The following article was contributed by Chukwuemeka Ezeugo, charter team member in Nigeria.

The first trip I made to Kenya in 2010 was for a conference where youths ignorantly put their lives in the hands of world governments who cared little or not at all for their well-being. This was during a Model United Nations Conference at a private university located at Thika Road in Nairobi, Kenya. One could literally feel the anger and vigour with which students, mostly drawn from Africa and Europe, put in their all to demand nothing but the best from world leaders. I was appointed the Vice-President of the General Assembly but also doubled as the Chair of the 2^nd Committee which deliberated on economic and other related matters. The atmosphere was charged with youths demanding answers and reforms, though perhaps knowing it may not go as they wished.

A little over three years later, precisely on the 13^th of August 2013, I found myself in the beautiful East African country again, but for a different purpose. This time to see how I can work with fellow youths who already have the zeal to effect the change we have always desired from our governments, especially in Africa, and also to identify youths who are willing to join the train of change. I started with the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) conference organized by the AfricanLiberty.org, a project of the ATLAS Network, hosted by Kabarak University in Nakuru, Kenya. I was thrilled to see a lot of young Africans who yearn for, and are dedicated to the cause of Liberty in their respective countries. Youths from Uganda, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya and even West African countries like Nigeria and Ghana were present in their bid to find the way forward for the liberalization of Africa from tyrannical governments and the promotion of human rights.

Meeting with Dr. Tom G. Palmer, vice-president of International Programs at the ATLAS Network, and listening to him talk about the ideas of individual rights and of free markets was one of the highlights of the occasion for me, although I still beg to differ with him on the issue of magic or voodoo. Mr. Kofi Bentil of the Ghanian think-tank – Imani Ghana showed us ways we can restrain governments (which is by not working for the government), providing an ideological basis for his argument.

I had the privilege to challenge Mr. Rejoice Ngwenya from Zimbabwe, convener of the Coalition for Market and Liberal Solutions, on the issues of development, as well as Prof. Allen katwalo, Dean of the Kabarak Business School on the matter of culture in Africa.  The only female speaker, Deman Yusuf, was phenomenal on her discourse of globalization and liberty, while Garreth Bloor, a Libertarian with the South African government who harped on the application of Liberty to policy making, made it clear that one can actually work for and with the government in order to make a change.

Brian Stout from the United States (undoubtedly the tallest person at the conference) put in excellent work to differentiate between capitalism and communism, which led to a heated intellectual debate, even as Olumayowa Okediran and other SYPALA alumni encouraged attendees to make a change by growing the Liberty movement in their respective regions as a means of achieving social change. It was indeed a Libertarian affair as all participants and speakers agreed on the need for the respect of human rights and dignity, free markets and smaller governments.

In the days after the SYPALA conference, I began working with my friends at the Eastern Africa Policy Centre for the actualization of the Caravan of Liberty Project, which intends to take the message of Liberty to various universities and institutions of higher learning in Kenya. We visited three universities where we met various Deans of faculties and later ended up at the Strathmore University in Kenya for the Africa Emerging Leaders Conference. At this conference, I met young people who had many questions but always got the same answers: the government has to be empowered to provide for the citizens. During the group discussions I tried my best to make it clear that by empowering governments the way almost every organization advocates, we end up enslaving ourselves. The government becomes larger and stronger than the citizens and the repercussions of human rights abuse and corruption will become the order of the day.

I tabled for Students For Liberty (SFL) alongside Olumayowa Okediran and my Kenyan Libertarian friends Linda Salwa Kavuka, Kasmil Gago and Alex Ndungu, and it was really a wonderful experience getting to talk about the ideas of Liberty to open-minded young Africans; the kind of experience that gives one a sense of fulfillment and pride. In all, we met a lot of students who indicated interest in being part of the SFL network, and are willing to take the challenge to establish Libertarian groups in their institutions.

I definitely miss Kenya and all the wonderful young Africans eager to see change in their life time.