Omoluabi News

Africa is a continent having various attractions. Visitors are often drawn to the many positive features such as friendly and energetic people, an inviting climate, natural wonders, and exquisite cuisines among others.

There’s a huge diversity of food cultures within Africa, often gotten from the kinds of fruits, vegetables, and cereals that grow well in the region. You are spoiled, not only for choice; but when you taste the sumptuous meals your eyes get opened to the very cultural essence of the tribes/races on the continent.

The typical African meal comes from paying great attention to detail – you’ll discover those cooks employ a rich array of base ingredients, spices, and other condiments to produce a culinary paradise. From the desert lands in North Africa to the lush greens of the West and the Sahel plains of the East, every area has a delicacy that will surpass your expectations.

As you travel across the African countries, you will discover that there are regional likenesses in most neighboring countries but each country has an exceptional culinary signature.

Below is a list of 10 popular foods from across Africa.

1. Jollof Rice (Nigeria/Ghana)

Jollof rice is a meal prepared and enjoyed across the West African sub-region. It is a favorite food for Nigerians. The food is an unparalleled delicious food that will tempt your taste bud. Don’t leave West Africa without sampling jollof rice; it is a perfect meal for lunch.

Jollof is a pot of rice prepared with tomato sauce and served with chicken, meat, or fish. Fried plantain is another common accompaniment to Jollof. Feast your eyes and later, your taste buds, as you watch the rice soak up the prepared juices/sauces and turn orange as it reaches readiness.

2. Koki – Bean Cake (Cameroon)

If you find yourself in Central Africa, particularly Cameroun, then do not let this delightful appetizer pass you by. Ask for it, seek it, and eat it!

Made with cowpeas, Koki arises when the peas are mashed, wrapped in banana leaves, and steamed. It gets its characteristic bright red color and flavor from red palm oil (or palm nut sauce) and other condiments such as crayfish, pieces of fish, and chili peppers.

3. Injera and tibs (Ethiopia)

This is a classic food combination, like rice and peas or fish and chips! This meal is a bit like a large pancake made from the cereal teff and food is simply heaped on top of it! You use the Inerja to pick up all the yummy mixes, such as tibs, which is a popular dish made using various meats.

4. Cachupa (Cape Verde)

Any time you visit Cape Verde, you should have a taste of their famous dish called Cachupa. The meal is prepared with hominy corn, beans, vegetables, fish, or meat – beef, goat, chicken, or marinated pork. It is one of the traditional and staple foods in Cape Verde.

5. Kisra (Sudan)

A popular staple in Sudanese cuisine is kisra, which is a special type of bread that is made from durra, sorghum, or corn. It is the main accompaniment of stews including waika, bussaara, and sabaroag, which are mainly made from dried meat, dried onions, spices, and peanut butter, with milk and yogurt as additional options.

6. Biltong (South Africa)

No culinary trip to South Africa is complete without you having a taste of Biltong. If you love meat, you will love Biltong – a special kind of all-meat product that originates from South Africa. Biltong is prepared by drying and spicing up the meat in strips.

7. Ugali (Kenya)

Ugali or sima is a famous staple accompaniment that is eaten with dishes such as sukuma wiki, which is made up of a leafy green vegetable such as kale, tomatoes, onion and a spice mix known as mchuzi mix, and sukuma ya nyama, which is the meat version of sukuma wiki.

Ugali is mostly made from cornmeal and boiling water in a pot, and it is cooked until it gets stiff. This meal is also eaten in Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda, and is made with cornmeal, cassava flour, sorghum, or millet.

8. Chicken Kebabs (Egypt)

This North African meal is a favorite in Cairo and across Egypt. Before giving your tongue an unforgettable treat, watch as dexterous chefs turn boneless chicken breasts into mouth-watering kebabs, complete and spiced with cardamom, black pepper, and other ingredients that you should discover yourself. As it is said, the taste of the pudding is in the eating!

9. Alloco (Ivory Coast)

If you find yourself on vacation in West Africa, stop by this beautiful country to savor a meal for all time – the irresistible Alloco. Often seen as a snack, Alloco is made up of Ivorian fried plantain served with chili pepper, onions, or egg, and tasty tomato sauce.

Popular for its unique taste and ease of preparation, you will not have to keep the wolves in your tummy at bay for too long as a result.

10. Couscous Royale (Tunisia)

Couscous is a staple dish, enjoyed across the large North African landscape. It is made up of steamed semolina. If you want this meal taken up a notch, ask for Couscous Royale, with infusions of lamb cuttings. At other times, ask for specially spiced chicken as an accompaniment. Saffron is also included to give you a memorable eating experience.

Written By;

Joshua Gyang

Money making is a possibility that originates from the mind and who will not be interested in such a thing? Almost everyone believes in saving but most people simply do not do so, having convinced themselves that it is difficult, considering their current level of income but in every human life, there are always some leakages that can be plugged that amount to a big figure when aggregated; for example, for a person that takes a cup of coffee a day, five hundred dollars ($500) will be the saving per year if that individual makes the coffee at home rather than make a purchase in a coffee shop!

Lots of people of color are in the conundrum of perpetuating poverty by not being very literate in financial matters, which if they do, the people that come after them will lead a greater quality of life through their inheritance. There are many ways to build generational wealth; an often overlooked one is life insurance that many do not invest in. It is a way to transfer wealth to the oncoming generations by making contributions for them as you journey in life.

A good number of people believe that they won’t die anytime soon, so why will they need life insurance? Some take it easy by just signing up with their employer’s group life insurance, where there may be no need for medical check-ups. Others get it free from their company; however, the company may not provide enough coverage moreover if their employment terminates, they may lose coverage and not have protection, which may translate into having difficulties in getting life insurance, particularly if they have health problems and need more coverage.

ARE YOU INSURABLE?

Most life insurances require a medical examination, blood test, and medical records before a policy is issued. If you have health problems, a life insurance company may deny your applications or they may charge a higher rate which is similar to how car insurance companies treat drivers with bad driving records. A lot of people are not uninsurable and may not know it, an estimated 80million Americans have one or more types of heart disease. One out of two men and one out of three women have the risk of developing cancer in their lifetime and Canadians face similar issues, with 90% of Canadians having at least one risk factor for heart disease or stroke.

So the very best time to have insurance is to do it as soon as you can. Indeed, you need to begin when young. This will be very good in many respects, the rates will be cheaper and a case of it being too late will not arise. There are circumstances when limited questions or guaranteed insurance is possible, the case may be that the premiums will be higher and are usually available only for lower coverage amounts. Imagine being able to get insurance for your house at say $500 per annum which can get you $500,000 in case of fire. Should the house burn down, and you have so much to rebuild, that definitely will be a good investment.

UNDERSTANDING LIFE INSURANCE

Most people do not understand Life insurance; even those who buy it do not necessarily understand or appreciate its importance in building and preserving wealth. As a result, many people do not have any life insurance and if they do buy it, it is usually not enough. Today there are several kinds of insurance: Car, phones, appliances, travel, etc.,  which people often take but when it comes to issues of life insurance, which is the most important insurance that covers family and children, they treat it with levity. Life Insurance does not insure your life, it ensures your family’s ability to continue on without being financially devastated.

It is critical not to see Insurance as an expense, it has to be dealt with in the mind; individuals must imagine Insurance, particularly Life insurance as some kind of “smart Savings” that is critical for the future, when well-conceived and implemented a better life can be expected for those coming behind; yet there also are insurance options that can be taken advantage of by the owner in their lifetimes, it all begins by getting information and being determined to save, as an expression of love for the loved ones around.

By Rudy Tull

African American music, also called Black Music is an umbrella term for a diverse range of music and musical genres developed by African Americans (who were generally known as enslaved Africans). For example, today’s soul music evolved from the negro spirituals. These are soulful songs of slaves taken from Africa to the Americas to work on plantations prior to the civil war I America.

Some of the popular music genres today, such as rock and roll, country, rock, funk, jazz, blues, rhythm and blues, etc were created and influenced by Africans hence the saying “Every genre that is born from America has black roots”

While the white slave masters and owners tortured their slaves physically, mentally, and spiritually, these African slaves used music and drumming to make themselves happy thus converting their dehumanization of their owners. These black Americans were oppressed for being blacks hence some of their music portrayed their deep experiences. The music became a creative distraction from all forms of oppression.

Black American music evolved gradually when they played in the military bands after the civil war and a new style of music called ragtime came into being and gradually transited to Jazz. This had a wide range of influences on the development of music within the United States during the 20th century; the earliest jazz and blues recordings were made in the 1920’s African American musicians developed related styles such as rhythm and blues

The songs captured the hardship of slavery and the hope for freedom from enslavement, in those times, it even helped the slaves shout songs that relayed coded messages of escape from slave camps to the underground railroads and to freedom, even when the slave owners heard these songs, they never knew they were coded messages of escape

The celebrated freedom lover, Harriet Tubman (an American political activist, born into slavery) sang coded messages to her mother and other slaves in the field to make them aware she was escaping to the underground railroads, one of them is ” I’m sorry I’m going to leave you. Farewell, oh farewell: But I’ll meet you in the morning. I’m bound for the promised land, on the other side of Jordan, bound for the promised land”.

Another way enslaved people communicated messages of escape in music was through drums.

In West Africa, drums are used for communication, celebration, and other spiritual ceremonies which were also deployed by the West African people enslaved in the United States to send coded messages to other slaves across the plantations.

The making and use of drums by enslaved Americans was outlawed after the slave’s rebellion in South Carolina in 1739 because it was identified by the oppressors as a tool in communicating with other slaves when they are in any form of revolt/revolution; This was the main reasons the white slave owners banned the creation and use of drums on the plantation/fields. For a people used to rhythmic sounds, the banning of drums was challenging, they made do, though, by slapping their knees, thighs, arms, and other parts of their body to create sounds that were later to be referred to as “Pattin Juba”

The Juba dance was originally brought by Congo slaves to Charleston South Carolina. It became an African American plantation dance that was performed by slaves during their gatherings when instruments like drums were no longer allowed due to the fear of secret codes hidden in the drumming.

*Note:*

Africa is a highly musical continent with genres spanning from Afrobeat, Ndombolo, Rhumba, Bongo, Benga, and Kwaito to Reggae, Hip Hop and R&B. To be continued with genres of music and musical legends across Africa

There seems to be a ping-pong match between tech titans every few years for the title of the richest person on earth. However, Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk is not close to being the richest person of all time despite their wealth. They’re still a long way from African King Mansa Musa, who is considered the richest person of all time “richer than any description can describe.”

Who Was Mansa Musa?

Mansa means Sultan in the indigenous language of the region, the Mandinka, which Musa was born into in 1280.

He became king of Mali in 1312 and his 25-year reign saw the country expand massively to include nations such as Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea, and the Ivory Coast.

How Mansa Musa Became the Richest Man in History

Musa was deputized to temporarily assume Abubakari II’s duties by the former emperor, Abubakari II. This empire was characterized by its “on-call” emperors throughout its history.

This role is similar to that of a vice president in the modern world, as the person would be expected to step in on a full-time basis if something happened to the main emperor.

In a surprising turn of events, Musa is forced to step in. The day Abubakari headed out to explore the far side of the Atlantic Ocean, he never returned.

It wasn’t as if Musa appeared out of nowhere to lead. The founder of the Mali Empire was his great-uncle, Sundiata Keita.

You can attain wealth in many ways, as many late-night infomercials will tell you. Musa made his fortune primarily by trading gold and salt, which were found in abundance in Western Africa at the time. Most of his wealth was spent on strengthening important cultural centers, such as Timbuktu.

Musa didn’t become well known outside of Africa until he ventured outside of the region he ruled, despite his massive success. In 1324, Musa, a devout Muslim, decided to do the Hajj (the pilgrimage to Mecca). His name soon spread throughout the world.

Pilgrimages to Mecca continue to be important parts of Islam today. It was no easy task for Musa. His empire was over 4,000 miles away. He would certainly not have been able to go alone, as he was rich and powerful.

In total, 60,000 people accompanied Musa on his pilgrimage, including servants, soldiers, and supporters.

Unlike what one might expect, Musa’s servants were not dressed in rags. The Persian silks they wore were adorned with gold staff.

Musa’s convoy of camels, horses, and people attracted the attention of the world. The caravan of Musa was not only hard to miss, but he was also giving away gold to random peasants on the street. Musa left the streets littered with gold when he passed through Cairo, Medina, and finally Mecca.

Musa sometimes left a large wake, however. Gold was given away so freely in Cairo that the economy was messed up for a time. The value of the gold plummeted.

As a result of Mansa Musa borrowing from Cairo lenders (despite the high-interest rate), the disruptions eventually settled down. Almost single-handedly, the king controlled the gold market in the Mediterranean. Cairo’s economy, however, did not fully recover from the golden touch of Mansa Musa until over a decade had passed.

The pilgrimage to Mecca would undoubtedly cement Musa’s place in history. At the time, he saw it as a way to honor his faith and to expand his kingdom. He acquired Gao in that historic journey.

Musa expanded his empire after his reign to include present-day Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, and Mauritania, as well as Mali.

Mansa Musa’s Net Worth

He is estimated to have a fortune worth around $400 billion today when inflation is taken into account. Despite being rich and sultan, he was much more than that.

Mansa Musa might seem similar to other wealthy people who eventually become philanthropists, like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, or John D. Rockefeller.

Musa, all those centuries ago, accumulated half of the wealth of the world’s richest people as a king. Musa has thus been regarded as the richest person in history by many experts. Nevertheless, many are still unable to comprehend his true wealth.

Musa’s Reign

In large part, because it was so prominently displayed during the pilgrimage to Mecca, Musa’s incredible and impressive wealth was widely known throughout the region.

During his reign, he sponsored an extensive construction program in Mali, raising mosques and madrasahs, including Sankore Madrasah (the University of Sankore).

In addition to encouraging urban living, he is credited with being an integral part of the emergence of urban civilization, as more and more people moved into urban centers during his time.

During his pilgrimage, Musa also expanded his empire to include Timbuktu and Goa. During this time, with the help of Spanish and Egyptian architects, he built the Djinguereber Mosque in Timbuktu.

Musa’s empire made Timbuktu a center of trade and culture as well as an important center for Islamic scholarship. In addition to his devotion to education, he built one of the largest libraries in the world during his reign, rivaling the Library of Alexandria with roughly 1,000,000 manuscripts.

Due to Timbuktu’s reputation, trade routes to southern European cities like Venice and Genoa included the city.