It is time the city’s employers embraced black diversity irrespective of nationality

Increasingly, many organisations seek the services of black Americans, black Canadians, black British or black people from other European countries. However, black Africans seem hardly employed in Hong Kong.

As an African, I have come to appreciate that many organisations here view Africa through the lens of the media – and many employers still judge a book by its cover.

When a friend asked if I had applied for a faculty position with an organisation in Macau, I said yes and added that in Hong Kong “it seems I must learn the language at all costs to ever be employed in the numerous organisations I have applied to”.

His concern for me was not, however, about the language or qualifications required for the job but rather, my African passport. To him, the problem seemed to be that I was a black African and not a black person of any of the sought-after nationalities. My African blackness still seems to limit my opportunities.

I believe the onus is on the applicant to prove their qualities to the prospective employer. Those that offer interviews often praise the richness of the black experience – yet stop short of offering a job.

In recent months, a friend from Pakistan who chanced to read my curriculum vitae asked why I wasn’t already employed in Hong Kong. Having been granted a visa under Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates, all I could say was that the question “is not mine to answer”.

Many employers, it seems, appreciate Africans’ credentials but stop short of offering employment – missing out on the rich African experience they bring.

Dear employer, your organisation needs my black experience, and you need to tap into this before the forces of demand and supply redefine the price of black services. Go beyond media coverage to interact with Africans and visit the continent; you will surely appreciate Africans’ beauty, hard work and determination.

As a black African in your organisation, I can help create and explore opportunities that Western countries have traditionally monopolised in Africa. In your boardrooms, you need an African voice to tap into what Africa has to offer.

Don’t let a few bad apples put you off the whole orchard. It’s time to embrace black diversity irrespective of nationality.

Juma Kasadha, Sham Shui Po