Africa
Africa
Fair Observer provides insightful and informed analysis of important issues, events and trends on the African continent.
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By Jake BrightForecasts about growth in Africa have been revised drastically, and as investment and know-how pour in, Africa is expected to become the fastest growing region over the next decade. International CEOs who have not recently revised their appraisal of Africa would be well served to do so, and quickly. There is an unprecedented transformation occurring across the continent rendering years of economic assessment all but obsolete. This was evident at a recent New York Stock Exchange African investment conference, which boasted representatives of Africa’s 29 stock exchanges, panels on private equity, IPO announcements, investment outlooks by senior Wall Street analysts, and presentations on...
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Africa has grown by leaps and bounds over the last two decades, and will continue to do so. What a change a decade makes. Africa has come a long way since The Economist headline (now described as “regrettable”) of May 11, 2000 that referred to Africa as “The Hopeless Continent”. We are seeing a noticeable shift in the way the continent is perceived from the outside. At the beginning of the year, The Guardian published an editorial: “A fresh chapter is opening in Africa's history” and the Financial Times followed up with “Why Africa is leaving Europe behind”. The Economist, itself, in a dramatic reversal, titled its most recent issue...
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Background Africa — the cradle of civilization — has borne witness to many a false dawn. The continent has known profound eras of world influence and notable periods of decline. As humanity’s initial habitat, Africa is necessarily the originating situs of economic enterprise. Agrarian activity in Africa began around 5200BC, and the continent’s first movements on the global trade chessboard trace back to 3000BC. Trade incubated the growth of cities and empires such as the ancient Egyptian civilization, which left an indelible imprint on the story of human development. Events of the past 400 years have served to cast a shadow on Africa’s potential in the current...
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Algeria’s Islamists are bound to make gains in the country’s parliamentary elections on May 10, but it remains to be seen whether they will have a significant impact on the country. As the Arab uprisings continue into the second year, there is a distinct hint of rising public Islamism across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Egypt has seen the ascendance of the Muslim Brotherhood in the wake of Hosni Mubarak’s vertiginous fall; in Tunisia the moderate Islamist party Ennahda has triumphed in parliamentary elections; and Libya currently has several moderate to possibly radical Islamist groupings vying for influence. The events across the region are heralding a shift...
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A summary of Algeria’s post-colonial history and a brief look at the first legislative elections since the start of the ongoing Arab uprisings. Background Algeria, now the Arab world’s largest country since Sudan split, gained its independence in 1962 after a bloody and catastrophic war which cost over 1mn lives and culminated in the end of French colonial rule. The war began in 1954 and ensued for nearly a decade, until the National Liberation Front (FLN) rose to power. Following this, Algeria saw its political route move towards a socialist system. The FLN aligned itself with the Soviet Union in the Cold War era and with revolutionary Arab states. Despite the discovery of...
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By Kwei Quartey Rather than fostering development, the workings of the oil industry in Ghana seem to be damaging communities and re-routing wealth out of the country. In 2007, substantial oil deposits were discovered in the Jubilee field off the coast of Ghana’s Western Region, and production began in 2010. As a result, Sekondi-Takoradi, the region’s coastal capital, has gained new prominence in a country whose most high-profile urban center has generally been the national capital of Accra. There is already unmanageable congestion at Takoradi Harbor. During my visit to Ghana in March 2012, I was eager to assess the mood of the country in light of its much-touted new oil...
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Co-authored with Macharia Nginyo The extent to which Kenya’s newfound oil reserves will fuel its growth trajectory remains to be seen. It is great news that Kenya struck oil and we, the citizens, should be thankful to the deities that were responsible for this blessing that has befallen our great nation. It is now all up to us, ostensibly! Given this unexpected yet timely finding, is Kenya at a crossroad or not? Do we wait for the black gold or do we go for the multiplier effect? As ordinary citizens, my co-author, an IT sales professional, and myself, a financial risk management professional, have recently been trying to understand the predicament of Kenya’s uncontrolled...
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Background Oil is definitely among the most important natural resources of our time. According to a report by the African Development Bank and the African Union, it is estimated that in 2025 global oil demand will have increased by 57% compared to today. Considering that oil is non-renewable and therefore not available limitlessly, competition will rise along with increasing demand.Even though Africa’s oil reserves are estimated to only be 9-10% of the world’s total, they have gained major importance over the last couple of decades. In the past 20 years, the known quantity of oil in Africa grew by over 25% and it is estimated that oil production will rise continuously at an...
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The Kony 2012 video has drawn unprecendented attention to Joseph Kony, but it offers little depth. Looking at Uganda through Invisible Children‘s lense could have dangerous consequences. Who knows Joseph Kony? Over 100 million people met him recently on YouTube and Vimeo. These platforms feature a video by the American NGO Invisible Children (IC), which has set itself the goal to make Kony so famous that he will inevitably and finally be arrested by the end of 2012. Kony 2012 is currently the most shared video on social networking sites around the world. The video is produced professionally and starts with small, emotional scenes of everyday happiness shared via Facebook and blogs....
