Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa

Africa: The world’s new powerhouse

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The just concluded 60th anniversary of the Asian-African Conference featured more than 100 countries that were retracing the historic path of an event that changed the world.
Today, countries like South Africa, Nigeria and Rwanda lead Africa’s rise in the global economy and international stature.
Africa has all the ingredients to be a dominant economic engine for decades to come, according to demographers, economists and industrial and agricultural experts.
With more than 1.1 billion citizens, Africa has huge potential. About one-third of Africa’s 54 nations have a yearly gain in gross domestic product (GDP) of more than 6 percent, making the continent the second highest in economic growth after Asia, which is growing at 4.7 percent per year.
One main factor is because Africa is at last getting its share of peace and good governance since Benin set the mainland trend in 1991.
Population trends could also be improving these developments. More better-educated young people are entering the job market and birth rates are beginning to decline. As the proportion of working-age people to dependents rises, growth should get a boost.
Asia enjoyed the “demographic dividend”, which began three decades ago and is now tailing off. In Africa it is just starting. Continue reading Africa: The world’s new powerhouse →

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Malaysia is the largest Asian investor in Africa

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Three reasons why we should do business with Singapore. However, Singapore has already reached a developed nation status. Malaysia is still developing (some call it semi-developed, because, absent a few economic indicators, it has all the markings of a developed nation). Therefore, it has more in common with Nigeria. It’s also not Singapore, but Malaysia that has the largest Asian investment in Africa. It’s also Malaysia, not Singapore that sends aids and its people to help Africans. Nigeria will also benefit from how Malaysia is able to keep its cost of living so low; one example, oil prices are 60 percent cheaper in Malaysia than Singapore and Thailand.
Malaysia is ahead of China in terms of the size of its direct foreign investment (FDI) into Africa and the gap is widening. A survey of foreign investment into and out of the five BRICS countries, published on the eve of their summit in South Africa and while new Chinese President Xi Jinping visits the continent, revealed that China’s march into Africa has lagged behind the flow of cash from Kuala Lumpur. In 2011, Malaysia was third largest investor in Africa overall, only behind the United States and France. China came fourth and India fifth.
… France and the Malaysia is ahead of China in terms of the size of its direct foreign investment (FDI) into Africa and the gap is widening United States also have the largest historical stock of investments in Africa,” Reuters reported, “with Britain in third place and Malaysia in fourth, followed by South Africa, China and India.”
India has $14 billion invested in Africa; China 16 billion and Malaysia, $19.3 billion (about 24% of its FDI).

Source: Weekly Trust, April 18th 2015

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Billions for Africas Energy

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Energy is a scarce resource in many African countries. It is estimated that less than 40 percent of the inhabitants of the continent have regular access to electricity. Especially bad is the supply of energy sub-saharan region. According to UNESCO, this is the only region in the world, where the absolute amount of people without access to electricity even increases.

To meet this need, even approximately, a major expansion of electricity generation capacity is essential. This would have to rise from 125 gigawatts installed today to an estimated 700 gigawatts in 2040. Many African countries are aware of this problem, already investing heavily in expanding its energy sector, or at least want to start in the near future with it.

Source: www.tube.de

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Investments in Africa