110: Empowering African Digital Nomads and Staying Grounded in Social Justice Activism with Fadila A. Ahmad

Episode Summary

Fadila A. Ahmad shares her story of growing up in northern Nigeria, desiring to travel the world, and leaving home at the age of 16 to go study in Ghana without telling her father. She explains how she navigated her family dynamics in pursuit of her dream life, joined the Model U.N. in college and traveled outside of West Africa for the first time. From there she shares her experience working in the corporate world after college and then quitting her job with minimal savings and co-founding her business Fainajs Express Limited as a trade-facilitation agency based in West Africa. Fadila explains how she transformed her local business to one with a location-independent infrastructure that she could run from anywhere in the world, and how she set off on her digital nomad journey to travel the world. She tells stories about her first road trip across Europe, her first time seeing snow, why she loves Brazil so much, and why Swaziland is the most under-rated place in Africa. She then provides specific tips for solo-female travelers, Muslim travelers, and African travelers. Fadila then talks about founding “Africans Living Fully” as an online travel community to support African digital nomads. She shares specific tactics and paths for Africans to become location-independent and shares tips for traveling the world on a Nigerian passport. And, finally, she talks about her history of social justice activism, her work with NGOs across West Africa, the current human rights struggles in Nigeria, and she offers suggestions for how digital nomads can get involved and stay grounded in struggles for justice.

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About the Guest

Fadila A. Ahmad

Fadila A. Ahmad is a location-independent entrepreneur, business strategist, remote work advisor and the founder of Fainajs Express, Ltd, a West African trade facilitation agency that operates in 4 countries to provide trade payment, pricing and business development advisory services. Fadila was born and raised in Nigeria, went to college in Ghana where she still maintains a home base, and now runs her business primarily remotely as a digital nomad and has been to over 30 countries. She is also the founder of “Africans Living Fully” a platform designed specifically to support and empower young Africans to live their life limitlessly by providing resources on remote careers, location-independent entrepreneurship, remote skill development, networking opportunities, long-term-world-travel and lifestyle design. Fadila is a strong advocate for youth economic and social development in her home country of Nigeria and has also worked with 9 NGOs across 6 West African countries on issues of women’s empowerment, maternal health, and youth skill development and education. She is passionate about empowering all Africans to be limitless in their pursuit of a fulfilling career & life.

What You'll Learn

Tips for solo Mulsim female travelers
Tactics for Africans to become location-independent and travel the world
How digital nomads can and should stay grounded in social justice activism

Links From the Episode

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#1 BOOK THAT FADILA RECOMMENDS

The Richest Man In Babylon by George S. Clason

#1 PERSON WITH WHOM FADILA WANTS TO HAVE DINNER

Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum

AFRICANS LIVING FULLY RESOURCES

FADILA’S TOP 5 AFROBEAT ARTIST

TOP 3 FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATIONS

TOP 3 BUCKET LIST DESTINATIONS

LOCATIONS WHERE THE INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE

PERSON MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

Patrick Sawyer

WHICH COUNTRY HAS THE BEST JOLLOF

Nigeria

OTHER PLACES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

CONTACT FADILA

Time Stamped Show Notes

[3:35] Growing up in Nigeria

Living in Northern Nigeria
Her Malian heritage and nomadic roots
Wanting to study abroad in other countries
Leaving home at 16 to study in Ghana without telling her father

[8:39] Navigating family dynamics in pursuit of her dreams

Taking responsibility for creating her dream life
Joining Model U.N. in college
Traveling outside West Africa for the first time

[11:41] Transitioning from the Corporate World to Entrepreneurship

Working in middle management in the corporate world
Quitting her job to pursue more flexibility in her life with minimal savings
Identifying a high-demand niche in the financial services sector
Founding Fainjas Express Limited as a trade-facilitation agency
Building her business locally first to establish trust
Creating a location-independent infrastructure

[20:06] Fadila’s Reflections on Her World Travel

Creating freedom of mobility for herself and her staff
Her first road trip across Europe
Seeing snow for the first time in Andora, Switzerland
Why she loves Brazil so much
Why she feels Swaziland is the most under-rated country in Africa
Why she wants to go back to Mozambique

[23:37] Fadila’s Tips for Solo-Female Travelers

Trusting your instincts
Travel planning
Safety-Accountability and location-tracking apps
Starting with countries that have good transportation
Due diligence on people you are staying with

[25:04] Fadila’s Tips for Muslim Travelers

Being aware of Islamophobia and setting your expectations
Balancing safety and adventure
Safety strategies for countries where Islamophobia is high

[26:52] Fadila’s Tips for African World Travelers

Your right to travel the world
Owning your African culture and swagger
Representing African culture from a place of strength
Navigating other people’s ignorance about African travelers
Changing the global narrative about African people

[29:21] Founding “African’s Living Fully”

Creating a travel community for African Digital Nomads
Empowering Africans to live without limits
Providing resources around remote work, lifestyle design and world travel
Changing your mindset to transcend the traditional path

[31:27] Tactics for Becoming Location Independent

Evaluating your existing skills and applying them to remote opportunities
Being intentional about your digital footprint
Remote-izing your CV and job application strategy
Identifying freelance clients in less crowded spaces
Transitioning traditional buisnesses into remote businesses

[37:35] Fadila’s Tips on Lifestyle Design and Travel Choices

Selecting Nigerian-friendly countries
Start with visa-friendly travel locations for your passport
Staying in countries for 3-6 months at a time.
Designing her lifestyle in a way that intentionally nurtures the different aspects of her life

[41:00] Fadila’s Social Justice Activism and NGO Work

How her social consciousness got raised initially
Realizing activism doesn’t have to be just professional NGO work
Adding value to social causes through her work
Fadila’s work with NGOs across West Africa

[47:46] Fadila’s Support for Today’s Human Rights Struggles in Nigeria

The importance of everyone supporting the oppressed struggles in their own areas
Fadila’s support for the #EndSars campaign in Nigeria
Raising awareness in Nigeria about remote work to reduce security harassment
How the #EndSars struggles began in the streets and moved online
Being part of the solution and demanding accountability from elected officials
Resources on the human rights atrocities in Nigeria

[54:10] The Lightning Round