I was born in Tunisia, North Africa, where we don’t even remotely have the same opportunities as Americans, Europeans, and Asians. Due to a very antiquated education system, brain drain is common as few people want to stay in Tunisia.
When I got into computer science and robotics, I encountered a major obstacle: not enough funds or support from the government. NGOs and companies were trying to help, but bureaucracy and disinterest made it so we eventually had to surrender and look for opportunities overseas. This worked well because we are very technical and foreign countries wanted that, thus giving us a lot of benefits. As long as this situation remains the same, everyone will continue to look for internships and jobs overseas, and most of them will never come back. For a country with so many talented individuals, it is extremely sad.
I dream of a world where everyone has the same opportunities. Where people don’t have to pay horrendous amounts of money, travel across the planet, leave behind friends and family, or sacrifice fun just to access opportunities that others can easily access. I want to eliminate these kinds of situations.
That’s why I embarked on a journey that aims to make changes. I spent the last five years constantly outperforming myself and my peers, sharing what I learned and my contacts with the community. I became friends with dozens of CEOs, to whom I recommend local talent. I also became an educator and shared knowledge while making learning fun. I co-founded two non-profit organizations that empower data science in Tunisia by training talent, getting jobs, and contributing to international projects. In addition, I led the Facebook DevC Tunis Community, which constantly provided training to our members and matched them with opportunities. I now have a YouTube channel, and spend many hours a week mentoring and assisting fellow Tunisians advance in their careers. In other words: level up as fast as I can, meet the best, and share the rest.
In the future, the goal is to make the world’s top entities notice us, trust us, and specifically come look for our kind of talent. In any case, I want to create jobs in the high-tech field for my country, and I will do whatever it takes to make that happen.
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