“Work & Life In Italy”: Our New Series with Imo Ekanem Explores the Everyday Lives of African Professionals in Italy

Editor’s attach: Because the years saunter by, migrating to other countries has change into extra and extra current, in particular for Nigerians (and Africans on the final). Japa, we call it. For the following 10 weeks, Imo Ekanem, in partnership with BellaNaija Facets, will uncover what it manner to reside in Italy as an African expert. We’ll discuss how Africans reside, work, address discrimination, and loads others. 

Imo Daniel Ekanem became as soon as born in Lagos, Nigeria and became as soon as raised in Modena, Italy. She is the founding father of Invent and Arts Hub, a assemble and vogue hub that supports emerging designers. She is known as a alternate accomplice in The Film Fort, an plucky mission that can transform an Italian town true into a movie build and hospitality establish for movie productions from in all places the field. No matter being in Italy since she became as soon as three years used, Imo calm finds ways to connect with her Nigerian roots. She’s been working in the inventive alternate since 2013 and will portion her plod in Italy as a Nigerian. 

This partnership aims to solid the spotlight on a success African immigrants in Italy, bringing you experiences of their day to day lives, in particular in the model alternate. On this conversation, Imo shares what it manner to reside in Italy, her expert plod and advice to Africans willing to pass to Italy.  

We are livid to be having this conversation with you at the present time, Imo. How are you feeling at the present time?

Thank you for having me, BellaNaija. I’m feeling rather alright, thanks for asking.

Great! Let’s fetch true into it. You’ve been in Italy for a extraordinarily very long time. How has dwelling in Italy been to this point as a Nigerian?

I even had been dwelling in Italy all my life, with out a clear thought that I became as soon as Nigerian. I became as soon as appropriate me, dwelling a ecstatic childhood, drinking Italian and Nigerian meals, fidgeting with blond Barbies and murky dolls, and paying attention to English, Ibibio and Italian each and daily. Having fun with my father inserting on his vinyl collection of African-descent artists from the geri curl head Lionel Richie, the explosive Tina Turner, the diva Whitney Houston or Nigerian music king, Fela Kuti and extra ragged Nigerian music. Having fun with my mum inserting me to mattress with African lullabies. I would account for it as a nicely off life, nicely off in values, two cultures, two accents, and two menus each and each Christmas.

That’s very intelligent

It’s. In the 80s and 90s, we now had been amongst the few dim-skinned of us in the nation, in town, but I became as soon as surrounded by a solid Nigerian neighborhood, going to church each and each Sunday, spending a form of time with my cousins dwelling subsequent door as I equally employ satisfactory time with my Italian chums from faculty who I became as soon as in esteem with.

Barely indispensable my childhood and teenage years had been spotless and no longer linked to any rational 2nd in which I had to recall my African identity or separate it from my received Italian identity. They had been both entirely merged collectively fancy a brilliant and snug jelly. My entrepreneurship soul comes from my Nigerian roots, my esteem for vogue and art work comes from Italy.

Rising up, I started realising that in each and each class in class, I became as soon as the finest dim-skinned lady. In overall, we had been fancy two in the final colleges I went to. At the university, it became as soon as the a associated and in some areas of work, or corporations, it became as soon as precisely the a associated. After a few journeys help to Nigeria and discovering out Political Sciences at the university, I started turning into attentive to what it manner to be African, how noteworthy and traditionally nicely off the continent is, and that Africans deserve higher. Why had been there no other dim-skinned of us enrolled at the university to change into engineers, attorneys, doctors, or politicians?

I asked myself questions and I realised round 18 years used, that nearly everybody wished to head to work to emancipate and red meat up their family, so a few Africans had been in a position to interrupt the cycle, perchance leaving the different to the following generation -their blended saunter or blended cultured children shall be in a position to cease what they had been no longer in a position to. I became as soon as one amongst the exceptions. I didn’t fetch stress from my family to raise cash dwelling. I took my time and graduated to search out my expert path in peace. It’s the a associated with my sisters who had been in a position to head to varsity in the UK.

Give us a glimpse into your background and what brought you to Italy

My dad won a inventive arts scholarship at the College of Siena, so he and my mom moved to Modena of their 20s. I arrived in Italy after them, as soon as I became as soon as 3 years used. From that 2nd, Italy modified into my dwelling and Italian modified into my mom tongue. In the dwelling, my mom and father talked Ibibio dialect, English with their chums and Italian with me. I practised Italian in kindergarten, and later, added French in major faculty. Rising up in a multilingual atmosphere fashioned the individual that I’m at the present time and the final experiences and selections in my life are a results of that dynamic atmosphere. 

I actually contain a bachelor’s stage in Political Science and Global Household. I talk 5 global languages (Italian, English, Portuguese, and Spanish and am on my technique to getting extra confident in French) and contain a master’s stage in Global Exchange and Legislation for Non-public Corporations and Public Administration. All the pieces helped me to prepare me as the entrepreneur that I’m at the present time.

Wow, Imo, that’s impressive! Reveal us about your expert plod help dwelling and in Italy

In the first year of my master’s stage, I even contain made up our minds to enrol in the Erasmus Program. It’s a program funded by the European Union that lets in college students from in all places Europe to search out out about for six months or 1 year in one other issue of the EU with a scholarship that can quilt the tuition, accommodation and minute expenses. My desire became as soon as a minute town in the north of Poland where I spent six months at a non-public university. This interval accelerated my independence. 

In my last year, I went to Germany to work as an Au Pair while I became as soon as making ready for my last university examination. Throughout the year, I had the different to be interviewed by a commence-up firm that employed me as an intern for his or her conversation and advertising and marketing and marketing division. When I came help to Italy, I labored remotely from dwelling and realised that I could perchance perhaps change into a freelancer and work for additional than appropriate one client.

So I did that by opening my VAT. I started working for the Max Mara Group as a copywriter and continued as the conversation and social media supervisor for the German commence-up. From that 2nd, an increasing number of artists and mavens desired to collaborate with me via observe of mouth. I continued to cease examine and trained myself on enhance on social media for my client; What had been their wants? Learn how to communicate to their audiences? Learn how to learn their languages via photos and videos and transform them into data and analytics? In those years, Facebook became as soon as born. Instagram, Tik Tok or Snapchat had been no longer present.

To raised solution the inquire of, I started browsing for jobs in a 2nd of disaster in Italy but no person became as soon as replying to my work applications so I went to Germany appropriate to alternate the atmosphere, which ready me even higher to advance help dwelling and exhaust my sources higher. It became as soon as no longer easy at the delivery but I’m very appropriate at public family, selling my abilities, and talking to of us to let them know what I cease and it came out that a form of corporations wished my products and services. I would contain by no manner enhanced these conversation abilities if I didn’t push myself true into a brand new nation and stretched myself previous new boundaries.

This day, I’m a educated and digital marketer. I lead my non-earnings dedicated to vogue corporations and brands. I’m engaged on launching my vogue tech startup firm and I’m the alternate accomplice and conversation supervisor of Filmaremonti, an Italian firm that brings movie producers to the Romagna space to shoot their movies while accommodating their crew in the areas and studios essentially based fully mostly in a fortress and the university centre in town of Bertinoro. I esteem talking the final languages I even contain realized since I became as soon as a child and being dim-skinned in a European nation is appropriate what it is: an different to commence the door to other talented dim-skinned of us to be a part of us and cease wonderful things.

What are the challenges, lessons and excessive moments from your occupation plod as a Nigerian in Italy?

My funds had been tight as soon as I became as soon as appropriate beginning as an intern, having to pay taxes as a freelancer, having to assemble fixed alternate-offs, and seeing of us which contain staunch generational wealth being in a position to commence 10 steps before you because their family has financial savings, houses, automobiles, and the final things that I needed to purchase for myself while beginning from scratch. Would it no longer had been varied if I started from a land (Nigeria) that became as soon as mine by true? I’d by no manner know.

My excessive moments are many. Every time I became as soon as chosen became as soon as the finest 2nd for me. I know that what counts is that I became as soon as recent, I build aside myself in the market to rob the different when the different came.  

I mediate that you simply will contain to know your self, your limits, your abilities and your weaknesses. Work on what you can be in a position to cease higher and fetch even higher. Get your weaknesses and hide them nicely. Whether Asian, African, Indian or European, if your payment is zero, there won’t be any distinction in what nationality you is at threat of be. Your energy is what of us no doubt feel and are drawn to. Your abilities and talents are what your purchasers will no doubt purchase.

We agree. Cling you ever skilled discrimination or any have of pushback on myth of your saunter, nation of beginning establish, or accent? How did you address it?

My accent is terribly Italian. My passport became as soon as very Nigerian – which is in overall a distress in particular as soon as I had to commute for work or pleasure. I became as soon as in a position to contain a study for my Italian passport in my 20s to lead run of the visa headache. This mentioned, of direction, there are racists in each and each single location and I hang that I could perchance perhaps be shy to fulfill an angry one in a gloomy boulevard. Work-wise, I don’t cease alternate with any individual that’s racist or any individual that has a discriminatory policy of their firm, as that does no longer signify my values. I won’t settle for working for or with any individual that thinks that I don’t deserve each and each blessing that I even contain. I’m at a level in my life where I will be capable of decide who I wish to work with and the customers that align with my arrangement. 

In the final work experiences I had, I didn’t see racist behaviours straight but it no doubt is overall in Italy to fetch jokes that are no longer comic and those are the live results of a publish-colonial perspective that’s deeply hidden in the tradition and no longer easy to eradicate.

Indeed! You’re at a level where you can be in a position to confidently dispute you’re a success, are there success pointers you’d desire to portion?

Motivation, focal point and appropriate energy. I don’t cease until I reach my arrangement.

We are definite there are a form of Africans in Italy but some appropriate got there. What are the dinky things/habits/actions they might be able to adopt to help them thrive in Italy?

They wish to know their energy and know that their ancestors are true there with them.

What are the things Africans having a watch to relocate will contain to rob attach of?  

Learn the language of the nation you are going to, Italians esteem the wretchedness. The a associated is professional while you relocate to Spain, Germany or other countries. It will happen that folks are shy of the brand new, cease your simplest continuously, be stunning and true, and the finest of us will advance round. Know the regulation and the customs of the nation you is at threat of be relocating to and ask while you don’t know; don’t deem all the things is the a associated as for your nation. Don’t be shy to assemble new chums, those will assemble your journey in one other nation noteworthy to be lived. Must you contain definite abilities, please let the field know and don’t decide for much less. Nigerians are thriving in all places the field, we wanna gaze extra of it.

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Many thanks to Imo Ekanem for having this conversation with us. Meet up with the following episode on Sunday. Construct you will contain to be featured on BellaNaija or portion your essays with us? Shoot us an electronic mail: [email protected]