OPTIMISTS AND PESSIMISTS
DEBATE AFRICA’S GROWTHYour article ‘Is Africa’s development
an illusion’[TAR90 May 2017] provides
a succinct summary of the two
contrasting assessments of the state of
Africa’s economy by some of the people
who have been influential in shaping
its development trajectory. On the one
hand, optimists like Donald Kaberuka,
former AfDB president, suggest that
Africahasneverhaditsogood.And
on the other are the pessimists who
only see misery and a bleak future. As
in most cases, the truth is somewhere
in the middle. While much of Africa
is today doing better in terms of
macroeconomic growth, the levelsof poverty and unemployment,
investment in infrastructure, education,
sovereign debt, dependence on raw
materials, and, crucially, the quality
of governance, all remain unacceptable
for the vast majority of the ordinary
people. Moreover, much of Africa’s
development path continues to be
shaped, not by Africans themselves,
but by politicians and technocrats in state
capitals in the West. Philosophically,the question may be which world view
is better for moving Africa forward:
glass half full or glass half empty?
Chukwumerije Okereke,Co-author
ofHomegrown Development in AfricaSINGAPORE-AFRICA:
FIRST COME FIRST SERVEDAfrica still is an underexplored
marketfor most Singaporean
companies [‘Stronger ties, biscuit by
biscuit’, TAR90 May 2017]. While Global
FDI in the African continent increased
by 41% between 2007 and 2015,
Singapore’s share of foreign investment
in Africa dropped from 10.3% to 3.4%
in the same period. Misconceptions
and lack of knowledge prevent more
Singaporean companies venturing into
Africa. Only growing cooperation
between governments and constant
mutual exposure can change that.
The first-comers are already collecting
the gains of their investments:
companies such as Indorama, Olam,
PIL, Wilmar, Tolaram, CrimsonLogic,
Surbana Jurong, Vega Foods, Aluzinc
and Hyflux. They are live examples
of the opportunities awaiting in Africa.
Otavio Veras,Research Associate,
NTU-SBF Centre for African StudiesMAKE GENDER DIVERSITY
A TOP CEO PRIORITYA
s we celebrate the African women who
have made it to the top, we should also take
a moment to consider what we can do
as businesses to close the gender gap faster [‘Star
dealmakers’, TAR91 June 2017]. In our 2016
‘Women Matter Africa’ report, we provide concrete
actions that organisations can take. There’s one
dimension in particular where African organisations
are falling behind: ‘Make gender diversity a top CEO
priority’. Today, only 31% of African companies see
gender diversity as a top CEO priority, which stands in stark contrast to North
America, for example, where it’s 75% of companies. Research shows that
when the CEO is a chief advocate for change, the broader workforce is more
inclined to follow. So to bring about change, we need to see our African CEOs
(who, for the record, are 95% male) stand up and be counted.
Tania Holt,Partner, McKinsey & Companyhttp://www.theafricareport.com50 women shaking up businessdealmakers
- •NigeriaRwandaThe cereal entrepreneursAn opposition stands up
Nairobi:to control Africa’sbridge to AsiaThe race •South AfricaIstheDAdoinggoodinPE?
StarClockwise from left:Ibukun Awosika, Rita Zniber,Tabitha Karanja, Maria RamosAlgeria 550 DA • Belgium €5.90 • Canada CA$ 7.95 • DR Congo US$ 9 • Denmark 60 DK • DOM 8 € • Ethiopia 90 Birr • France €5.90Germany €5.90 • Ghana GH¢ 10 • Italy €5.90 • Kenya KES 410 • Morocco 40 DH • Netherlands €5.90 • Nigeria 800 NGN • Norway NK 70Portugal €5.90 • Rwanda RWF 6,000 • Sierra Leone LE 15,000 • South Africa R40 (tax incl.) • Spain €5.90 • Sweden SEK 70Switzerland 9.90 FS • Tanzania TZS 10,000 • Tunisia 5.4 DT • Uganda UGX 10,000 • UK £4.50 • United States US$ 6.95 • Zambia 48 ZMWZimbabwe US$ 4 • CFA Countries 3,500 F CFA • Euro Zone €5.90INTERNATIONAL EDITIONN° 91 • JUNE 2017GROUPE JEUNE AFRIQUEADVERTISERS’ INDEX
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DISTRIBUTION,IanMunn,+263778075147,[email protected] For other regions go towww.theafricareport.comCorrectionIn our list of 50 women business leaders published in TAR
[June 2017], we erroneously implied that Delphine Traoré Maïdou no
longer works for Allianz Africa. The article should have made clear
that Maïdou, who stepped down as CEO of Allianz Global Corporate
& Specialty (AGCS) Africa on 1 February, remains a non-executive member
of the board of management of AGCS Africa. We apologise for this mistake.8