Dear President William Ruto,
I recently came across a widely circulated video in which you asserted that Kenyans speak better English than Nigerians. For full disclosure, I am Nigerian; however, I will not respond from a purely nationalistic standpoint. Rather, I will frame my reflections along three dimensions—political, economic, and national identity—while maintaining a rhetorical posture.
First, one must ask: how would Africa’s founding fathers—those who fought tirelessly for independence—interpret such a statement? Would they find pride in the fact that, over six decades after liberation from colonial rule, an African leader appears to valorize linguistic proximity to former colonial powers as a marker of distinction?
More troubling is the implicit derision of a fellow African nation on the basis of accent. What, then, becomes of the ideological legacies of figures such as Julius Nyerere, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Walter Sisulu, Albert Luthuli, Hastings Kamuzu Banda, Kwame Nkrumah, Kenneth Kaunda, and indeed Jomo Kenyatta? These leaders advanced visions of dignity, cultural confidence, and intellectual sovereignty. It is worth reflecting on whether such remarks align with those foundational principles.
Second, from a development policy perspective, proficiency in the English language is neither a sufficient nor a necessary condition for economic advancement. If it were, non-Anglophone powers would not occupy their current positions in the global economic hierarchy. China—one of Kenya’s largest creditors, with exposure estimated at approximately $6.69 billion—did not attain its economic stature through English linguistic dominance.
Similarly, Germany, Europe’s largest economy, operates primarily in its native language. Within Africa, major economies such as Egypt, Algeria, and Morocco—whose combined GDP approaches $785 billion—are not English-speaking nations. Even India, whose professionals are prominent in global technology and medical ecosystems, deploys English largely as a functional working language, while maintaining strong linguistic and cultural identities.
Development, therefore, is driven by productivity, institutional capacity, innovation, and human capital—not accent or linguistic mimicry.
Finally, speaking now as a Nigerian, the empirical record does not support any inference of intellectual or professional inferiority. Nigerians have demonstrated global competitiveness across disciplines—medicine, engineering, law, economics, academia, and the creative industries. Figures such as Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka and literary giant Chinua Achebe underscore Nigeria’s intellectual contributions to global discourse.
Likewise, leaders of international standing—including Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Akinwumi Adesina, Amina Mohammed, and others—reflect a longstanding tradition of excellence in global governance and development practice.
Beyond individual accomplishments, Nigerian professionals constitute a significant share of the skilled diaspora across the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Middle East. Their integration into highly competitive labour markets is not predicated on accent, but on competence, training, and adaptability.
It would be reductive to assume that their contributions are mediated by linguistic performance rather than substantive expertise.
In conclusion, Africa’s strategic priorities must transcend superficial comparisons. Our collective focus should be on accelerating technological transformation, addressing poverty and inequality, strengthening trade integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), advancing climate resilience, and investing in human capital development.
Kenya’s debt-to-GDP ratio—estimated at 68.9%—raises legitimate concerns about fiscal sustainability, just as similar challenges confront many African economies. These are the issues that warrant the attention of leadership in the 21st century.
It is therefore disheartening that public discourse is diverted toward linguistic competitiveness rather than substantive development challenges. Africa’s progress will not be defined by how closely we approximate colonial languages, but by how effectively we solve our structural economic problems.
Yours sincerely,
Taiwo Akerele Phd, Head, Policy House International
Written on the margins of the Spring Meetings, Washington, DC
Email:
taiwo.akerele@policyhouse.org
