By Elton Zvinavashe
In the sensational blockbuster movie by Leon Schuster the gods must be crazy, Xi and his whole family were traumatised by a foreign object which the gods had been crazy to send their way with no manual whatsoever on its purpose. The knowledge they had at their disposal was not enough to define that empty coca cola bottle or determine what they were supposed to do with it. It then made logical sense that he chose to get rid of it as it was now causing instability. In today’s world there are numerous search engines utilising artificial intelligence which could have helped Xi decipher the mysterious object which had fallen from the “sky”. Just by taking a photo and prompting search engines for a response, you can get answers ranging from definition, origins, functionality , price, where the same can be found among other things. The convenience brought about by the sweeping effects of technological revolution unfolding continue to impress.
The feeling of living in the era of the information age and the 4th industrial revolution is indeed surreal. Information has not always been available in its abundance. Telemedicine, cellphone banking, online learning, remote working and many other fancy new ways of living and working bear testimony to the new era upon us. I have not been around for long yet but I have crossed paths with a generation that were lab rats unto themselves whose life was a marathon of experimentation in a bid to carve the architecture of “civilisation”. It is from their lived experiences that the process of information accumulation was made possible. Its on this foundation that the bedrock of knowledge on what to eat, what is harmful , what cures and all other important information has been built.
Ever since i learnt about web crawlers, search engines , databases and servers my mind has been trying to understand how life was somewhat possible without these tools which have seemingly become indispensable. I can’t help but marvel upon realising that humans have had to do all the web crawling themselves in search of information that was necessary for their survival. The elders of communities were at the forefront of societies as repositories of information based on their lengthy tenures of life during which they had accumulated knowledge. It is no surprise that societal progression was very linear and gradual. If a person was fell sick a serious illness , there was no luxury to google symptoms or call your primary doctor. The search engines of that time or the equivalent of the Grey`s Anatomy book or the Diagnostic Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders were individuals who were higly regarded for possessing information on how to cure and treat illnesses.
The downside of this is that such ways of data storage were not very sustainable. Today companies invest a lot towards back up, information storage and its security. Achieving the same in an era where information could only be passed from one person to another in a gradual manner was not feasible. For a people whose livelihoods bordered much on survival you can their retention capacity could only do so much. The adage indlela ibuzwa kwabapambili which loosely translates to the ways of life are sought for from those ahead (those who have lived longer) captions well the ecosystem design on such times. In the case of premature death of an elderly member of the family, the loss incurred could not be quantified but it also had serious implications in terms of the knowledge deficit. The death would also mean that servers storing key knowledge had been crushed. In such circumstances one could only cross fingers that the young ones would have enough capacity to act as backup.The song by Mathias Mhere “Kana chipostora chotaurwa nevakuru vakare musavarega vachienda comes to mind.
I recently lost a fatherly figure I held in high esteem. I fondly remember how he took us on his errands from one garage to another looking for spare parts to fix his car. We spent so much time watching him as he imparted bits and pieces of car related knowledge. Each time i have a problem with my car which i know he used to fix on his own l inwardly shame myself for having mechanics on speed dial. It had never occurred to me that our interactions with him mimicked that of websites and web crawlers. What is of concern to me in the wake of all this progress is the gap and divide which is yet to be accounted for in the consolidation of information into meaningful data sets across the globe. While I appreciate the current abundance of search engines which are being enhanced frequently to our benefit, It appears that Africa has a huge deficit. There are so many stories told through western lens which are relatable and whose conditions dovetail with African circumstances hence integration has not been difficult. However , little if any efforts are being made to organise and consolidate knowledge and information to package it in the unique version of the continent`s diversity for consumption by its own people. In a world where society is driven by information, such gaps have serious implications in terms of health, economy, culture and every other facet of life.
During the prevalence of the Covid-19 pandemic, it was revealed that only the African continent had record few deaths from the disease as compared with others. Heads were rolling for the right reasons and the wrong ones in trying to figure out how this had happened as it seemed to defy preconceived notions. I point out this to reiterate the message that Africa has its own unique lived experiences which must be well documented and accounted for. Failure to do so will likely result in prolonged and protracted struggles to deal with its problems. This is because solutions crafted drawing from knowledge accumulated from Western lived experiences do not always prove useful. In scientific research the extend to which findings can be generalised has always been limited but Africa has had to make do with borrowed knowledge which has not been sustainable. For instance , what the United Nations goes to define as the poverty datum line, or what is characterised as economic indicator may not be accurate enough to be the basis for interventions if not well informed by authentic storytelling from within. The same applies in Health which is more critical.
Africa has historically not been able to have solid repositories of information to anchor and model society in the manner in which it desires. The result has been an incomplete puzzle with pieces and patches from every other developed part of the world. The spell of colonisation saw a generation not having the capacity to document and organise their knowledge for the sake for societal progression. Fortunately, another opportunity has come.It cannot be missed and the honor is upon software developers and techxperts of the continent to be seized with the task at hand. I recently came across google maps cars moving across different locations in townships trying to map and locate places for easy identification. The feat is remarkable. I believe that in a similar fashion efforts can be made to bridge the gap in information accumulation and consolidation for the benefit of the continent.
Elton Zvinavashe is a wordsmith, copy writer and storyteller. He writes in his personal capacity as a Digital Marketing Enthusiast. He can be reached for feed back on eltonpossibilities@gmail.com or +27849496768