I have learned two interrelated lessons about giving in Nigeria.
First, giving large sums of money to economically deprived people to start a business, in the hope that they will become independent and self-reliant and stop returning for handouts, almost never works.
Not a single person I have assisted with startup capital has stopped coming back for more. It seems to confirm the old saying, “easy come, easy go.”
Add to this the Nigerian cargo-cult mentality that encourages people to think, “The God that brought the first money will bring it again even if I spend it,” and the outcome becomes predictable.
Second, people tend to assume that once you help them, you are obligated to help them forever. This stems from the belief that people give not out of sacrifice but because they have excess.
As a result, helping once often attracts endless solicitations, and any refusal is interpreted as evidence of “wickedness,” with previous acts of kindness conveniently forgotten.
The tragedy is that this culture discourages generosity. Many people stop helping altogether because kindness is treated not as grace but as entitlement.
