Invisible people, unknown countries

I have often wondered what goes on in the minds of Beijingers with the kind of awkward attention I receive on the streets and in supermarkets. I got some clues after reading Ma Chao's contribution in the China Daily of May 8-9.

According to Ma, "Massive swathes of dense forests, expansive grasslands and an overabundance of flora and fauna is what people in China visualize when they think of Africa". Unfortunately he failed or forgot to mention the kind of Homo Sapiens that populate the dense forests and expansive grasslands. Or do Chinese assume that all the Africans were shipped to the new world. When he recently visited Lagos, the commercial nerve center of West Africa and the second largest city in Africa, he was taken aback to see massive construction works, heavy vehicular traffic and sprawling markets. To my mind, Ma's submission probably reflect the deficiencies of the Chinese educational system in subjects such as geography, history, commerce and international politics.

I always try to contain my annoyance when Chinese people ask me if I come from America. When I tell them I come from Nigeria they are lost and start trying to figure out where on the world map this country is located. Asked what countries they know in Africa, it is either Egypt or South Africa.