I used to work for Mo Ibrahim at his first company, MSI in London, and I'm full of admiration for what he's been doing.
I know China better than Africa, but there are parallels and interesting differences. My wife is Chinese and I've been visiting the country since 2001. Her home city has doubled in size in that time. Back then the few cars you saw on the road were either government owned or taxis, now the streets are choked with traffic. I've been to the countryside in China, and Africa. There are good reasons people queue up for those Foxcon jobs, believe me. I'm not saying their labour practices are perfect, I don't know, but the risks they run there have got to be a world apart from the risks they run from the privation and squalour of country life in China. It's interesting that rural Africa is doing well, but the system in China stacks things against country people too much though.
These countries are going through industrial revolution at fast-forward speeds. That creates risks, but that doesn't mean anyone over there thinks putting on the brakes is a good idea, because the very real costs of doing that are even greater.
I know China better than Africa, but there are parallels and interesting differences. My wife is Chinese and I've been visiting the country since 2001. Her home city has doubled in size in that time. Back then the few cars you saw on the road were either government owned or taxis, now the streets are choked with traffic. I've been to the countryside in China, and Africa. There are good reasons people queue up for those Foxcon jobs, believe me. I'm not saying their labour practices are perfect, I don't know, but the risks they run there have got to be a world apart from the risks they run from the privation and squalour of country life in China. It's interesting that rural Africa is doing well, but the system in China stacks things against country people too much though.
These countries are going through industrial revolution at fast-forward speeds. That creates risks, but that doesn't mean anyone over there thinks putting on the brakes is a good idea, because the very real costs of doing that are even greater.