Infrastracture
• Time has a different concept in Africa
to the West. Relationships, class and
authority dictates timing, as opposed
to Greenwich meantime.
• Education contributes directly to
the advancement of the country.
This influences sk ills, general
understanding of the environment,
the world and sustainable business.
Factors hindering business and
industry in Africa
An overall perspective on the pervasive
challenges in Africa has been given, and
cultural issues affecting industry and
business have been discussed. These
challenges and cultural issues are very
relevant to the factors hindering industry and business in the continent, which
are outlined below:
General:
• Lack of accurate information about
Africa.
• The race to be Africa’s leading
economy pegs countries against
each other instead of unifying the
continent.
• Organisations such as South African
Development Community (SADC)
and the African Union (AU) do not
adequately contribute towards
easier trade and development
environments across the continent.
However, government partnerships
between embassies are of great
practical assistance.
• Bureaucratic processes slows down
development opportunities.
Technical challenges:
• Locally supported solutions are not
linked to global trends.
• Sustainable engineering is not a key
focus.
• L a c k o f i n f r a s t r u c t u r e a n d
technology, although in areas such
as telecommunications and energy
Africa is able to use new technologies
to leapfrog earlier development in
other countries.
• African in-fighting, instead of
improving infrastruc ture and
te c h n o l o gi c a l a d v a n ce m e n t s,
embattles itself in power struggles.
• P r o c u r e m e n t i s c o n d u c t e d
differently.
Political instability:
• Political stability drives investors and
effects travel (e.g. Rwanda Embassy
March 2014; Nigerian travel debacle
June 2012).
Finances:
• Finances are limited.
• Financial discussions are not
regulated, and it is all down to
negotiations.
• Fluctuating currencies.
First world contributions or lack
thereof:
• Technology companies spend
money on training, trade shows
and proof of concepts in the
west while not supporting the
developing countries. As a result, the
understanding of latest technologies
and implementation thereof lags
behind the rest of the world.
Corruption:
• Cor porate G over nance is not
adhered to.
• Facilitation fees, bribes and grease
payments abound.
China
Chinese influence is strong. Seeing
fewer investment opportunities in their
home countries, Chinese corporates are
setting up shop in Africa. According to
recent reports there are “thousands of
such firms already in Africa”. Chinese
development in Africa is not lead by any
other country to the same scale.
However in many cases the sustainability of the investment is not there.
There is apparently little skills development locally and many products are
non-compliant and not in accordance
with international standards and best
practices.
Conclusion
The following quote from MBendi sums
up the situation in Africa well: “While
many write off Africa as the continent of
despair, other enterprising individuals
and organisations have recognised the
huge, untapped potential of Africa and
are actively pursuing business ventures
across the continent.”
To make a success of the potentially
upbeat scenario, industry and business
players should take into account and
welcome the current opportunities.
From here on out they should be totally
committed to gaining knowledge and
experience of the challenges inherent
in industrial development in Africa, and
consistently and purposefully deal with
and work through them. This progress
can translate into positive trends such as
creation of sufficient jobs and a significant
improvement of quality of life throughout
Africa. The overall result could be rewarding industrial and economic growth
prospects and development of infrastructure to the benefit of all.
It is crucial that a win-win situation be
achieved by both those pursuing business opportunities across borders as
well as citizens resident in countries belonging to the greater African continent.
Irrespective of race, we are born Africans
and believe in the prosperity of Africa for
all of her people. The continent is abundant in natural resources and beauty,
which can only be tapped in a sustainable
all-inclusive manner. Africa is our home.
References:
¹ AOE www: http://www.africane