I became a local guide by chance I suppose. I had traveled to Abuja; my country’s capital and needed to see a girlfriend in a part of town I had never been to or had my friend who was driving me around. We went around for a while until we decided to use the google map (I had used it a couple of times before), though we eventually found her, I noticed that many places were not on the google map. After that experience I decided to sign up as a local guide and help out in my little way, in expanding the information on locations around Nigeria.
One of the things I noticed from that experience was that a lot of places in many cities, town and villages in Nigeria are not on the google map. And this is largely because there are not a lot of local guides updating this information. Many times, access to simple information such as a street name could make a lot of difference to, someone missing his way, attending an interview, a hospital emergency case etc.
Being a local guide means a lot to me and has in many ways has given me the opportunity to help a people in navigating Nigerian roads. Being a local guide has also been an opportunity to connect with people from other parts of the world. It has also provided me a platform to showcase African cuisines and delicacies. Knowing that someone could have found their way because you provided accurate information means a lot to me. Nothing trumps the feeling you get when you did well!
As a youth Pastor in my local church, I have taken advantage of my position and shared my experiences with the youths in church. I have enjoined a couple of them to join up, because I strongly believe having young people contribute to something as big as this is a good way of teaching them to be part of humanity, and be useful. The local guide platform has spurred me into improving my photography skills. This may not sound like a lot but for me, it is a work in progress and I am excited about it. I am hoping that being in this forum will help me become better in many other areas of life.