Published by Cambridge University Press on 26 May 2022, Soro Soke: The Young Disruptors of an African Megacity is now available to buy, and for free via Open Access.
For the first time in human history, people aged over 65 now outnumber children under five. Yet one region in the world is bucking this trend: the world’s top 20 youngest countries by population are all located in sub-Saharan Africa, and Africa’s population under 35 now equals almost a billion people. Whilst there has been much research and reportage in the West around the lives of millennials and Gen Z, little has been written on the dreams and aspirations, the fears and hopes, the needs and desires of young Africans. The Yoruba expression Soro Soke, meaning “Speak Up”, has become a clarion call for young Nigerians seeking to make their voices heard, resonating across the African continent and around the world via social media. Trish Lorenz speaks to the bright new entrepreneurs, artists, and activists of Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria, to understand what it means to be young in an otherwise ageing world.
I wish this book existed when I was writing Welcome to Lagos. Trish Lorenz has done an excellent job of collating the hopes, dreams and frustrations of the young people of Lagos. They’re savvy, ambitious and they won’t take no for an answer. Watch out world. The soro soke generation is coming.
– Chibundu Onuzo, Author of ‘Welcome to Lagos’, ‘Sankofa’ and ‘The Spider King’s Daughter’
Book coverage
- Interview for Monocle Radio – The Globalist (starts at around 32:30)
- The Big Issue online
- CRASSH Thoughtlines podcast episode
Book event
- Join Trish Lorenz and two of the young African entrepreneurs featured in her book for an online discussion on 7 June at 16:00.
About Trish Lorenz
Trish Lorenz has been a journalist for more than 15 years. She is a regular contributor to titles including The Guardian, The Financial Times and The Telegraph, among others, and her reporting has included covering stories in Senegal, Mali and Burkina Faso. Formerly a design columnist at The Independent and the Lisbon correspondent for Monocle magazine, she covers subjects ranging from design, art and culture to travel, politics and human interest. She moved to Berlin in early 2020. Prior to that she lived in Lisbon for eight years, working as a correspondent in Portugal and the Portuguese speaking world, a role that involved travel and reporting on African Portuguese speaking countries such as Cape Verde.
In 2021 Trish Lorenz won the Nine Dots Prize with her essay responding to the question: ‘What does it mean to be young in an ageing world?’ In autumn 2021 Trish spent a few weeks as a fellow at CRASSH, whilst researching and writing her book.
About the Nine Dots Prize
The Nine Dots Prize is a prize for a book that has not yet been written. Every two years, its Board sets a question and invites people to respond with a 3,000-word essay and a book proposal. The winner receives US$100,000, which enables them to spend time researching, developing their ideas, and turning their essay response into a full-length book which is published by Cambridge University Press.
