Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Afro-pessimism or afro-optimism? Although the media conveys an image of a poverty-stricken continent overwhelmed by the torments of war, famine and disease, there is a multitude of positive examples of an Africa that is succeeding and concrete evidence of rapidly developing economies.

The mistake is often made of talking about Africa as though it were one country, when it has 54. This is a crude conflation, which sustains a great many common misappre­hensions, such as the belief that Africa is nothing but a land of poverty. Yet some states can, in real­ity be veritable goldmines for the business world; such as Ghana where, according to the survey conducted by the French council of investors in Africa (Cian), 75 % of businesses questioned expect both an increase in turnover in 2005, to be "clearly- profitable" and to be making further investments in the country. Chad is not to be outdone, since according to the survey 100% of companies predict a rise in turnover (as in Angola), 66.6% consider that they will be "clearly profitable" and 83.3% declare their intention to invest. The Corporate Council on Africa (CCN), the American equivalent of the Cian, cites Botswana as an example. It is, in fact, the only country on the continent to be credited with a maximum A+ grade by the world's two biggest risk-assessment companies (Moody's and Standard and Poor's). Praised for its stability and transparency, it offers an extremely favorable business environment According to the organisation Transparency International, it is the least corrupt State in Africa (32nd in the world). In addition to Botswana, the CCA more generally invites investors to "seriously" consider Africa as a place of opportunities.

A SUCCESS STORY

But the Africa that is succeeding is not only corporate Africa. It includes people and careers too, and there are emblematic success stories unfortunately given too little coverage in the media. Last October Cameroonian Francoise Foning became president of the world women employers' organisation. Head of a company and a businesswoman, winner of the 2004 Oscar for African Manager of the Year, she has been elected to head the NGO, the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs FCEM). This self­made woman and deputy mayor of the city of Douala is the first black woman to hold this international office.

She is not on the same level, however, as the South African businessman, Cyril Ramaphosa, who is one of the 100 richest black entrepreneurs in the world. This Soweto born, eminent antiapartheid militant, left politics for the world of business. Elected in 2004 in 4th place of the 100 most important South Africans, he is one of the most influ­ential figures in the Mack Black Economic Empowerment. Executive Chairman of Millennium Consolidated Investments, he is also non-executive Chairman of a great many other companies, including the telecommunications group MTN, Bidvest, and Les Brasseries d'Afrique du Sud (a South African restaurant chain).

EXPLOSION IN MOBILE TELEPHONY

One of the most flourishing sectors in Africa today is telephony. According to the International Telecommunications Union, the number of GSM line holders in sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) grew by 64.2 % between 2000 and 2005 figures which have long overtaken those of the landline network; a boom which fully demonstrates the continent's ability to adapt to change and which has fundamentally and drastically altered economic, com­mercial and social life. Five years ago, communication between Antananarivo and Mahajanga in Madagascar, for example, was impossible because of lack of infrastructure.

Direct foreign investment, of which Africa picks tip only 3 % of the world's flow of funds, needs frameworks and guar­antees if it is to develop. This was the reason for the found­ing of the Organisation for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (Ohada) in 1993, to remedy the legal insecurity existing in the member states (the 14 countries in the CFA franc zone, Comoros and Guinea, a task slowed down by the organization's difficulties in getting funding.

Obstacles are sometimes more of stimulation than a brake on the continent. Following the crisis in the Ivory Coast, a great many countries which depended largely on the port of Abidjan, were obliged to create new trade routes in order to survive. Mali, which has no access to the sea and 60% of whose trade passed through Abidjan, decided to convert its landlocked position into an asset. A road infrastructure programme now links Bamako to the capitals of Guinea, Senegal, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mauritania.

So Africa is taking itself in hand and driving its own dynamics. The New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad), created by Africans for Africans, is today presented by politi­cians as the master card for the continent's revival. Launched in 2001, Nepad has brought some major achievements, such as the African peer review system, an evaluation exercise of political, economic and institutional aspects already conducted by Ghana and Rwanda and the model public-private part­nership and regional integration schemes (to increase the size of markets and attract investors) which are starting to bear fruit. One simple indicator is that the continent's rate of economic growth rose from 2.9% in 2002 to 5.1% in 2004, the highest for eight years.

WHEN FRANCE SUPPORTS AFRICA

Culture, co-development, research, the sharing of expertise ... France has always maintained a special relationship with Africa. Thus some 50 French cultural centres and alliances francaises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) play an essential role in African cultural life.

The French Development Agency is a pivotal organisation in France's public development aid. Under the supervision of three ministries, including the MAE, it works in areas as varied as infrastructure, health, environment, education and the financial sectors.

Research is no less important since the French institute of research for development (IRD, formerly Orstom) has 14 centres in Africa and also does important work in education. The intergovernmental agency of the French-speaking world (France, Canada, Belgium, etc.), with numerous development programmes in education, culture, media, the economy and good governance, is also one of the continent's major supports and partners.

Text courtesy: Label France N 61 Ist Quarter 2006- Embassy of France in Kathmandu-ed.