Well, the honest reality is humankind are not doing enough on researching how sea-plants can help, but Africa is arguably worse. What is enough efforts? The amount of money and time we invest to learn and work on sea-plants compared to reasonable standards versus other things, sea-animals for example, which we wrongly called ‘sea-food’, just like who claimed the earth was flat for how long? My point is evolution demands we learn directly from God and our fellow creatures, where need be. Governments, NGOs, Companies, and even Caring individuals should research and try to have enough sea-plants available and affordable worldwide.
I will suggest the World Health Organization (WHO) and other powerful bodies to lead as late-comers. Perhaps that is where the problems lurk: waiting for indifferent or cruel leaders. Let caring individuals act with or without special help, from start up to special competitions.
Health and finance are two things that tend to motivate humans most, but capitalism and super capitalism are over-commercializing even health, beyond reckless tariffs . In which year did they come up with the Olympics, world cup soccer, etc for money? No! In which year will they consider worldwide oriented learning competitions like :Research for Sea-plants season/Week/month? Here is one or xyz million dollars for/from every country to research which land plants we can grow in the sea/ocean using varying types of semi-floating equipment? The winners will get varying levels of billions as award, nobel peace prize for healthier world, and xyz as reward.
What! Do Sea-plants exist? We are Africans and children of Africans, we only know about kidnapping sea-animals that largely eat sea-plants? Ok, that is a fractional-reality joke, but about 50 to 75%+ of Gambians+ do not know of even five sea-plants, let alone consume them. You can partly blame it on our journalists and politicians, but my goodness is way beyond blame-game, except fairly, then lean on solutions. How many countries claim to be helping the Gambia or Africa at large on health and/or finance and refuse to partner-up with us on sea-plants as example? Tiny Gambia, the smallest country on mainland Africa, has fishing agreements with China, EU, and who else? Just look-up the country on the world map, how tiny it is, and its limited resources, but much bigger nations want to grab animals from our waters for a few millions and refuse to help us plant sea-plants for billions and health in what value?
I challenge the Journalists in every African country to go interview hundred people randomly on the streets, in offices, and in nightclubs or restaurants: ‘please name or write five sea-plants and one to two health benefit per plant.’Â Even the health professionals, including doctors, may likely fail unless they research on the internet. When a doctor is seeing patients with thyroid problems or vitamin B12 deficiencies, monthly/weekly, but does not know or prescribe how sea-plants can help such patients and even reduce his/her workload, then journalists and big awards event may help. Since many media houses may be too lazy to research how little people know about sea-plants, then how about assign two journalists per sea-plant to research on and present to the people. Perhaps, after full month of each journalist presenting a paper+, the best of them can start a column/TV or radio show on sea-plants until it becomes a reality. The list of edible sea-plants for a start: Seaweed, kelp, wakame, dulse, arame, spirulina, kombu, nori, carrageen moss, chlorella, sea grapes, sea lettuce, etc.
What health and financial+ benefits can the Gambia/Africa gain through starting to cultivate/plant sea-plants? Too big for this article. Billions on kelp as an example. Suppose the worst of politicians claim we need to find foreign market first, then that explains they are yet to care for our health and still blind and deaf to unheard words? Tell them countless tourists will murmur when they do not see sea-plants on our menus, but you focus on what your ears heard and ignore why we cannot have millions of visitors per year/month?
We are supposed to have what they know and do not know, plus what was traditionally of Asia… Some tourists may play diplomatic language, but we must offer a lot more to be competitive. Jarga, ‘let us import for tourists and ignore the natives’. Since we refuse to offer the farmers drought resistant and year round farming, can we offer them sea-plants for money and health+, instead of sitting for months? Many African governments are terrible on high fees, so let us appeal for reasonable access to every willing participant.
Government to government appeals are good, but government to companies is worth trying. You are cultivating kelp or xyz in only summer in cold Maine or xyz, why not come every winter to year-round warm Gambia+, we will allow you to export up to 50% of the produce, but we want the rest for our fellow Africans, as repenting folks. We will help you with literate workers, and you must sell the plants cheaper than fish and/or what you pay our folks… I think that is the best approach, but you can also send folks to such companies for reasonable training with pay, as the summer approaches. Then they come home for the winter to continue. Since we all know how governments can forward excuses, I think Africans in the Diaspora, including Asia, should seriously seek such jobs for experience and set- up businesses in Africa to supply hotels and supermarkets, and ignore the poor natives until they value it better or close to fish+?
Although we already have a fairly reasonable list of known sea-plants we can start with, I think new sea-plants need to be researched on. I am aware of how spirulina research/modification is said to have amazing levels of vitamin B12, which could help billions of people if we kindly share it more than we do with vaccines. I am also aware of a research that used sea water on land to grow potatoes and it yielded potatoes with higher levels of Iodine, which is reportedly great for health, according to even doctors who do not know or consume sea-plants.
I believe in cautioustic research, so rather than pouring sea-water on land, I think taking a reasonable amount of soil and other mediums of growing to the sea is better. If you select three types of potatoes, onions, cabbage, kale, Okra, etc and try to grow them with 100% sea-water, 75%, and up to 10% sea-water , with 100% culture of cameras, growing is one thing and interpretation is a longer process. We can learn many things and have amazing discoveries. Although partnering with experienced folks can sometimes help, thinkers understand research is the mother/father of formal education and even experience. So do not over pay, but gratefully pay where need be and start pioneering, not just wait for others.
Even tiny Gambia claims Research and Development (R&D) is vital to our development, but they are yet to gratefully honor me and others for the brilliant ideas. Well, you can start if you have the capital, or forward to your friends and families abroad. Share on social media, perhaps God may send it to the limited caring politicians for easy realization.
The few vegan billionaires and millionaires must also know the availability of such sea-plants can greatly raise the number of vegans, help the existing vegans, and make it easier for others to know there are plant alternatives to fish and animal meat, from taste, nutrients, and beyond. I am also aware of the few African countries that are into sea-weed for export, but we need every country to get involved and far beyond sea-weed. May the kind Lord of realization be of lot more help and help the poorest villages know and access sea-plants+ with ease in 2025. We can even export to u.s with or without tariffs. May God bless us through Showlove Trinity: Let’s learn, let’s work, let’s have fun.
Optional Note:Â
The term ‘sea-food’ is a very questionable outdated term and journalists should help in raising the debate with facts, like or more than the term ‘disabled’ people fought and reasonable people listened to use ‘challenged…’ I think a much more appropriate term is Sea-creatures, since the term sea-animals may exclude the ‘insects’ aspects of the seas/oceans.
Although most vegans will prefer visiting a vegan restaurant, where we may see ‘sea-plants’ as title of one side of the menu, but the restaurants that just have few vegan items also matter. When you have sea-food and start with sea-creatures, it will be more than awkward, and every sane person will at least agree a ‘sea-plants’ section is vital where you offer any, which will also pressure chefs+ to have a few as option. You can be indifferent to the vegan, but this is about new higher standards, being more precise, and evolution that may help even animal meat eaters. Is there an international association+ that can help set standards on menu at Restaurants+?
I have a cousin who had some terrible childhood problems, to part of his adulthood. He had terrible allergies, red itchy eyes and terrible feelings I am asking journalists to consider interviewing him to possibly save other people and possibly research what my very cousin may have misunderstood or still misunderstands. He was largely smart in school, but these problems contributed to his failing of some classes. He is one person I know, but how can your interview with him save hundreds or thousands of children from the nightmare he survived with ‘bruises’? How can you study much when you are feeling terrible and scratching your eyes that will help you read? Imagine a child fed fish+ and few days, weeks, or months after, s/he goes through hell for days, weeks, or months.
The questionable parents may blame God and the animal meat eating doctors may slowly or never detect it as potential problem. So it took years, if not decades, and I suspect he discovers it without doctors help, but will he care by what level in helping others? Perhaps journalists may help heal more than some doctors, and humble doctors+ may learn from me and journalists. A good interview, preferably TV or social media, may help others we can have a research on. My cousin, like many, uses the term: ‘I am allergic to sea-food’. Well, if we have ten to hundred people suffering from such itchy-eyes healed by abstaining (fasting) from sea-creatures, then the second part of the research can be interesting.
We can give that same group of people sea-plants for months and see if they will have problems. If they do not have problems, bravo. If all or few have problems, we can ask them to go vegan, stop even land animals for months or years, then give them sea-plants+ to see the results. Then my cousin+ may know, may be he is not allergic to ‘sea-food’ , but sea creatures. Is that worth debate changing the term? He and others will then enjoy the health benefits of sea-plants. I think you get my point, so call me on whatsapp 220 3787-999 and I will help link you with my cousin for the interview, to help others, not just help change the faulty term.
Human evolution on character is real. People used to eat people, then what percentage of land animals+ vs sea-creatures through the centuries? People who wrongly argue through religion to justify eating animals failed to acknowledge almost all the so-called prophets had slaves. The ever living conscientious Lord matters much more, so when living under such a Lord, you do not copy the past, but ask help and accept new guidance.
Ch.91 says: ‘successful will be those who purify their conscience…’ Of course we know it means far beyond food and animals, but the very last verse of that chapter is hardly pondered on or debated. I hate learning the hard way, so I try where I am given the opportunity. I believe in choice more than resort choice. Sometimes we have to part with the ways of our ancestors. May the kind Lord see us through.
By Jarga Kebba Gigo
An Activist and transformer.
Author of Juts Quhr-aahn.
