systematic process for learning which products or services will succeed and which ones will not. Over 25,000 entrepreneurs have had their lives changed by the LSM experience. The date for LSM in Accra will be announced soon. Sign-up today to be notified and get a chance to win a free ticket to the event: click HERE . the lean startup machine - accra team  email:     lean.accra@gmail.com twitter:   @leanaccra facebook:  https://www. facebook.com/leanaccra website:   https://www. leanstart upmachine.com/cities/ accra/ dashboard

Hi everyone, Ghana's 2nd Blogging & Social Media Awards is ongoing and I'm excited to let you know that Circumspecte and myself have been nominated for a total of THREE categories! Best Blog Best Female Blogger and  Best Twitter Profile You can vote by  clicking here  - all you need is your email address and a few minutes. Voting ends  March 28, 2014.  I also encourage you to take a look at some of the other nominees, a lot of great content and folks. I must say that after our nomination and subsequent win for  Best Citizen Journalism and News last year, having three nods is very encouraging and tells me that maybe I'm doing something right :) Thanks to everyone who nominated/votes for me and everyone who reads, follows, engages and supports me. Jabdulai vs. Circumspecte That said, I'll admit I am a bit surprised about a couple of things. First, that jabdulai.com (the "second generation" of Circumspecte) made the list in lieu o...

Grand plans. That’s what we had. Of where we’d end up, how we’d end up, when we’d end up. I mean, we said “let’s leave it to Allah, let’s wait and see”. But really, the levers in our mind had long clanked away. Breaking news: I will never be Ghanaian, African [insert whatever label] enough. Trust me, I have tried. To hold on to the vestiges of who I think - we think - I should be To reformulate the   Ghanaianness   in me  Down to the last ei, o, and more recently, the last tweaa I mean, how can you possibly not know how to Azonto It was the fad. Now it’s vintage.  Encoded in our identical histories. Yet it seems you missed that particular memo. “Too American”, “Too White”, “Too Outspoken”, “Too Different” Yeah I know.   You make me aware of the fact daily. With every “It’s not how we do things”, Each “why can’t you be like…” But see - we traded all those possibilities in. The minute I checked in, went throu...

The current wave of African storytelling is largely driven by access to social media and citizen journalists who literally break the news as it happens. But there's still a lot of content yet to be created - especially in Ghana, Africa. BloggingGhana  has been at the forefront of social media and citizen journalism in Ghana since it's inception in 2009 by a group of 8 friends. Now, the organization has hundreds of active members who contribute to news, information on Ghana, Africa, from the ground up. After five years of meeting and working in cafes, auditoriums, schools, and so on, BloGH is finally coming home. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to BloGHome. With the launch of its #MoreStories fundraising drive, BloGH hopes to raise $10,000 to furnish its newly procured office in Accra (see below). Per it's Indiegogo fundraising page , BloGHome will include a training area for training students, civil society, government actors and organizations on using social media ...

Source: Komla Dumor's Facebook Page "There's so much more to tell about Africa than the usual stories about war, famine and disease." Komla Dumor. Son, husband, father, Ghana's "Boss Player", Africa's storyteller, BBC World News broadcaster, inspiration - courage personified. If anyone had told me that Komla Dumor's Black Star would burst out into eternity on January 18, 2014, I would have called them a liar and then some. His 41 years of life might seem "short" to many of us, but from all indications, this amazing soul found it more than enough for doing what he set out to do: to be a journalist of the highest order and to contribute towards telling Africa's stories. His awards, accolades and  accomplishments  are well recorded - perhaps more so after his untimely demise yesterday from a cardiac arrest in London - and numerous people are sharing their condolences and tributes on social media with variations of the hash...

Source:  The Black Narrator Dear President Mahama, It's me again. The lady who wrote you an  open letter about Ghanaians living in darkness , yeah that one. Once again, I'm writing to you, because although I strongly believe that any real change in Ghana's state of affairs will ultimately have to come from the fabric of our society - we Ghanaians - the fact is that you are our president, our chosen leader for this era of our national existence. And so, for the second time, I'm addressing you, with all due respect. What do I know about politics? Not much besides what I learned in school, hear on the radio, or see from Ghana's politicians. Oh, and of course, from the oh-so-awesome TV show Scandal which captures DC politics. So yeah, I know very little about the political game - which I hear isn't so endearing to begin with - and probably much less about being president of a nation of almost 25million. Point is, what I'm about to say might just sound l...

A couple of years ago I was invited by Albert and Comfort Ocran of Legacy and Legacy to participate in their JoyFM radio show, The Springboard Show. It was great being on national radio and giving insights on blogging, but the most interesting aspect of that experience was my discussion with the Ocrans our our way home after they offered me a ride.  Long story short, we discussed the importance of leadership, professional and self-development in creating a renaissance of sorts in Ghana and on our continent. With innovative initiatives like the Springboard Road Show, Festival of Ideas and the Knowledge Center, Legacy & Legacy is at the forefront of empowering Ghanaians who dare to dream.  The 2014 edition of the Springboard Road Show themed "Repositioning" will kick off from February 1 to March 15, 2014 and will focus on Entrepreneurship, Career and Finance.  The aim? Business coaching and entrepreneurial skills training to 30,000 tertiary student...

Yesterday the Black Stars kicked expectations and skepticism to the curb in what was perceived by many football pundits as being "an uphill challenge" against Egypt's multiple-time WC qualifier The Pharaohs. The words being used to describe what Ghana did to Egypt include "thrashed" , "crushed" and "run a riot" . But to me, this game was one of the most beautiful shows of leg action the Ghanaian National team has exhibited in a long time. It's so beautiful, I had to share. Congrats again to the Black Stars and Coach Kwasi Appiah - who also showed some of his detractors, ha! - and all the best as we chart our course to Brazil 2014 (and avenge the WC finale we were Suarezed out of :P)! You make Ghana proud! After all is said and done, even the Pharaohs looked up to the Stars ;)

September 21 is celebrated annually as Founder's Day in Ghana. This year, Ghanaians won't just reflect on the impact Kwame Nkrumah has had on our nation - with chichinga and two chilled beverages on deck - but are also being invited to participate in an initiative which truly embodies Nkrumah: volunteerism and community development. An initiative of the Ghana Think Foundation, National Volunteer Day aims to engender a spirit of volunteerism amongst Ghanaians, particularly the youth. Meaning YOU. According to Ghana Think, NVDay is an opportunity to: - Change communities one step at a time - Commemorate Nkrumah's birthday by offering a free service for the benefit of mother Ghana - Make Ghana better that day by making a positive difference - Share what you did online with the hashtags #NVDay and #IMGBT (I Made Ghana Better Today) . How could I possibly say no to that?! There are a whole list of great volunteer events registered via the NVDay Registration on ...