ADEREMI OGUNPITAN
The problem is not that the First Lady mentioned akara or kuli-kuli. The problem is that too many of us now dismiss honest work because it doesn’t fit our idea of success.
Across rural Nigeria, millions of people earn a living processing cassava into garri, milling grain, smoking fish, tapping palm wine, weaving baskets, making pottery, tailoring clothes, repairing motorcycles, roasting corn, selling vegetables or producing palm oil. These are not relics of the past. They are businesses that feed families and sustain local economies.
Not every Nigerian will become a software engineer or AI developer, nor should they. Strong economies are built by farmers, artisans, traders, manufacturers, professionals and innovators alike.
Government’s responsibility is not to choose which occupations deserve respect. It is to ensure that every entrepreneur—from the akara seller to the factory owner—has access to finance, infrastructure, training and markets.
Economic development is not about replacing traditional livelihoods. It is about helping people grow them.
Today’s roadside food seller can become tomorrow’s restaurant owner. Today’s cassava processor can become tomorrow’s exporter.
Perhaps the real question is not whether leaders talk about akara. It is whether we have become too disconnected from the realities of how millions of Nigerians actually make a living.