Africa-Quo Vadis? (Where Africa May Be Heading)

Africa-Quo Vadis? (Where Africa May Be Heading)

Subject matter- this research will focus on the development of Africa in the 21st century. As Africa is a developing continent, it seems an excellent opportunity for international companies to go there and start businesses. The scope of consumer and industrial products is increasing day by day. It generally attracts the rest of the world to invest over there. Additionally, Africa has the world’s most significant youngest population, 80% of the population is 35, and above years old, these can be interpreted to be a country with the potential of growth in the economy.

Some enemies of development are also common in Africa, corruption, and other activities like negatively affect Africa economy. Counties have political issues related to their political system, like Nigeria has an unstable political system (Hendricks, 2017). The shortage of power is also a significant concern in South Africa. It needs a lot of investment that can create a better Africa. Now, Africa is almost near to celebrate its independence, but after so many years of its independence, Africa is not developed that much. There is still a needs to invest in various areas like education, industry, and especially in healthcare. These all areas need much more attention from the native Africans and the outsiders as well. Africa always denies entering into the race of globalization because the other countries always underestimate its potential to grow. But now, it became a burning issue among all other nations.

Why this topic is interesting- As I already mentioned above that America has a large number of growth opportunities to invest there, now, the other developed nations think to make some investments in Africa. Like, Africa has a lot of heterogeneous countries, they have different cultures and different types of people living there, it can be a better thing for investors. Another big problem in Africa that needs more focus is transportation because the traveling difference is more to cover (Hayden, 2012). Still, the availability of transport means is not that much, so it can be a golden opportunity for MNCs who are dealing with transportation to start their business in African countries. If we link it with international business, the slower progress of African countries can prove a boon for other nations to make investments and earn profits. On the other hand, it will also positively affect all the continents, like it can enhance the education system as well as the political system.

Thesis statement- Africa is heading towards several difficulties that directly or indirectly affect the other world (Hendricks, 2017). Developed countries are now diverting their focus in this direction and start thinking about it. It has a lot of things that need to be nurturing in a good way.

Sources of research- for this topic I will use various resources that will help me to explain this topic better,

Conestoga library, research reports, the official website of African governments, articles given by the world’s experts in different areas.

FRANKEMA, (2019) explains that a lot has been said about Africa. Africa has been on the rise in the 21st century. Africa is now home to one of the fastest-growing continents economically in the world (Hayden, 2012). Africa has been on the verge of growing with the intention of investors from all over the world willing to put set aside their capital and invest in Africa. Africa has been the home of resources for many years. Africa is considered to be rich in land minerals and energy.

Years after Africa gained independence, the parties in power tend to focus on how to stay in control at whatever cost, and they are presently looked at mounting financial needs that require their quick consideration. Africa being termed as the continent with the most underdeveloped countries in the world. The ruling parties are accountable to the continuously increasing demands of the citizens (Hayden, 2012). The pressure is kept on increasing each day to incoming executives to be much creative and decisive on how they are going to improve the economy of their countries and improve the lifestyle of the citizens. The current governments respond to these matters in different ways, with some deciding to disregard it, concentrating more on enhancing themselves, paying little mind to future results Sambala et al,(2019).Others people deny the test, presenting their states to the stagnation-inciting exchange and speculation necessities of the worldwide financial request, and the uncommon few intensely face it, regularly picking the way of state-coordinated advancement.

The pace and the scale of the essential change in Africa require extraordinary solidarity of direction. The test confronting African nations is not only one of improving their financial development insights, however of totally reshaping and remaking their economies and social orders to compensate for a time of underdevelopment and abuse, which was because of a horde of difficulties including colonization (Hendricks, 2017). The progressions required to the household laws and global understandings that decide the nature of African lives, call for coordinated activity inside and crosswise over nations. The agonizing procedure of progress to better conditions requires good judgment of direction and shared vision between the visionaries and the agents of the vision – the officials and the residents.

The celebration of the 50th commemoration of the freedom of numerous nations in 2010 has given a chance to African scientists to audit the performance of the African countries in 50 years of autonomy, a blended record all things considered (Hendricks, 2017). There have been numerous accomplishments regarding social and monetary improvement. Huge advancement both socially and economically, and a few nations have figured out how to set upvote based administration frameworks, particularly after several national gatherings (in West and Central Africa) during the early 90s. The fall of dictator systems, coming to an end of politically-sanctioned racial segregation, the difference in administering parties in nations like Senegal, and the significant ongoing changes in Tunisia (the Jasmine Revolution), Egypt and somewhere else in North Africa have made the guarantee of democratization and improvement of Africa considerably more genuine (Hendricks, 2017). However, despite the ongoing political changes, administration issues are still a piece of the incredible difficulties confronting the African continent. Most people in Africa are still considered to live a poor life despite the continent being one of the richest in natural resources and human labor.

Special attention should also be paid to ensure people receive higher education after completion of the secondary school level. Higher education is based on the improvement and application of skills in different fields, which will lead to the strength and improvement of our economy (Hendricks, 2017). With the ongoing globalization, smart people enriched with ideas, young and energetic, are required to push the economy further in terms of innovations and improvement of several sectors that help to generate income. Improvement of the University’s states and the research centers is also required to enhance improvement in the section of research. Many African researchers find it hard to perform their research activities in the research laboratories due to the poor state and luck of maintenance in the laboratories. The laboratories also luck special and improved equipment to enhance quality research. Improvement in the sector if the research will contribute a lot to the improvement of the economy, since discoveries and improvements will be made, and also attract private investors in the continent.

The presence of new advancements, particularly in the field of ICT, plays one of the most pivotal jobs in the African continent in terms of economic and political growth. For example, the cell phone and FM radio stations assumed a significant job in the political and social developments in Senegal at the turn of the thousand years. Looked with confinements on political discussions in numerous nations, for example, Tunisia, we saw the significance of the Web, including web-based social networking and Web-based destinations, for example, Facebook and Twitter as spaces for vote based battles including a huge number of profoundly taught yet jobless urban youth (Hendricks, 2017). Then, the administration of the Web, space oversaw primarily by private global organizations of another kind (Facebook, Twitter, Google, and YouTube), stays an uncertain issue. ICT advancement has also helped in providing a lot of job opportunities for youths. We already have young YouTubers who are earning money from creating and putting their content out there on youtube and earning a living out of it. Social platforms like twitter facebook, and Instagram have also been used as a marketing platform for young entrepreneurs who can put their products out there and earn a living (Hayden, 2012). The social platforms have helped a lot of small businesses grow to global and international business, hence boosting the economy of most countries in Africa.

Africa holds a general assembly known as CODESRIA, where the next sitting will be carried in three different segments: the initial segment is a logical meeting on the subject Africa and the Difficulties of the 21st Century (Hayden, 2012). This part will be sorted out in entire and parallel sessions. Various driving researchers from Africa, the Diaspora, and different parts of the South, just as delegates of accomplice establishments in the North, will likewise be welcomed to take an interest in the meeting. The arrangement will be made for the self-governing activities of people and research foundations (Hayden, 2012). The subsequent part is the festival of the 50th commemoration of the Casablanca Gathering, and the third and last part is the business session dedicated to discourses on the institutional existence of CODESRIA: introduction and dialog of the reports of the President, the Leader of the Logical Panel, and the Official Secretary of CODESRIA; the new vital arrangement and research needs for the coming years; revisions to the CODESRIA Contract; and appointment of another Official Council just as another President and VP of CODESRIA.

The conference will overlook the below-mentioned sub-themes affecting the growth of the African continent in terms of economics and political development:

• Reinventing of the African future
• Making Africa recognized economically worldwide
• The integration of Africa
• The technological and scientific revolution in Africa
• Social sciences and humanities in Africa
• Growth of the research systems and higher education
• Future population policies, and the climatic changes
• Transformation of the agricultural system in Africa
• Industrial development and globalization
• Management of the African resources in democratic and sustainable methods

In any case, present Africa is not equivalent to the Africa of the mid-sixties, which had just gotten from the hands of the colonial government. The difficulties faced by the African continent today are not equivalent to those of the sixties. Even though there still are issues going back to the early long periods of autonomy, these are of the other request and are today examined with a specific concentration and a need to keep moving (Hayden, 2012). This is especially valid for the issues of administration and improvement, the more significant part of which are yet to be settled.

The tragic incident of industrial development and tight political space in East Africa can give improvement to a terrible name about Africa. It turns out to be exceptionally simple for some western media and the scholarly community to depict African aspiration as misinformed and destructive, taking into account that neither of them appears to be especially excited for the possibility of Africans taking increasingly conscious measures to secure their very own advantages (Hayden, 2012). It adds to the impression of a bogus decision among vote based system and improvement – one in where givers will consistently organize democratization, and Africans should consistently delay advancement to seek after reconciliation into the ”worldwide network” on their terms (Hendricks, 2017). Be that as it may, before they are scrutinized for how they decide to create, it is significant that the verifiable setting and their experience is comprehended, as it normally shapes and educates the bearing the country decides to take.

African pioneers should have the option to see past the clear exchange trade-off. The leaders do not have to pick between progress and open dialog of the measures taken to accomplish that progress. They cannot surrender the formative push, given the monetary and social need to escape neediness (Hendricks, 2017). The rising requests of a developing populace will not endure governments that need successful reactions to genuine issues. The leaders additionally do not need to surrender popularity based standards to push through answers for these issues. They can grasp both a common vocal society and aggressive nearby space while seeking after concession to a transformative approach.

The Xenophobia practice by the South Africans has also brought a bad name for the African continent. The South Africans have been attacking fellow Africans from different countries and killing them, claiming that they had taken away properties and owned big businesses in South Africa while the origins were languishing in poverty. Instead of appreciating how the other Africans were participating in the growth of the economy of South Africa, they attack and kill them (Hendricks, 2017). The act of xenophobia has resulted in the altering of how foreigners do business in the country since they fear to overinvest in the end to lose all the properties in the hands of the cruel South Africans. Investors also have now pulled back, and non-governmental organizations are leading to the slowing down of the economic growth in the country (Hayden, 2012). Instead, Africans should unite and work together, exchanging ideas and helping one another in terms of economic growth instead of fighting one another. Africans fighting fellow Africans brings a bad Image about the continent in general.

We have to reevaluate how individuals partake in dynamic strategy. The successful formative condition of the 21st century will be one that can tie down accord and duty to national policy bearings from a dominant part of the populace, as opposed to coercively forcing the desire of the ”illuminated not many” on the ”vulnerable masses”. We have to move past directs and mandates from higher forces to exchange and discourse that fabricate understanding, starting from the earliest stage (Hayden, 2012). The better approach for formative ought to be one that depends on open support and portrayal, instead of minority rule. It will be one of grassroots assembly, network sorting out, and municipal instruction on a national scale. Comprehensive and straightforward strategy making requires some investment, something African governments regularly feel shy of, yet the long haul impacts of taking approach easy routes might be awful. Fights, uproars, and precariousness are never a long way from the administration that neglects to tune in to its kin (Conteh-Morgan,  2019).

You cannot close your eyes to the little economic improvement that Africans have undergone in the past five years. Still, it is more difficult to measure the degree of economic improvement that has been undergone by the continent. There are countries which are more diversified in the production and export sector than other countries (Hayden, 2012). The countries with high production rates tend to have a high per capita income than the other countries. From my research, despite the economic growth in most of the African countries, little structural development has been noticed, which makes Africa lag behind other countries in the world. Countries like Rwanda are catching up with production by being the first country to launch an android phone. In 2019 Rwanda become the first country to launch a phone known as the Mara x and the Mara Z that are operating using the Google Android operating system. In countries like Egypt, South Africa, Ethiopia, and Algeria have assembling smartphones, but the components are imported (Hayden, 2012). The Mara Company is the first to make the motherboard of a phone locally in Africa. Mara looks ahead to benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which is formed from 55 countries. The agreement brings together 1.3 billion individuals in Africa, who will, in the estimation, bring together an economic bloc of around $ 3.5 billion.

Currently, according to the World Bank, Sub Saharan Africa is one of the regions experiencing the fastest growth in the world.Even though the Sub Saharan area is affected by some downfalls of commodities falling prices, and unfavorable business working environment. The harsh conditions have seen the economic growth in the sub-Saharan area decrease from 4.6 percent to 3.7 percent. The low prices of commodities have affected the export of precious commodities like oil in Angola and gold in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the Northern part of Africa, countries have been undergoing minimal growth, with the exception of Morocco and Egypt, which have been experiencing rapid growth (Hayden, 2012). Algeria has been affected by the reduced oil prices making the economy in the country move a bit slowly. The continent generally has also been receiving slow growth due to deadly diseases like Ebola, which has mostly affected Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. Countries like Libya and South Sudan have been experiencing political heat and insecurity, making their environment unfavorable conditions for economic growth (Hayden, Goran 2012).

Despite the political heat and insecurity issues in some of the countries, Africa is considered to have experienced a reduction in the number of internal wars comparing to back during the early 2000s. Africa is the home of minerals, fuels, and agricultural products, whose price has been going up annually has made Africa an economic environment.

The business climate has been one of the poorest areas pulling the growth of the economy in Africa down. Many companies find it difficult to do business in Africa with ease (Hayden, 2012). However, there are several countries, which have been attracting investors with their flexibility to do business with global cooperatives. Some of the countries include Rwanda, Mauritius, South Africa, Morocco, and Tunisia. Rwanda having a low GDP per capita has focused on improving its business climate, attracting investors and business partners in the country.

In conclusion, Africa has been experiencing economic growth in the 21st century compared to the rest of the years back. The process of advancement in the technology sector has contributed a lot to the growth of the African economy by providing platforms to do business globally with minimal charges. Africa also has been the home of agricultural products, minerals, and fuel scaling up the economy of Africa and making foreigners, private investors, and non-governmental organizations to come and invest in Africa. Despite economic growth, Africa has also been experiencing some downfalls. Political heat and insecurity have been affecting the growth of business in Africa. Many countries have been having internal warfare and border issues, making the economy of the country and the continent in general decline. Dangerous diseases like Ebola have also contributed to the slow growth rate of Africa. The diseases are incurable hence making it difficult for foreign investors to come and invest in the countries. Also, current investors tend to shift their capital to other countries or continents. The dominance of terrorist groups like the Al-Shabaab and the Boko Haram has been a hindrance to growth in Africa due to causing religious wars hence making countries like Nigeria and Somalia a war zone, which is not a favorable climate for business. Despite all the negative factors, Africa has experienced a reduction in several internal wars, with some of the countries improving globally in terms of the business climate. Countries like Rwanda have been on the map of growth, with it being the first country in Africa to be able to produce a local Google android based phone.

References

PANSY, H., & TLAKULA, S. SPOTLIGHT ON THE IEC HEADING INTO THE 2019 NATIONAL AND PROVINCIAL ELECTIONS. Retrieved from:https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/africa-quo-vadis-1358

FRANKEMA, E. (2019). AFRICAN HISTORY AND THE ANTHROPOCENE-Economic Development and Environmental History in the Anthropocene.retrived from:Lhttps://www.nemko.com/news/africa-quo-vadis

Sambala, E. Z., Ndwandwe, D. E., Imaan, L. M., & Wiysonge, C. S. (2019). Evaluation of influenza surveillance systems in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review protocol. BMJ open, 9(1), e023335.

Conteh-Morgan, E. (2019). Militarization and Securitization in Africa: The Role of Sino-American Geostrategic Presence. Insight Turkey, 21(1).

Hayden, Goran. September 2012. Africa-quo Vadis.https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/african-politics-in-comparative-perspective/quo-vadis-africa/B2AB51A3B66A81F5227A363DE0DC2F90

Hendricks, Cheryl. March,2017. Progress or stagnation? – Quo Vadis South African Politics. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02589346.2017.1280918