There are many theories of why there has not been one developed “all black nation” in the world. Some of the postulations point to prolonged slavery, colonization of black nations by western countries, corruption, dictatorship, and unpatriotic nature of black leaders. Other suggestions include unneeded wars, prolonged military rule, poverty, greed, desire for power and affluence, disregard for law and order, and many more. This essay is not intended to justify or refute any of the postulations, but to provide simplified pathway that could lead willing Black Country to achieve a civilized order. Converting a country to a civilized/developed nation may not involve cutting edge technology or rocket science, but the ability of the leadership to put in place robust and implementable policies and infrastructures that ensure good governance, decent environment, public and private sector infrastructures, incorruptible judicial, security systems, and the resetting of the mindset and value system of the people. It will be naïve to think that these measures will be easy, but it is certainly achievable if there is willingness, dedication, discipline and resilience in the face of imminent challenging issues that might come up. Such anticipated issues include opposition and/or sabotage from those who benefit from the current system, disruption of existing decayed structures, and difficulties associated with individual and community adjustment to a new civilized order.

Energy could be expended to track the activities of the past leadership and apportion blame on who contributed best or worst in the current state of underdevelopment. Such energy should be channeled to rectifying existing deficiencies in the system and reposition the derailed nations back on their track and have them start rolling forward again if they ever rolled forward in the past.  Many leaders in Africa and other black nations have yet to develop a time-based plan to transform their countries into developed/civilized nations probably because of what civilization is not. Civilization/development is not synonymous with erecting complex buildings, roads, Airports, waterways, and state monuments among others. Rather, it is a functional system that is tailored to operate smoothly within the nation’s natural, human, and financial capabilities, and where social services are available and accessible to the greater majority of the population. It is a system that is stable, dynamic, and predictable to a large extent and where planning for the future could be reasonably projected by both the state and the individual. In addition, it is a system that attracts foreign migration, naturalization, tourism, foreign investment, and intergovernmental collaboration and cooperation. For a country to be classified as developed/civilized carries certain pride and dignity, but more importantly, it shows that the mental capacity of the people and its leadership is not inferior compared to other people and leaders in other developed parts of the world.  However, civilization/development comes with some downsides such as sophisticated crime, risk of social inequalities and disparities among others. It also comes with some expectations and responsibilities from the people and government such as civil discussions and debates, orderly behaviors in public places, respect for constituted authorities, equitable allocation of social infrastructure, and fair dispensation of justice. The urgency for at least one Black Country to become the first developed black nation in the world should be pursued with vigor and commitment and should be viewed as the most important goal in the 21^st century.