Africa is a fast-developing continent with a promising future. Although it suffers from a crisis of development, it boasts of a growing workforce and as such is quite an attraction to investment.
According to the World Economic Forum, half of the world’s fastest-growing economies are within Africa. For example, Ghana and Ethiopia have showed real-time GDP growth of over 8% in 2018.
With the massive influx of capitalists in Africa, investing in Africa has become much more than a conversation about money and profit.
Even more so, there’s a need for investment to be more compassionate, aware, and connected to the grassroots.
Africa is home to a lot of discovery, creativity, talent, and wealth. However, allthis potential is often only harnessed by wealthy Africans and foreign investors. Often, investors find themselves in Africa for different reasons.
Many end up exiting the market without leaving a significant mark other than making excess profit at the expense of the businesses they partner with and the communities they work with. Therefore, there is a need for a paradigm shifttowards more sustainable motives for investing in Africa.
Rather than stacking up assets, hoarding ideas, or investing in solutions that are not relevant to the common man, investing in Africa should be inspired by passion, equity, and not just profit making. Africa has a wide array of many significant natural resources.
Due to the abundance of these resources, Africa has gained popularity as a great investment destination in the past decades.
Many investors see Africa as an emerging market that continues to mature with potential for huge profit. Unfortunately, many African countries are plagued with political unrest, economic instability, and corruption which makes them unattractive to investors.
On the one hand, Africa’s enormous natural resources are great resources for investors to leverage. Meanwhile, these resources are unevenly distributed and hardly cause improvement in quality of life.
Notwithstanding, there are several benefits of investing in Africa. Africa offers the highest return on foreign direct investment in the world, according to OPIC. Furthermore, several resources in Africa remain untapped. Africa’s population represents approximately 17% of the world’s population. Therefore, investing in Africa offers investors a huge opportunity for consumer goods.
While it is not wrong that a lot of big investment players are interested in Africa, Africansneeds to be positioned strategically to benefit from this positive sentiment. The future of Africa largely relies on how well business owners and leaders can tap into the influx of passionate investors. Africa is a great continent, yet so much must be in place to achieve the full potentials of the continent.There are often too many risks associated with investment in Africa. Moreover, investors should work harder at connecting with the African and creating products that meet the needs of an average African.
African stories are one of the many things that connect Africans. Hence, deliberately exploring African history is a great way to promote a sense of social corporate responsibility.
Investing in Africa should come with a deep sense of satisfaction and contentment. Investing in Africa should be a driving force and not just a ploy to exploit. Therefore, investment should consider capacity building as an essential part of their investment outreach, and investors must seek strategies for making impact in the most needed places within the continent.