I don't think that it's because of the population number, I believe the cause is cultural. I am a rare case. I'm a Nigerian in college studying agriculture, and a programmer.



Growing up, I was heavily encouraged to go into nursing, pharmacy or any other healthcare-related profession. The reason for this wasn't due to preference or a simple dislike for the field.
But due to admission difficulties in Nigeria, i seek admission into by second best field(agricultural science),but i did not let that stop me from learning on my own some coding skills.

These were the main reasons why programming is not pursued :

I'm told that this field has low job security and that I couldn't get a job.

This may not apply to everyone in my demographic, but it is a main factor for me.
We value education and got to college to come out with jobs that pay well. I was encouraged to work in fields that we could see physically in front of us. Programming didn't fit into this. It's something foreign to them that they couldn't possibly understand. Therefore, when I decided that I wanted to do this instead of pharmacy, they simply didn't get it.


We don't know about it, or even what it is.

When I told my parents I wanted to go into computer science, they didn't know what it was. If I remember correctly, they thought I wanted to manually fix computers and be something along the lines of IT support on the telephone.

In addition, no one's there to inspire kids or tell them that this field even exists. In my high school, there's no computer science classes or anything that teaches anything along the lines of programming. I believe the closest thing we have to it is a computer class and this isn't even how I got interested in programming.

Parents don't Encourage their kids talent.

Most parent encourage to study a job guaranty course, not even caring about if its in line with their dreams.
Africa have so much talent, in all aspect of life, but parents are the major that kills this talent.

So, how did I get interested in programming?

I started getting interested in programming through mobile games. I always wonder how can this things move up when i press the up key and so on. I always had a vague idea about what programming was, but my interest grew when i came across a website called Codeacademy. I was encouraged to continue with my interest in programming by a friend (Eniseyin Olabode Olajide).
I know my experience is really rare, but I think the reason there aren't many Africans who program is because it isn't taught in schools or after school programs. If it could get into schools and get as good press (or press, period) as business or education fields, etc. then maybe more African would want to pursue this field.

source: Naijafixer

http://naijafixer.com/index.php?topic=39.0

True Talk... In our own Country, People don't appreciate U until make it in Life.

Programmers in US earn alot They earn about $51-70k, that's over 40million naira (N420/$1) I got no idea about Nigeria or Africa

Programmers in US earn alot They earn about $51-70k annually, that's over 40million naira (N420/$1) I got no idea about Nigeria or Africa

Jonart247:
Programmers in US earn alot
They earn about $51-70k annually, that's over 40million naira (N420/$1)
I got no idea about Nigeria or Africa

So? DId you ever study economics? Do so. Learn about cost of living.

Americans pay taxes. That's why things are nice over there. Like 30% of their income. So take home pay for that is going to be about $36-$49k.
Which is $3250 to $4083 a month. I didn't add Social Security Taxes and other misc taxes. About 30% is fine.


But here's a quick breakdown of non optional monthly expense.

Retirement 401k - $300
Rent - $1000 ( if Mortgage then $1600+$200 property tax + $200 HOA fees + $100 home insurance. - $2100) This is in a cheap city.
Health Insurance - $200
Car payment - $250
Car Insurance - $150
Car repair/budget - $80
Car parking/wash/others - $50 (In Chicago, downtown parking costs $48 a day, getting dedicated parking downtown is going to cost $500/month easy)
Cell phone bill - $50
Cable/Home internet bill - $100
Electrical bill - $50 (if you live in hot place, you will see $150 when your AC runs all day)
Natural Gas bill - $50 (If you live in a cold place, you can see $150-$250 during winter months)
Water sewer bill - $40
Gasoline bill - $70
Food - $200 (This means no eating out, you are cooking, eating out is like $10 for a cheap meal, if you did that 3x a day that's $30 or $900 a month)
Grocery - $100
Student Loan - $200 (This is cheap, College is now easily costing about $80,000)
Personal care - $100 (Women pay $100 to get cheap hair done that lasts a week, $20-$25 haircut/facial shave)
Entertainment/Social - $200
Vacation - $0. Flight begins at around $200 to most places, hotel rooms $100/night. So no vacation.

Total is $2880. If you were buying a house, then it would be $3980. Mortgage is monthly for 30yrs. With mortgage, you get lawn, snow shoveling and home maintenance expenses.

This is without girlfriend/wife/boyfriend expenses.

If you have kids, child care will easily run you $1000 month.

Even tho you have insurance, you still pay your deductibles, which can easily be anywhere from $5,000-$10,000 a year. If you have car accident, get speed ticket, your car insurance goes up and you pay tickets, or insurance deductible of around $500 to get your car repaired.

So there you go $3250 to $4900. You are single, no vacation, eating mostly at home. You are saving $370 to $2000. At $51k, you can't buy a house. Buy a house while making $70k and your savings drop to $920.

Have an emergency and you are done. Visit Naija in December and flight will cost you $2,000. A lot of people in American are in debt, what they get is a "comfortable" life but not plenty of cash.

Interesting. . . .

DonSegmond:

So? DId you ever study economics? Do so. Learn about cost of living.

Americans pay taxes. That's why things are nice over there. Like 30% of their income. So take home pay for that is going to be about $36-$49k.
Which is $3250 to $4083 a month. I didn't add Social Security Taxes and other misc taxes. About 30% is fine.


But here's a quick breakdown of non optional monthly expense.

Retirement 401k - $300
Rent - $1000 ( if Mortgage then $1600+$200 property tax + $200 HOA fees + $100 home insurance. - $2100) This is in a cheap city.
Health Insurance - $200
Car payment - $250
Car Insurance - $150
Car repair/budget - $80
Car parking/wash/others - $50 (In Chicago, downtown parking costs $48 a day, getting dedicated parking downtown is going to cost $500/month easy)
Cell phone bill - $50
Cable/Home internet bill - $100
Electrical bill - $50 (if you live in hot place, you will see $150 when your AC runs all day)
Natural Gas bill - $50 (If you live in a cold place, you can see $150-$250 during winter months)
Water sewer bill - $40
Gasoline bill - $70
Food - $200 (This means no eating out, you are cooking, eating out is like $10 for a cheap meal, if you did that 3x a day that's $30 or $900 a month)
Grocery - $100
Student Loan - $200 (This is cheap, College is now easily costing about $80,000)
Personal care - $100 (Women pay $100 to get cheap hair done that lasts a week, $20-$25 haircut/facial shave)
Entertainment/Social - $200
Vacation - $0. Flight begins at around $200 to most places, hotel rooms $100/night. So no vacation.

Total is $2880. If you were buying a house, then it would be $3980. Mortgage is monthly for 30yrs. With mortgage, you get lawn, snow shoveling and home maintenance expenses.

This is without girlfriend/wife/boyfriend expenses.

If you have kids, child care will easily run you $1000 month.

Even tho you have insurance, you still pay your deductibles, which can easily be anywhere from $5,000-$10,000 a year. If you have car accident, get speed ticket, your car insurance goes up and you pay tickets, or insurance deductible of around $500 to get your car repaired.

So there you go $3250 to $4900. You are single, no vacation, eating mostly at home. You are saving $370 to $2000. At $51k, you can't buy a house. Buy a house while making $70k and your savings drop to $920.

Have an emergency and you are done. Visit Naija in December and flight will cost you $2,000. A lot of people in American are in debt, what they get is a "comfortable" life but not plenty of cash.

don't tell me you sat down to type all those calculations!

DonSegmond:

So? DId you ever study economics? Do so. Learn about cost of living.

Americans pay taxes. That's why things are nice over there. Like 30% of their income. So take home pay for that is going to be about $36-$49k.
Which is $3250 to $4083 a month. I didn't add Social Security Taxes and other misc taxes. About 30% is fine.


But here's a quick breakdown of non optional monthly expense.

Retirement 401k - $300
Rent - $1000 ( if Mortgage then $1600+$200 property tax + $200 HOA fees + $100 home insurance. - $2100) This is in a cheap city.
Health Insurance - $200
Car payment - $250
Car Insurance - $150
Car repair/budget - $80
Car parking/wash/others - $50 (In Chicago, downtown parking costs $48 a day, getting dedicated parking downtown is going to cost $500/month easy)
Cell phone bill - $50
Cable/Home internet bill - $100
Electrical bill - $50 (if you live in hot place, you will see $150 when your AC runs all day)
Natural Gas bill - $50 (If you live in a cold place, you can see $150-$250 during winter months)
Water sewer bill - $40
Gasoline bill - $70
Food - $200 (This means no eating out, you are cooking, eating out is like $10 for a cheap meal, if you did that 3x a day that's $30 or $900 a month)
Grocery - $100
Student Loan - $200 (This is cheap, College is now easily costing about $80,000)
Personal care - $100 (Women pay $100 to get cheap hair done that lasts a week, $20-$25 haircut/facial shave)
Entertainment/Social - $200
Vacation - $0. Flight begins at around $200 to most places, hotel rooms $100/night. So no vacation.

Total is $2880. If you were buying a house, then it would be $3980. Mortgage is monthly for 30yrs. With mortgage, you get lawn, snow shoveling and home maintenance expenses.

This is without girlfriend/wife/boyfriend expenses.

If you have kids, child care will easily run you $1000 month.

Even tho you have insurance, you still pay your deductibles, which can easily be anywhere from $5,000-$10,000 a year. If you have car accident, get speed ticket, your car insurance goes up and you pay tickets, or insurance deductible of around $500 to get your car repaired.

So there you go $3250 to $4900. You are single, no vacation, eating mostly at home. You are saving $370 to $2000. At $51k, you can't buy a house. Buy a house while making $70k and your savings drop to $920.

Have an emergency and you are done. Visit Naija in December and flight will cost you $2,000. A lot of people in American are in debt, what they get is a "comfortable" life but not plenty of cash.

o boi! No tell me say you siddon write this tin.. Even my phone no gree quote you.

DonSegmond:

So? DId you ever study economics? Do so. Learn about cost of living.

Americans pay taxes. That's why things are nice over there. Like 30% of their income. So take home pay for that is going to be about $36-$49k.
Which is $3250 to $4083 a month. I didn't add Social Security Taxes and other misc taxes. About 30% is fine.


But here's a quick breakdown of non optional monthly expense.

Retirement 401k - $300
Rent - $1000 ( if Mortgage then $1600+$200 property tax + $200 HOA fees + $100 home insurance. - $2100) This is in a cheap city.
Health Insurance - $200
Car payment - $250
Car Insurance - $150
Car repair/budget - $80
Car parking/wash/others - $50 (In Chicago, downtown parking costs $48 a day, getting dedicated parking downtown is going to cost $500/month easy)
Cell phone bill - $50
Cable/Home internet bill - $100
Electrical bill - $50 (if you live in hot place, you will see $150 when your AC runs all day)
Natural Gas bill - $50 (If you live in a cold place, you can see $150-$250 during winter months)
Water sewer bill - $40
Gasoline bill - $70
Food - $200 (This means no eating out, you are cooking, eating out is like $10 for a cheap meal, if you did that 3x a day that's $30 or $900 a month)
Grocery - $100
Student Loan - $200 (This is cheap, College is now easily costing about $80,000)
Personal care - $100 (Women pay $100 to get cheap hair done that lasts a week, $20-$25 haircut/facial shave)
Entertainment/Social - $200
Vacation - $0. Flight begins at around $200 to most places, hotel rooms $100/night. So no vacation.

Total is $2880. If you were buying a house, then it would be $3980. Mortgage is monthly for 30yrs. With mortgage, you get lawn, snow shoveling and home maintenance expenses.

This is without girlfriend/wife/boyfriend expenses.

If you have kids, child care will easily run you $1000 month.

Even tho you have insurance, you still pay your deductibles, which can easily be anywhere from $5,000-$10,000 a year. If you have car accident, get speed ticket, your car insurance goes up and you pay tickets, or insurance deductible of around $500 to get your car repaired.

So there you go $3250 to $4900. You are single, no vacation, eating mostly at home. You are saving $370 to $2000. At $51k, you can't buy a house. Buy a house while making $70k and your savings drop to $920.

Have an emergency and you are done. Visit Naija in December and flight will cost you $2,000. A lot of people in American are in debt, what they get is a "comfortable" life but not plenty of cash.

I TAYA for that jornart sha!

His likes are just TOO QUICK to conclude.

DonSegmond:

So? DId you ever study economics? Do so. Learn about cost of living.

Americans pay taxes. That's why things are nice over there. Like 30% of their income. So take home pay for that is going to be about $36-$49k.
Which is $3250 to $4083 a month. I didn't add Social Security Taxes and other misc taxes. About 30% is fine.


But here's a quick breakdown of non optional monthly expense.

Retirement 401k - $300
Rent - $1000 ( if Mortgage then $1600+$200 property tax + $200 HOA fees + $100 home insurance. - $2100) This is in a cheap city.
Health Insurance - $200
Car payment - $250
Car Insurance - $150
Car repair/budget - $80
Car parking/wash/others - $50 (In Chicago, downtown parking costs $48 a day, getting dedicated parking downtown is going to cost $500/month easy)
Cell phone bill - $50
Cable/Home internet bill - $100
Electrical bill - $50 (if you live in hot place, you will see $150 when your AC runs all day)
Natural Gas bill - $50 (If you live in a cold place, you can see $150-$250 during winter months)
Water sewer bill - $40
Gasoline bill - $70
Food - $200 (This means no eating out, you are cooking, eating out is like $10 for a cheap meal, if you did that 3x a day that's $30 or $900 a month)
Grocery - $100
Student Loan - $200 (This is cheap, College is now easily costing about $80,000)
Personal care - $100 (Women pay $100 to get cheap hair done that lasts a week, $20-$25 haircut/facial shave)
Entertainment/Social - $200
Vacation - $0. Flight begins at around $200 to most places, hotel rooms $100/night. So no vacation.

Total is $2880. If you were buying a house, then it would be $3980. Mortgage is monthly for 30yrs. With mortgage, you get lawn, snow shoveling and home maintenance expenses.

This is without girlfriend/wife/boyfriend expenses.

If you have kids, child care will easily run you $1000 month.

Even tho you have insurance, you still pay your deductibles, which can easily be anywhere from $5,000-$10,000 a year. If you have car accident, get speed ticket, your car insurance goes up and you pay tickets, or insurance deductible of around $500 to get your car repaired.

So there you go $3250 to $4900. You are single, no vacation, eating mostly at home. You are saving $370 to $2000. At $51k, you can't buy a house. Buy a house while making $70k and your savings drop to $920.

Have an emergency and you are done. Visit Naija in December and flight will cost you $2,000. A lot of people in American are in debt, what they get is a "comfortable" life but not plenty of cash.

I strongly agree with you.

promise10:
I TAYA for that jornart sha!
His likes are just TOO QUICK to conclude.

meaning?

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