The purpose of Voxel is to promote professional and personal development within the company and to have a positive impact on society. In this spirit, listening to and learning from inspiring individuals like Ousman Umar significantly contributes to this goal.
The Beginning of It All
Ousman Umar was born in a small village in Ghana, deep in the heart of the jungle. He was a child with a simple and happy life. But when he saw planes flying over his head, he wondered what they were and how they could fly.
When someone explained to him that those vehicles came from “the land of the white people,” he decided he wanted to go there. At the age of 13, this curiosity drove him to leave his village. And so, he set off on a journey—alone.
An Endless Journey
He crossed the Sahara Desert with a group of people. During those days, he endured harsh experiences: he faced transportation issues, was deceived by people who took advantage of him, and survived extreme conditions. “Besides coming across the lifeless bodies of others who were chasing the same dream, most of the group did not survive,” Ousman added.
Eventually, he arrived in Libya, where he worked for several years to save money. After passing through the hands of human traffickers and crossing several countries, he reached Mauritania. He paid to travel by boat to Spain, but what they didn’t tell him was that the agreement meant they had to build the boat themselves.
After witnessing the horror of seeing his best friend’s boat sink and surviving two days at sea without food or water (and without knowing how to swim), he finally arrived in Fuerteventura, where he spent two months in prison.
The Land of the White People
Because he was a minor, he was allowed to enter and stay in Spain. When asked where he wanted to go, he chose “Barça” (Barcelona) since it was the only place he had heard of. “I had never felt so alone as when I lived on the streets of the Catalan capital,” Ousman confessed.
One day, he met a woman who took him in, and the Ghanaian became part of her family. Despite not knowing how to read or write, nor speaking Catalan or Spanish, he managed to earn a university degree and complete two master’s programs. “Talent has no color; it’s a matter of opportunity,” he told us.
Ousman’s Purpose
Ousman realized that his purpose in life was to prevent others from enduring the same cruel experience he had. He founded the NGO NASCO Feeding Minds, whose mission is to promote access to education and information for the people of Ghana (Africa).
The organization tackles immigration issues at the source by creating development opportunities so that no one has to endure the horrors of forced migration. “If you only feed their stomachs, you will find their bodies on your shores. But if you feed their minds, they will lead change in their communities,” he explained to us.
Today, the organization has established 17 ICT labs in Ghana, benefited 58 schools, and provided over 65,000 training programs—all without any government support.
Ousman’s work has received international recognition. In 2017, the United Nations highlighted him for using technology to save lives in Ghana. In 2018, he was invited by the Pope to the Vatican, and in 2021, he received an award from the King of Spain for his contribution to using the internet to address one of Europe’s greatest challenges: migration.
For all these reasons (and many more), we are delighted to have financially supported NASCO Feeding Minds at the Bavel Travel Summit 2024, along with Pliant and TerraPay (see image below).
