African wishing to change the world

Nelson Santa Rosa is a 24-year old African student who moved to Lisbon from one of the smallest countries in the world – Sao Tome. While living in his own country, he was working in a telecom company for 50 euro per month. After finishing law studies, Nelson wishes to return to homeland. He wants to fight with corruption and help in development of African countries. Immigrants like Nelson are becoming a new category of European citizens. Should we be afraid of them or support their dreams?


Filip Jurzyk: Where is Sao Tome?
Nelson Santa Rosa: It is an island close to the West African coast, opposite to Nigeria and Gabon.

How big is your family?
I have three brothers and one half-sister – she has a different mother than me. You need to accept that Africa has a different culture. Men sometimes have children with two or three women and this is normal. One day a man is in his first woman’s house, the other day he can be with the second one. My mother died five years ago and my father lives in Gabon.

And why did you come to Portugal?
I came to study because we don’t have any university in Sao Tome. I couldn’t study in my country. Everything started when I came here with a short-term visa just to participate in a HIV conference that was held last month. They invited me here because I was working for a magazine in Sao Tome. We write about this disease, inform and give pieces of advice. People have the opportunity to ask about HIV, publish their opinions. And after I arrived, I decided that I would stay here. I asked for a student visa and I got it. Now I live with my family in an apartment. I don’t have time for working because I study hard. So my family has to pay for me.

Do you see any racism here in Lisbon?
Nothing, man! In my opinion it is not racism when I sit in the bus and some white people don’t wanna seat opposite to me. But I think they are just afraid. I have to admit that some black people coming from Africa are dangerous. But they don’t have to be afraid of us. People from Sao Tome are welcome in Portugal, because we are one of the most peaceful nations in the world.

After finishing education, will you look for your place in Sao Tome? Or you want to stay here in Lisbon?
No way, man! My country deserves me and I want to develop it. I will go back to Sao Tome although I know that I could find a job in Portugal as well. There is a lack of well-educated people in my country. So after finishing law studies, you can work for the government, international institutions, oil companies or simply open a private office. I believe that if you are good, you can find job easily. But first I need to be the best student.

What kind of problems does your country needs to deal with? Are there some ethnic clashes in Sao Tome? Civil war?
In some countries it happens. But we are different, because it’s a small country. There are no separate ethnic groups. We are close to the European culture. The problem is, that we are not only one of the smallest but also one of the poorest countries in the world. And politicians are corrupted.

And you believe that you will manage to change your country?
My challenge is to change this kind of view, to change people. I will be back, I love my country and I want it to develop. I feel responsible for what’s going on there. And it’s possible to change people. When the country is so small, it is easy to send the message. The first step is to invest in education. In my country everyone can go to school easily but conditions are poor – we don’t have enough books, buildings and teachers. We need to build more schools. Do you believe that we have only one high school for 150 000 citizens of Sao Tome? I have finished this school and that’s why I could come to Lisbon.

Can students receive any help from Sao Tome or other countries?
Yes, theoretically. Western countries give scholarships to our students but the government takes everything for their own family members. My uncle is a foreign minister in Sao Tome but he doesn’t care about others, just his own interest. I don’t trust him because he’s in the government.

What do you mean by saying that politicians get scholarships for themselves?
I know students from Sao Tome in Portugal that have scholarship but don’t receive the money. France, USA, Germany, Netherlands... They give scholarships for students from Sao Tome. But instead of giving it directly to students, they send the money to government who should pass it over to students. But on the way, money disappears. My friends studying in Portugal were writing letters to Sao Tome government that they are hungry, cannot buy books and neither pay fees. But the money didn’t come. No one wants to help them.

But Europe is sending lots of money to Africa.
Europe is trying to help Africa, send money, but nothing changes. They should oblige African governments to work on problems instead of sending money. Don’t give us money but help to build our development. Teach our people how to build universities. Because if you give money, they’ll disappear in politicians hands and our life won’t change. Most African countries say, “ We are poor because of Europe”. I don’t agree, man! This is our own fault. We need to make this the first step. When we do it, Europe can help in making the second one.

What is your biggest dream?
My dream is to become a politician. I won’t be corrupted, because I am from the next generation. We come with fresh minds and ideas to change our country, to change Africa.

Interview and photo by Filip Jurzyk