Page 72 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 9

MY AFRIKA

THE WORLD'S WEALTHIEST POOR

CONTINENT

By Fr Anselm Adodo

he western, capitalist mobile banking technology. Do not cameras.
narrative that Agricul- be deceived by such a false prem- The Democratic Republic of Con-
ture will save Africa is ise. The foundation of the so-called go is the world's largest producer
Tfalse and misleading. information technology of today of Coltan. Coltan is essential in the
No nation has ever become devel- is manufacturing. For every dollar production of mobile phones and
oped by focusing on subsistence that Africa makes from Mobile tantalum capacitors that are used
farming or Agriculture. The surest phone technology and the internet, in almost every kind of electronic
way to wealth creation is MANU- she generates at least ten thousand device. Approximately 80% of the
FACTURING. Africa is the only dollars for the rest of the world. world's supply of Coltan is found in
continent that exports over 80% of For the 'developed' countries of the the Democratic Republic of Congo.
its raw materials, either willingly or world to sustain their growth, they For the world to keep enjoying
by force. need unhindered access to Africa's mobile phone technology, it must
raw materials. have unhindered access to tantalum
Therefore, Africa is the world's larg- from Congo. For your information,
est producer of wealth for everyone As we speak, hundreds of thou- Congo is among the world's poorest
on earth-except its own people. sands of Congolese children work countries.
themselves to death in Congolese
I hear a lot of people say that the mines where they mine cobalt, Niger Republic and Namibia are
new source of wealth in Africa is earning one dollar a day. Cobalt is among the world's top producers
digital wealth, information commu- used in making the lithium batteries of uranium. They are also among
nication technology, internet, and that power your mobile phones and the world's poorest. Niger alone

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