The leader is the one who climbs the tallest tree, surveys the entire situation, and yells, “Wrong jungle! – Steven R. Covey
Wise people have always
known how to study the seasons and make necessary plans either for sowing or
harvest. Many have argued that the challenge most African countries face is
that of Leadership, without any argument, it has become obvious that the ills
we experience are symptoms of leadership challenge.
To take a cue from leaders
who could foresee and plan for their citizens, would give insight into how
leaders of today should plan for their future. Ancient history has the story of
a king in Egypt – Pharaoh, who had a strange dream, which was eventually
interpreted by one Joseph to be seven years of plenty and following is another
seven years of famine. Joseph was eventually going to create a plan, not to
avert the aforementioned period of draught but to manage and cater for a
country whose citizens as at then were acclaimed to be the second of the two
great civilizations in existence.
Geographically,
Egypt is mostly desert except for the Nile River. The Nile is the greatest
river in the world, and if it didn’t flow through Egypt the country would be
just sand. In ancient times only 3% of Egypt was inhabitable, arable land.
Question here is how would 3% arable land be harnessed to cater for this nation
for 7 years of famine? Here is how Joseph, who eventually became
second-in-command in the entire realm, mapped out a strategy to ensure storage
of grains for the period of plenty to provide relief when the great famine
came. He advised that the fifth part of all the grain harvests stored for the
next seven years, so that when the famine struck, Egypt would have food
sufficient to sustain itself.
