Page 17 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 11

MY AFRIKA

he African continent is population is equivalent to 16.72%
massive and is endowed of the total world population with
with diversity and lots of the median age at 19.7 years. These
Tresources to tap from, stats are evident of the widely
her people deeply versatile in nature, existing youthful category of people
yet most countries in the continent in the continent and consequently,
have not realized strategic ways and raises eyebrows about the fears of
methods on how to exploit such. As overpopulation in Africa and wheth-
such, much of what may be termed er proactive measures should be tak-
as resourceful to the larger percent- en to avert the avarice. Evolving in
age of people who call Africa home tandem with this exponential young Nyawire Michael:
could just be an illusion mated with population, vast labor opportunities Is a practicing Kenyan journalist who is pas-
lots of misconceptions. can readily be presented with ex- sionate about telling African stories that
press motive of building a sustain- demonstrate its universal prowess. I aspire
It is against the backdrop of the able and albeit resilient Afri-conomy. to be an influential and established financial
above quantifiable statement that coach, which will well help me educate my
this article will seek to bring to your Besides setbacks, for instance high fellow Africans on reasonable practices that
perspective the untapped poten- unemployment rates, income ex- would ensure economic soundness and sanity
for Africa.
tial and capabilities that Africa has ploitation by foreign investors, grad- I write as a hobby and as a profession. I'm typ-
failed to realize over the years and ual influx of expatriates, and issues ically an Africanist championing for a better
therefore try to suggest some of the on graft, Africa is riddled with low Africa today and in the days ahead.
setbacks vis a vis solutions foreseen per capita incomes which also affect
to be of great impact going forward access to quality education that is
towards posterity. critical to successfully achieving a the 2011 Arab Spring revolutions, in
complex and independent economy. which youth played an integral role
At present, there are just 10 coun- South Africa, for instance, spends in toppling authoritarian regimes in
tries in Africa that receive $1 billion 6 percent of its gross domestic Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.
or more per year in tourism reve- product on education, which is
nues, signaling enormous potential higher than the average for the more Fortunately, there are viable solu-
for market growth across the con- developed nations that are members tions that can tap into this growing
tinent. Indeed, the region’s natural of The Organization for Economic potential, harnessing it to generate
endowments, as well as untapped Cooperation and Development. Yet, explosive economic growth. It is
cultural and historical resources, nearly 80 percent of the country’s 9 estimated that Africa’s GDP could
offer numerous opportunities to and 10 year olds are unable to read. reach $29 trillion by 2050, a massive
attract visitors. At the same time, Even the quality of teaching leaves a leap from the current $7 trillion.
however, in light of the relatively lot to be desired, given that 80 per- To achieve that, African economies
low-income levels of most Africans, cent of mathematics teachers can- will need to sustainably grow by
industry growth presently depends, not solve the problems presented to more than 5 percent every year. The
to a large extent, on attracting visi- their students. In fact, of every 100 World Bank expects them to grow
tors from other world regions. students who pass through South by 3 percent this year (2021), which
Africa’s education system, only 40 to is a positive sign but still well below
Beyond the potential for capitalizing 50 will go to university and only six the rate needed to reach that 2050
on natural and cultural endowments, will graduate. milestone.
therefore, the strongest candidates
for investment are those countries The combination of all these fac- To accelerate economic growth,
with well-developed travel infra- tors; a massive youth demographic, Africa will need to rely on its mas-
structure, relatively open interna- deterrent (non-adaptive) formal sive labor pool, as well as its wealth
tional movement policies, and an education, low incomes and spiral- of resources. The IMF predicts
attractive environment for starting a ling unemployment rates – means that by 2035, Africa’s working-age
tourism-related business. it is only a matter of time until population will exceed that of the
young people take to the streets and rest of the world combined. Well, as
According to United Nations esti- demand to be heard. This is not hy- for resources, the continent has 65
mates as of February 2021, Africa’s perbole. It already happened during percent of the world’s uncultivated

WWW.MSINGIAFRIKAMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 11 | MAR/APRIL 2021 17